What The Hell Happened To... 08.18.08: Muse - Origin Of Symmetry

Posted by Dan Marsicano on 08.18.2008

This week, Dan Marsicano takes a look at Muse's best album and a new progressive metal band that you should be listening to!

The Introduction

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the 40th edition of What The Hell Happened To. I'm your host, the guy who's surprised he's lasted this long, Dan Marsicano.

For those still unaware, there is a contest going on at 411 Mania. You can win a sweet IPod Nano and CD's from Finch, Scary Kids Scaring Kids, and Tickle Me Pink. 411 always treat the readers well, and this is no different. Don't be "that guy/gal." C'mon, what do you have to lose? You still have two weeks left to enter. Click here for your chance to win a prize pack of goodness!.

This week in new rock/metal releases, we got The Human Abstract's Midheaven,Staind's lovely The Illusion Of Progress, and Straight Line Stitch's When Skies Wash Ashore. I will have reviews up for all of these albums by the end of the week, so watch out for them!


The Big Announcement

I always respect the opinion of the readers of 411 and to thank all of you for reading my column since its start last November, I have decided to make September "Fan Appreciation Month!"

What this entails is that YOU, the 411 readers, will pick the albums I will highlight in September. That's right, you guys get to choose what albums I write about. They have to underrated, but that doesn't mean they need to be good. I love to bash albums as much as I love to praise them.

Not only can you pick the album, but if you want, you can write up an article about it that will be reprinted on my column. Any up-and-coming writers wanting to make their next big break can show off their talents by writing their own "What The Hell Happened To!."

So far, I've gotten a few great responses, and there will be a guest writer as well! It's not too late though; get involved and send me your requests! You readers have until August 31st and I want to hear some interesting albums you want me to look at!





The Band

Matthew Bellamy-Vocals, Guitar, Piano, Synthesizers, Organ
Chris Wolstenholme-Bass, Backing Vocals
Dominic Howard-Drums, Percussion


The Track Listing

1. New Born-6:03
2. Bliss-4:12
3. Space Dementia-6:21
4. Hyper Music-3:21
5. Plug In Baby-3:40
6. Citizen Erased-7:19
7. Micro Cuts-3:38
8. Screenager-4:20
9. Darkshines-4:48
10. Feeling Good-3:20
11. Megalomania-4:38


The History

Muse formed in the early 1990's under the band name Rocket Baby Dolls. At the time, Bellamy was only 14 years old. The band won a local battle of the bands and decided to continue with their music career, quitting school and going on the road.

The band would play small clubs for a few years, but after two successful EP's, Muse got the attention of record labels in America, of all places. This would later be ironic, as their album did poorly in America, while Europe, which had record executives who wanted nothing to do with the band, would embrace the trio.

So everything was done and the band had record deals in Europe and America set up. In September of 1999, Showbiz was released to limited fanfare. Over time, however, at least in the UK, the band's popularity would steadily increase as more singles were released.

The band successfully toured behind Showbiz and went back into the studio to record their sophomore album with John Leckie, who produced their first album. Origin Of Symmetry would be more experimental than their debut album and the first step towards world domination for the British trio…


The Analysis

4 years. That's how long it took Origin Of Symmetry to be released in the United States. The story behind the delay of the album in the states was that Maverick Records, which distributed the band's debut album Showbiz in the United States, dropped the band after they refused to change their sound and take away the falsettos, leaving them with no way to release their album over in the states.

So, for four years, the album collected dust, becoming a huge hit over in the UK, while the US was still oblivious to the extraordinary talent of Muse. Once Absolution came to these shores in 2004, the public began to finally open their eyes to what the UK had seen all along. When singles "Hysteria" and "Time Is Running Out" burned up the Modern Rock charts, the album sold well, and prompted Warner Brothers Records to finally release Origin Of Symmetry in the United States, which it did on September 20th, 2005.

As of 2008, the album has only sold about 55,000 copies in the US, making it one of the lowest selling albums of the band's career over here in the states. The lack of promotion and the four year wait didn't help matters. If there was ever a crime against the record industry, it would be the delay in releasing Origin Of Symmetry. I remember picking up Origin of Symmetry in 2006 after becoming a Muse fan with 2003's Absolution. The epic nature of the album, jumpstarted by the phenomenal "New Born," grabbed me and wouldn't let go. To this day, I still crank the album up at least once a week, even more so than the rest of Muse's discography.

Origin Of Symmetry still had people assuming Muse was Radiohead-lite. Matthew Bellamy's vocals only helped to further that case, but what people don't understand is that Muse was finally starting to separate themselves as a different entity than Radiohead. At this point in Radiohead's career, they had toned down the "rock," trading it in for weird experimentations and electronica. What Muse knew how to do was to be weird and bombastic, while kicking ass at the same time with distorted bass and buzz saw riffs.

Muse's debut Showbiz was a solid start for the trio, but listening to the album today, there is a sense that the band was holding back a bit; the songs were shorter and more straightforward. When the record company told them to tone it down for Origin Of Symmetry, the band basically said "Fuck You" and wrote what they wanted to. They pushed themselves to levels that most Muse fans probably didn't think they were capable of, especially when it came to the longer tracks.



"Sunburn" Live 2001


More so than any of the band's future albums, Origin Of Symmetry is arguably the band at their most progressive. Three tracks are over six minutes long and one reaches the seven minute mark. Muse balanced these tracks out with more accessible tracks, ones that would make the band famous over in the UK. These singles were still quite experimental, but instead of spreading their wings and flying, they kept to the ground and rammed head-on into a brick wall.

