The Resistance | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 11 September 2009 | |||
Recorded | September 2008 – May 2009 | |||
Studio | Studio Bellini (Lake Como) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 54:19 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Muse | |||
Muse chronology | ||||
| ||||
Muse studio album chronology | ||||
| ||||
Vinyl cover | ||||
Singles from The Resistance | ||||
|
The Resistance is the fifth studio album by the English rock band Muse,released on 11 September 2009 through Warner Bros. Records and Muse's Helium-3 imprint. It was self-produced and recorded from September 2008 to May 2009 at Studio Bellini in Lake Como,Italy. It mixes rock with orchestral and electronic music,with lyrics influenced by politics and more oppressive subjects. It includes a three-part,13-minute long symphony piece,"Exogenesis".
The album was promoted with the singles "Uprising","Undisclosed Desires",and "Resistance". "Exogenesis:Symphony" was released on vinyl for Record Store Day. The Resistance Tour comprised 30 performances.
The Resistance received generally positive reviews;critics praised its concept,instrumentation,influences and Bellamy's vocals,although some found it overblown and clichéd. It won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards.
The Resistance is Muse's most successful album,with more than five million copies worldwide. It reached number one in 19 countries and the top five in the United States and several others. It was certified platinum in countries including the UK and US.
On 22 May 2008, NME reported that Muse had begun writing songs for their new album. [3] The band released three videos of recording footage,including a session in a lavatory. [4] In a Twitter update on 23 June,Muse said the album was complete,with only mastering left to complete in New York. The album was mixed by Mark Stent at Muse's studio. [5]
At the 2010 Music Producers Guild,Bellamy thanked the producer Rick Rubin "for teaching us how not to produce",which some sources took to mean Muse had fired Rubin from the Resistance sessions. [6] [7] [8] Bellamy later said his comment had been misconstrued and that Muse had never worked with Rubin;instead,he said Muse had been inspired by stories of his "hands-off" production style. [9]
The Resistance has been described as featuring art rock, [10] progressive rock (also known as symphonic rock), [11] [12] space rock, [13] alternative rock, [14] and arena rock. [15]
The Resistance includes a three-song suite,"Exogenesis",described by Bellamy as "a story of humanity coming to an end and everyone pinning their hopes on a group of astronauts who go out to explore space and spread humanity to another planet". Eventually the astronauts "realise that it is just one big cycle,and recognise that unless humanity can change it will happen all over again". [16] The suite features an orchestra of more than 40 musicians. [17]
Muse announced the title The Resistance on their Twitter page on 22 May,[ citation needed ] while the first song was officially announced as "United States of Eurasia" on the official band website, [18] deciphered by fans from a picture of a piece of sheet music held by Bellamy in a photo uploaded on the Twitter page. [18] [19] Following this news,Howard posted a blog on his Myspace account detailing the progress made by the band by saying "Yes,The Resistance is on its way. Out in a few months hopefully. We've just started mixing some tracks and it sounds wicked. Still got a bit more work to do but it's coming along nicely." [20]
On 16 June 2009,Muse announced that the album would be released on 14 September 2009. [21] On 14 July,Muse confirmed via Twitter that the first single from the album would be "Uprising". On 17 August 2009,iTunes gave 30-second previews for each of the songs on the album. [22] "Undisclosed Desires" was uploaded to Muse's official website for streaming by website members on 9 September 2009. [23] From 10 September,the album was made available to stream free through the Guardian website. [24]
The Resistance was released on iTunes as one of the first iTunes LPs. It contains the album as well as added extras such as animated artwork and behind the scenes videos. [25] It was later announced in September that a New Moon remix of "I Belong to You" would be included on the soundtrack to New Moon ,the second film in the Twilight Saga film series. The soundtrack to the first film had featured another song by Muse:"Supermassive Black Hole". [26] The New Moon remix has additional guitars added,and omits the "Mon cœur s'ouvre a ta voix" section.
As well as the CD,CD+DVD,LP,&download versions of the album,Muse also released a box set containing the CD+DVD,LPs,a USB stick containing the album with a bespoke media player,and an art print. A special version of the box set,limited to 5000 copies,was also made which additionally contained a DVD containing a 5.1 surround sound mix of The Resistance - this mix also includes a longer version of "Unnatural Selection".[ citation needed ]
On 18 August 2009,a duo of concerts titled "A Seaside Rendezvous" were confirmed for 4 and 5 September. [27] The concerts were the first in Muse's hometown of Teignmouth in over ten years,as well as the first shows since their appearance at V Festival in August 2008. The performances included the debut appearances of five songs from the upcoming album,including lead single "Uprising","Undisclosed Desires",and "Resistance". The band also performed a small number of shows at other venues in Europe,before they supported U2 for nine dates on the North American leg of their 360°Tour in September and October [28] and in South America in March and April 2011.
