Muse
The 2nd Law

The Muse were artistically born back in 1997, and after their first two albums, with the second being the best in my opinion, the band exploded around the world. Here we are, in 2013, with the release of their sixth album, named after the second law of thermodynamics.

The Muse are known mostly as "stage animals," and initially, I was a bit skeptical, but after seeing them in Bologna, I changed my mind. It's clear that this project is slightly different from the previous one and, in my opinion, even better. Especially for the variety of genres, it shifts from the classic Muse song like Supremacy to the dubstep (if it can be called that) of The 2nd Law: Unsustainable. In my opinion, the first three tracks alone are worth the purchase of the CD. The first track is Supremacy, which was a candidate to become the Skyfall movie theme; it's an excellent starting track. The second is the project's first single, Madness, which masterfully mixes electronic sounds with the band's classic style. The third track is rather experimental; indeed, the band dives into funk, and the result is truly not bad, too bad for the trashy video that has been in rotation on MTV recently. It's a shame because Muse don't need this kind of video to grab attention... After the prelude, there's Survival, which was chosen as the soundtrack for the last Olympics, and to be honest, the lyrics suggest it. It's a good track, perhaps a bit overblown, but really not bad. With Follow Me, Muse returns to experimenting with new sounds, namely electronic ones, for an outstanding result. Then, the choice to introduce the song with the singer's son's heartbeat is the icing on the cake. Here's the first slow song of the album, and here too, there's nothing to complain about, excellent melodies, and moreover, great lyrics. In my opinion, it would be an excellent choice for the last single of the era. Explorers is a great track but perhaps the weakest of the project, 6.5/10. And here is the band's second major novelty; from track 10 to track 11, the singer is no longer Matthew but the bassist, with a result that's not bad. He may not have Matthew's voice, but the tracks are satisfying. The last two tracks could be considered the two outros of the CD, with the first, and in my opinion, the most beautiful being a real gem as the band experiments with dubstep for the first time. In my opinion, it's better to see it live than to listen to it on the CD.

In conclusion, the album is truly excellent and well done. In my opinion, almost all of the tracks, if not all, have the potential to become singles. The wait of three years has paid off. Sure, we won't reach the levels of "Origin of Symmetry," but in my opinion, it's their second-best CD and a big step forward from "Resistance," which, to be honest, didn't fully "grab me"!