"New Born" started out with a piano and minimal bass work with Matt's soothing vocal work that slowly crescendos into a driving guitar and high falsettos left and right. The song is a live staple of the band's and with good reason. It's the perfect opener to Origin Of Symmetry and contains one of Matt's best solos on the album, full of distortion and effects.

After that epic opener, Muse shows that they still have a melodic, radio-friendly sound with "Bliss." The track has a space-rock feel to it, with heavy synthesizers and bass distortion. What I love about Muse is the fact that the bass is not just some throw-away instruments, as it is in many modern rock bands. For the majority of Origin Of Symmetry, Chris' bass drives the melody and sets the tone for the rest of the song. Even to this day, it is a refreshing change of pace and one I wish more bands followed suit with. Then again, that means that bands would have to find a bassist up to the level of Wolstenholme, not an easy task.




"Space Dementia" Live Pinkpop 2004)


"Space Dementia" is the highlight of the album, in my personal opinion. The classical piano introduction sets the mood immediately. For a piano, bass, and drums, there is a wall of sound that blazes out of the listener's speakers. The song goes through many movements, ending with one of the most awe-inspiring closers of Muse's career. All you hear is guitar, keyboard, and bass effects that paint the picture of the skies opening up with the fires of the "Dark Lord." The inclusion of Bellamy's zipper going up and down is entertaining, in a creepy way. Not that I'm into that sort of thing…

The longest song of the band's career, "Citizen Erased," features one of the best riffs of Muse's career and a fantastic mix of heavy choruses and tranquil passages. The ending is beautiful in its execution, with a tuneful piano in the background and Matt crooning:


"Wash me away
Clean your body of me
Erase all the memories
They'll only bring us pain
And I've seen, all I'll ever need"


"Plug In Baby" and "Micro Cuts" are two tracks still played to this day. The former is instantly recognizable by Muse fans. It's their "Master Of Puppets;" "The Trooper;" "Paranoid." A song that fans will forever associate with the band and with good reasons. It has a great sing-along chorus, a heavy bass presence (a trademark of the band) and Bellamy pushing himself vocally. The latter is basically one long falsetto by Bellamy, with a slow build towards a punishing conclusion that gets all metal on us quickly with a energetic conclusion.



"Plug In Baby" Official Music Video


The last couple of tracks are Muse being as eccentric as humanly possible. "Screenager" is the only acoustic track of the album and one jammed pack with synthesizers and tribal percussion by Howard. "Feeling Good" is a cover of a song from a 1965 musical "The Roar of the Greasepaint—the Smell of the Crowd" and gives off a feeling of…goodness? Yeah, that sounds right.

It all comes to head with "Megalomania," which is a strange and wild way to end the album. A pipe organ compliments Bellamy's operatic vocals nicely, with the rest of the band making sure not to outdo both of those elements. If it wasn't for "Knights of Cydonia," "Megalomania" would be the best closing track of Muse's career.

The lyrics are all over the place, one song being about the end of the world and the next is about the love of Matt's life. Matt knows how to express himself quite well, using metaphors and descriptive tendencies to paint a picture that is both clear and hazy at the same time.

Origin Of Symmetry is Muse's most consistent album. While I love everything in their discography, I feel that both Absolution and Black Holes and Revelations dropped off at points, with some sub-par tracks here and there. However, Origin Of Symmetry starts out strong and continues that way for 50 minutes. It's a crime against music that this album was not given much publicity when it initially came over to these shores in 2005. The appeal of Muse is that they can relate to rock fans of all types, whether it is the fans who love the shit on the radio, or those who like a unique, less appealing sound. While some have questioned the musical direction the band has gone in recently, there is no argument that Origin Of Symmetry is the band at a creative highpoint. The only argument is if the band is still in that creative highpoint or has gone downhill. I'll leave it up to you readers to decide that one in the comment section.



Who The Hell Is…Zero Hour?

Official Website: Zero Hour

MySpace Page: Zero Hour

Zero Hour is a progressive metal band with an edge. The California foursome specializes in epic, narrative tracks that span ten plus minutes. The great thing about Zero Hour is that they are able to combine that with catchy, melodic songs that are short and to the point.

The band formed in the mid 90's and have gone through many line-up changes, especially in the vocalist department. Zero Hour is now employing the vocal talent of Chris Salinas, with Jasun Tipton (guitarist, keyboardist), Troy Tipton (bass), and Miek Guy (drums) rounding the band out.

They have been stuck in the underground scene for years, even after five studio releases, but I believe its time to shine a spotlight on them. There are some superb tracks up on their MySpace and I have a few live videos of them. While the quality isn't the best of all time, the immense talent of their members is fully hearable. I would recommend picking up their latest album, 2008's Dark Deceiver, as it is a prime example of how to make progressive music that isn't overblown or self-indulgent.



"Eyes Of Denial" Live Iceland 2007



"There For Me" Live Iceland 2007



The Conclusion

Another column, and another fantastic album, in the books. I hope I pleased all of you who were eagerly awaiting my analysis of Origin Of Symmetry. If you are a Muse fan, and haven't heard the album yet, you can't consider yourself a Muse fan.

Next week, I'm going for the granddaddy of underrated albums…or at least, an overlooked album by one of the biggest bands of the 1970's. I'm talking about Led Zeppelin and their 1976 album Presence. It's going to be an interesting one, to say the least. I'm looking forward to the comments on that one, but until then, keep it breezy!