In June 2009,the band confirmed the dates for an opening European leg of the Resistance Tour,which they announced would comprise 30 shows. [29] [30] [31] Tickets for the shows in the United Kingdom,Sweden and France went on sale from 5 June, [29] while tickets for other European dates went on fan pre-sale between 11 June (Netherlands) [32] and 17 June (Spain). [33] Tickets for the UK arena dates,both pre-sale and general sale,sold out within minutes of going on sale. [34] On 22 September 2009,it was announced that extra tickets for many of the European concerts would be sold beginning on 24 September. [35]
The band also performed a small number of shows at other venues in Europe,before they supported Irish rock band U2 for nine dates on the North American leg of their 360°Tour in September and October [28] and in South America in March and April 2011. The opening European leg began on 22 October 2009 and ended on 4 December 2009,comprising 30 shows. The second leg,which began on 7 January 2010,included thirteen shows,seven of which were part of the Australasian Big Day Out shows. A North American leg of 26 shows took place in early 2010. Nine stadium shows took place in Europe in 2010,with three of those dates taking place at Wembley Stadium and Old Trafford Cricket Ground. A second round of North American concerts took place throughout September and October 2010.[ citation needed ] At the conclusion of 2010,the tour was placed on Pollstar's annual "Year End Top 50 Worldwide Concert Tours",and appeared 13th worldwide,earning over $76 million with 64 shows in 2010. [36]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 6.4/10 [37] |
Metacritic | 72/100 [38] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [39] |
The A.V. Club | B [40] |
Entertainment Weekly | B [41] |
The Guardian | [42] |
Los Angeles Times | [43] |
NME | 6/10 [44] |
Pitchfork | 5.9/10 [10] |
Q | [45] |
Rolling Stone | [46] |
Spin | 7/10 [47] |
The Resistance received generally positive reviews. At Metacritic,which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics,the album has an average score of 72 based on 23 reviews,indicating "generally favourable reviews". [38]
Andrew Leahey of AllMusic praised the album,highlighting "Guiding Light","United States of Eurasia",and "Exogenesis",and calling it "by and large a fantastic record". [39] In an interview with The Sunday Times ,Dan Cairns wrote that "Muse have made an album of genius,brilliance and beauty". [48] NME identified "Exogenesis:Symphony" as a highlight,describing it as Muse's most bombastic work yet" [49]
Multiple reviews criticised the album as unoriginal,in some instances commenting it was a caricature of progressive rock. [50] [51] Rolling Stone lauded "Uprising" as an "industrial-flavored" song that proved that Muse could still "whip up an almighty roar",but dismissed the album as a whole as clichéd and derivative of Queen. [46] Ben Patashnik from NME felt that the album was "genius" in parts,but criticised it for producing something "conceptually impressive but musically all too familiar". [44] Pitchfork gave the album a mixed review,stating that the songs were "an outgrowth of wanting to make the music as big,inclusive and as singalong as possible,rather than any inchoate political impulses" and criticising its "mass-shout-along-ready lyrics". However,the review concluded:"Judged on its own terms –out of control scale,genre-smashing ambition,musical and vocal virtuosity —The Resistance is a success." [10]
The Queen guitarist Brian May praised the Queen influence. "I love it,I think it's great stuff. I think they're very good boys and extremely talented,and like us they have their tongue in cheek a lot of the time," May said. He described "United States of Eurasia" as "brilliantly done". [52] Muse won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album for The Resistance at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2011. [53]
The Resistance was praised by the rightwing Fox News anchor Glenn Beck,and "Uprising" was used in YouTube videos advocating for conspiracy theories. Bellamy expressed discomfort,describing himself as "a left-leaning libertarian –more in the realm of Noam Chomsky". Muse refused requests from American politicians to use "Uprising" in their rallies. [54] Beck responded in an open letter to Bellamy:"As uncomfortable as it might be for you,I will still play your songs loudly. To me your songs are anthems that beg for choruses of unity and pose the fundamental question facing the world today –can man rule himself?" [55]
In September 2012,the American songwriter Charles Bollfrass sued Muse for $3.5m (£2.2m),claiming that they had plagiarised The Resistance from a science-fiction rock opera concept he said he sent them in 2005. Muse dismissed the claim and said they had never heard of Bolffrass or seen his work. [56] The lawsuit was dismissed by a New York judge in 2013,who said the album's narrative was too abstract to constitute any infringement. [57]
All tracks are written by Matthew Bellamy, except where noted [58]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Uprising" | 5:03 | |
2. | "Resistance" | 5:46 | |
3. | "Undisclosed Desires" | 3:56 | |
4. | "United States of Eurasia (+Collateral Damage)" |
| 5:47 |
