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Rating: The Muse play at being alternative. Since they started to create their own sound (which for many is equivalent to the word "commercializing"), leaving behind the Radiohead-like ghosts (general chorus: NOOOOO), they have made it a habit to mislead their fans before the release of an album. If for The Resistance they organized a virtual treasure hunt, which led to the discovery of United States Of Eurasia (Yes, exactly, the song in faux Queen style), for The 2nd Law they released the most disparate songs (Survival always in Queen style, Unsustainable in “we-are-cool-alternatives” style, and Madness in “I-am-Prince's-son” style).
It is not the suicidal instinct that made Radiohead famous, no, but an advanced form of commerce. Indeed, by giving the album a quick listen (released publicly in streaming online three days ago), one realizes how each song represents a different atmosphere, more or less successful. From rock that would fit perfectly in a James Bond film (Supremacy), to an 80s disco-funk style vaguely reminiscent of Jackson's Thriller (Panic Station), to a more eclectic obsessive beat, in which Bellamy wanted to include his son's heartbeat while still in the womb (Follow Me), it reaches the obligatory sappy ballad of the album (Explorers).
U2-style atmospheres at full throttle in Big Freeze (probably due to the fact that Muse have opened for some of their concerts) and a breath of fresh air in the two songs sung by Chris Wolstenholme, the group's bassist, overall with a pleasant voice (Save Me and Liquid State). Then we come to the two "orchestral works" (if they can be considered as such) of the album: the first, Unsustainable, represents a poorly executed attempt to follow the current trend of the dubstep wave (the strings at the beginning are beautiful nonetheless). The second, in my humble opinion, represents the peak of the album, with a clean intro of piano and guitar, to which strings and an obsessive beat are later added, while a background voice declares that "In an Isolated System, the entropy can only increase."
So, summing up, an album that represents the desire to change and not to set limits on the band's sound; in some parts pleasant, in others a bit less so, but whose primary function is to remind you during the chemistry oral exam what the second law of thermodynamics is, and how in an isolated system (Italy?) the energy can only disperse, without possible remedies.
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Other reviews
By ThePresident
Muse simply have fun being Muse, confirming themselves as pioneers of the rock of the '00s.
The 2nd Law offers arrangements and sounds that truly have nothing to criticize.
By definitelyalex
Few bands have managed to divide critics and fans like the trio from Teignmouth has in recent years.
The 2nd Law represents a turning point in their career, we’ll see if it will be THE turning point as Kid A was for Radiohead.
By Hellviz
"They wanted to piss against the wind and got so drenched they even caught a cold."
"The Second Law is an unrecognizable album, with a bare sound, where the voice of Bellamy and the sound of his guitar reign."
By simo ghelli
Muse's huge ability to synthesize simplicity and complexity makes them a unique case in the failing music business.
'Madness' transforms into a delicacy that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
By Rage
"The album delights us immediately with 'Supremacy', a cover of the old Muse, in which you can hear Bellamy’s sampled falsetto only at the end."
"The last two tracks ('Unsustainable' and 'Isolated System') are instrumental tracks that, due to the absence of excessive nonsense, are unjustly considered the most beautiful tracks on the album."
