Will of the People is like an AI-Generated Muse Album.
Muse tries to sound like themselves again and fails.
Muse has always been over the top. The iconic English rock band has made the most larger-than-life rock records throughout the 2000s.
From Dominic Howard’s blaring drumming to Chris Wolstenholme’s dissonant basslines, to Matt Bellamy’s heavy distorted guitar.
All while singing otherworldly harmonies about the extra-terrestrial to revolting against an allegorical world order.
There was always a sense of set tension that justifies and gives fuel to their sound.
But whenever they dawned such an excessive musical aura, they’ve also been known for being… good.
Over the request of their label, Warner Bros, for Muse make a Greatest Hits Album, frontman Matthew Bellamy was rather stirred.
They ultimately aimed for a greatest hits album, this time purely new tracks that recapture their greatest hits.
What we got was their ninth studio album, Will of the People.
This explains the return to their early guitar-driven sound, only a few years after saying their instrumental focus has shifted.
I honestly like the ideas and even some of the execution instrumentally, it’s not something hard to grasp
Muse: ‘The guitar is no longer a lead instrument’ — BBC News
But in practice, Will of the People is mediocre at best, as it’s all but overly manufactured revolution blabber.
It bathes too much in its own glory without realizing its lack of purpose.
It doesn’t stand the test of time with its shallow rhetoric, not really for anything great nor good, but for its own sake.
I guess the underlying silver lining is that they made the quintessential Muse album.
Still though, it’s less of a care package like the quintessential Muse album might entail.
It’s more of a corporate whitewash, an AI-generated self-appropriation, and that’s saying something.
And I don’t know if artists have succeeded in actively replicating their old spark just like what Muse attempted.
But in only trying to chase the legacy of another sound and song, in a lot of ways, just makes it feel more watered down, because at times, it lacks innovation.
And In trying to ignite a revolution, they seemed to forget one thing: change.
The opener, title track, Will of the People has to be my favorite.
Sure, I see its Rock and Roll Part 2 influences on its sleeve. but the glam rock edge derived gives it a neat little shine.
I like the chanting just a bit, the guitars are pretty crunchy, but it’s also the start of this record’s many problems.
Sometimes the lyrics are just abysmal, little to no sense of wit or self-awareness is present.
Like “We need a revolution, So long as we stay free” don’t revolutions mostly happen when the people need freedom the most?
Matt has said that it’s nearly ironic, it’s a populist parody unlike songs like Uprising. But really, I don’t buy it.
Just further proves how pointless this all seems.
Compliance is boneless dictator roleplaying.
Everything feels naked here, from the synths, to Matt’s voice, to the very shallow lyricism.
Being taken from the point of view of the album’s authoritarian regime or whatever, it’s more condescending how rather unconvincing it sounds.
You could make a case like “That’s what dictators sound like without all the flowery words” but it just doesn’t come across as anything compelling.
Is Liberation supposed to be a direct response from Compliance? I just can’t get over how you can smell the Queen harmony residue all over from here.
I’m not into the gothic over-poetic nature of Ghosts (How Can I Move On), well I mean I’m not into a lot of gothic over-poetic stuff anyway, so anything that makes it good to me deserves an applause, but not this one though.
You Make Me Feel Like It’s Halloween; Muse’s best attempt at sounding like Corey Feldman’s Angelic 2 The Core.
The over-the-top dubstep, the vocoded voice, the dracula-esque organs. Seriously? What the heck is this mess? It’s beyond me it’s hilarious.
Kill or Be Killed is actually pretty reminiscent of the band, like early Origins of Symmetry days.
With that said, it’s still really not that remarkable at all. It’s pretty mediocre.
Euphoria, thanks to Matt Bellamy’s oddly transparent voice quality, is bizarrely like karaoke banter.
We are Fucking Fucked. What a name. Nope, nope. I’m tired of this record, goodbye.