5. | "Guiding Light" | 4:13 | |
6. | "Unnatural Selection" | 6:54 | |
7. | "MK Ultra" | 4:06 | |
8. | "I Belong to You (+Mon Cœur S'ouvre a ta Voix)" |
| 5:38 |
9. | "Exogenesis: Symphony Part 1 (Overture)" | 4:18 | |
10. | "Exogenesis: Symphony Part 2 (Cross-Pollination)" | 3:56 | |
11. | "Exogenesis: Symphony Part 3 (Redemption)" | 4:37 | |
Total length: | 54:18 |
Personnel adapted from The Resistance liner notes [58]
|
|
Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australia Benelux Germany Italy Switzerland Ireland | 11 September 2009 | Warner | CD | 2564687434 | [59] |
CD+DVD | 2564686625 | [60] | |||
CD+DVD+2 LP+USB | Unknown | [61] | |||
Europe New Zealand | 14 September 2009 | Helium 3 | CD | 825646874347 | [62] |
CD+DVD | 825646866250 | [63] | |||
CD+DVD+2LP+USB | 825646869664 | [64] | |||
United States Canada | 15 September 2009 | Warner Bros. | CD | Unknown | [65] |
CD+DVD | Unknown | [66] | |||
CD+DVD+2LP+USB | Unknown | [64] | |||
Japan | 16 September 2009 | Warner | CD | WPCR13629 | [67] |
Brazil | 21 September 2009 | Warner | CD | 825646874347 | [68] |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [131] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
Austria (IFPI Austria) [132] | Gold | 10,000* |
Belgium (BEA) [133] | Platinum | 30,000* |
Canada (Music Canada) [134] | 2× Platinum | 160,000‡ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [135] | 2× Platinum | 40,000‡ |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [136] | Platinum | 23,536 [136] |
France (SNEP) [137] | Diamond | 845,000 [138] |
Germany (BVMI) [139] | Platinum | 200,000^ |
Ireland (IRMA) [140] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Italy (FIMI) [141] | 2× Platinum | 140,000* |
Netherlands (NVPI) [142] | Gold | 25,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [143] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Norway (IFPI Norway) [144] | Gold | 15,000* |
Poland (ZPAV) [145] | Gold | 10,000* |
Portugal (AFP) [146] | Platinum | 20,000^ |
Russia (NFPF) [88] | Gold | 10,000* |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [147] | Platinum | 30,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [148] | 2× Platinum | 790,602 [149] |
United States (RIAA) [150] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
Summaries | ||
Europe (IFPI) [151] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000* |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
Year | Title | Peak chart positions | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK [152] | AUS [69] | IRE [153] | NZ [154] | US Alt. [155] | US Rock [155] | US [155] | ||
2009 | "Uprising" | 9 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 37 |
"Undisclosed Desires" | 49 | 11 | — | 12 | 4 | 7 | — | |
2010 | "Resistance" | 38 | 72 | — | — | 1 | 7 | 114 |
"Exogenesis: Symphony" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
MTV EXIT, the MTV campaign to eradicate the human exploitation and trafficking especially in Asia and Pacific, in partnership with USAID, released a music video "Muse and MTV EXIT: MK Ultra", the third in a series of award-winning music video collaborations to highlight the dangers and impact of human trafficking. Produced for the band's track "MK Ultra", the video was launched globally across all of MTV's properties on-air and on-line on 17 September 2010.
Absolution is the third studio album by English rock band Muse, released on 22 September 2003 through Taste Media. It was produced by Muse and Rich Costey, with additional production by John Cornfield and Paul Reeve.
Franz Ferdinand is the debut studio album by Scottish indie rock band Franz Ferdinand, first released on 9 February 2004 through the Domino Recording Company. It was recorded during 2003 at Gula Studios in Malmö, Sweden, with Tore Johansson, who produced the majority of the album, with two tracks produced by the band themselves. It entered the United Kingdom album charts at number three in February 2004 and contains the UK top ten singles "Take Me Out" and "The Dark of the Matinée" as well as UK top 20 hit "Michael".
Showbiz is the debut studio album by English rock band Muse, first released on 7 September 1999 through Taste Media. It was released in various other regions around the world through the band's different regional labels such as; Naïve in France, Motor in Germany, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine, Maverick in the United States, Play It Again Sam (PIAS) in Benelux, and Avex Trax in Japan.
Origin of Symmetry is the second studio album by English rock band Muse, released on 18 June 2001 through Taste Media. It was produced by John Leckie, who produced Muse's debut album, Showbiz (1999), and David Bottrill.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, released on March 23, 2004. Released by Geffen Records in part because of the delay in the making of Chinese Democracy, the album was subject to lawsuits by band member Axl Rose and former band members, in an attempt to block its release due to its track listing.
Black Holes and Revelations is the fourth studio album by English rock band Muse, first released on 3 July 2006 through Warner Bros. Records and Muse's Helium-3 imprint. It was produced by Rich Costey over four months in New York City, London, Milan and southern France.
