Muse
Black Holes And Revelations
Warners


It comes as no surprise that Muse's fourth album contains some genuinely great songs. The surprise is which songs they are. Pre-release attention focused on the album's vague political overtones, and their ambitious musical statements such as the entertaining - if overrated - intergalactic prog-rock freakout Knights Of Cydonia.

But in the less headline-tastic moments of 'Black Holes And Revelations' Muse have delivered some of their finest songs to date. Matt Bellamy's beautifully restrained vocal over the fluid, Depeche Mode and The Cure-influenced Map Of The Problematique is superb. "I can't get it right...Since I met you" he sings as stabbing strings lace the track, adding urgency. On a list of 'great Muse moments', this is way up there.

Future single Starlight is as big a surprise as the earlier Supermassive Black Hole; but in place of the latter's dirty space funk is a love song boasting the band's most immediate musical hook yet. Invincible builds and builds over a military drum pattern, Bellamy's guitar effects giving it a futuristic edge. All three take existing elements of the band and throw a wildly different slant on them.

Dominic Howard's drumming remains the band's secret weapon and bassist Chris Wolstenholme takes on a range of sounds and duties, most notably on City Of Delusion where his throbbing, effect-heavy bass provides a counterpoint to the fantastic swirling Eastern-style string arrangement that gave identity to a song nearly left off the record. A mariachi-inspired trumpet solo then takes it from Middle East to Wild West in the blink of an eye.

Loaded with songs few bands would attempt, the most gratifying legacy of 'Black Holes And Revelations' stands to be the simple fact that for all their lofty ambitions and posturing, Muse have grown into a band capable of writing very, very good songs. One of the world's most impressive groups may have in fact just found their feet. Now there's a thought.

Wade Howland