The discography of the English rock band Muse includes nine studio albums, two live albums, one compilation album, one box set, five EPs, 44 singles, two video albums and 61 music videos.
"Starlight" is a song by the English rock band Muse. It was released in 2006 as the second single from their fourth studio album, Black Holes and Revelations (2006).
Mothership is a compilation album by English rock band Led Zeppelin, released by Atlantic Records and Rhino Entertainment on 12 November 2007 in the United Kingdom, and 13 November 2007 in the United States. It was released on the same day that Led Zeppelin's entire catalogue became available in digital stores, including the iTunes Store. The cover was designed by artist Shepard Fairey.
This Is the Life is the debut studio album by British singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald, released on 30 July 2007. It reached number one on the UK Albums Chart on 13 January 2008 and sold over 900,000 copies in the UK as of February 2017, awarding the album a certification of 3× Platinum.
HAARP is a live album and video by English rock band Muse, released on 17 March 2008 in the United Kingdom and 1 April 2008 in the United States. The CD documents the band's performance at London's Wembley Stadium, as part of their Black Holes and Revelations Tour, on 16 June 2007, while the DVD contains 20 tracks from the performance on 17 June. The total number of audiences watching the band's shows on 16 and 17 June 2007 was 180,000. It was named the 40th greatest live album of all time by NME in 2010.
Only by the Night is the fourth studio album by American rock band Kings of Leon, released in September 2008 through RCA Records. Writing for the band's fourth album commenced just days after the release of their third, Because of the Times. The album was recorded by producers Jacquire King and Angelo Petraglia in April 2008 at Nashville's Blackbird Studio.
Hopes and Fears is the debut studio album by the English alternative rock band Keane. It was released on 10 May 2004 in the United Kingdom and topped the UK Albums Chart upon release. It was the UK's second best-selling album of 2004, behind the Scissor Sisters' self-titled debut album, and has since been certified 9× Platinum by the BPI. The album returned to the top of the charts after winning a Brit Award for Best Album in February 2005.
"Uprising" is a song by the English rock band Muse, released on 4 August 2009 as the lead single from their fifth studio album, The Resistance (2009). It was written by Matt Bellamy, produced by Muse and mixed by Spike Stent.
The Twilight Saga: New Moon is the official soundtrack to The Twilight Saga: New Moon. The score for The Twilight Saga: New Moon was composed by Alexandre Desplat while the rest of the soundtrack was chosen by music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas, who also produced the Twilight soundtrack. The New Moon – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album was released on October 16, 2009 by Patsavas' Chop Shop label, in conjunction with Atlantic Records.
The 2nd Law is the sixth studio album by English rock band Muse, first released on 28 September 2012 through Warner Bros. Records and the band's own Helium-3 imprint. Recording of the album took place in studios between London and Los Angeles County, beginning in October 2011 and ending in August 2012. The 2nd Law was Muse's second album to be solely self-produced, following The Resistance (2009), and features a plethora of additional musicians that performed brass, strings, and choir vocals.
"Madness" is a song by the English rock band Muse. It is the second track and second single from Muse's sixth studio album, The 2nd Law (2012), released as a download on 20 August 2012. It was written by singer and guitarist Matthew Bellamy and produced by the band. The music video premiered on 5 September 2012.
Live at Rome Olympic Stadium is a live album and video by English rock band Muse, which was released on 29 November 2013 in CD/DVD formats. On 5 November 2013, the film received theatrical screenings in 20 cities worldwide, and the next day it was screened for one night only in 40 other territories. The album contains the band's performance in Italy at Rome's Stadio Olimpico on 6 July 2013, in front of a crowd of 60,963 people. The concert was a part of The Unsustainable Tour, which is a moniker for the band's summer 2013 European leg of The 2nd Law World Tour.
Drones is the seventh studio album by English rock band Muse, released on 5 June 2015 through Warner Bros. Records and the band's own Helium-3 imprint. The album was recorded between October 2014 and April 2015 at the Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, with orchestral sections recorded at Officine Meccaniche in Milan, and was produced by the band and Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Drones is a concept album following a soldier's abandonment, indoctrination as a "human drone", and eventual defection. It also comments on the Obama administration's drone program. After their previous albums incorporated orchestral and electronic music, Muse aimed to return to a more straightforward rock sound musically.
Will of the People is the ninth studio album by English rock band Muse, released through Warner Records and Helium-3 on 26 August 2022. Self-produced by the band, it is a genre-hopping album that Matthew Bellamy described as "a greatest hits album – of new songs." "Won't Stand Down", "Compliance", "Will of the People", and "Kill or Be Killed" were released as singles before the album was released, and "You Make Me Feel Like It's Halloween" was released as a single the same day the album came out.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)