Do vocalist Matthew Bellamy, bassist Christopher Wolstenholme and drummer Dominic Howard claim to know the will of the people? No more than any of us. In fact, according to Bellamy, the lyrics of many of the new songs are more about the prevailing uncertainty and instability in the world.
One thing is for sure, the group quickly made sure that the 14,500 people who packed the amphitheater never forgot the narrative framework of the concert.
After a short video on the screens reminiscent of the cover of last year’s record, the trio appeared on stage accompanied by multi-instrumentalist Dan Lancaster with the metallic-looking masks of the characters in their videos.
With the title track, the band – almost literally – opened fire. A dazzling play of lights, searing flamethrowers and a metallic structure formed from the letters (W, O, T, P) that form the record’s anagram ignited one after the other while the guitar, bass and drums thundered – heavily. The tone was set. Especially since two of the strongest titles (Hysteria, Psycho) in Muse’s repertoire should follow and transform the floor and stands of the Bell Center into an anthill.
The entire show featured a staging and narrative framework tied to the theme of the latest Muse album.
Photo: @theworkofjar via Facebook
Fictional universe, percussive music
In many ways, Muse’s new songs are tailor-made to tell the story of a fictional universe ruled by a totalitarian state.
For the viewer who attends the concert at the risk of going deaf the next day, the thread of the story plays out on the screens as well as on the stage. Half a dozen short films show us the protagonists: those with the glowing masks – the humans – who could be a variation on those wearing the Daft Punk duo and the Minotaurs representing oppressive power.
We go from digital versions on the screens to those taking shape before our eyes through giant – and oddly menacing – figures placed behind the musicians during the concert. Very impressive.
Note that during the smaller-scale Evanesence segment, the visual production had enough to please the most discerning viewer with its dazzling lasers going in all directions while Amy Lee and her colleagues fought heart and soul.
The American singer still has a voice in her early 40s as the group celebrates the 20th anniversary of Fallen, the album she unveiled. The kind of hour-long performance by a band opening up for a headliner who might otherwise have been the headliner.
There was also the Japanese of One of Rock as an opening but I skipped it as they played at 6:30pm… Unlike legendary actress Jamie Lee Curtis – who won an Oscar on Sunday – the artists and bands like public asked U2, Coldplay and Bruce Springsteen perform in the afternoons, I’m one of those people who prefer late night shows. In short, except during festivals when a group is on stage at dinner time…
Spectacular production
Matthew Bellamy is still in good form and has put in an impressive performance.
Photo: @theworkofjar via Facebook
As a side note, Muse was on his sixth visit to Montreal – five times at the Bell Center and one at the Osheaga Festival – since 2010, and regulars were treated to everything that left their mark: streamer explosions almost the size of streamers (Compliance) and confetti (Verona), but also discrete confetti drops, like a fine rain, for Isolated System and Undisclosed Desires.
Bellamy, who also has an excellent voice, used his glowing piano and lighted jacket, while Wolstenholme offered his share of bass lines on his instrument, which has a lightbulb handle.
Muse offered seven of the ten songs on his latest CD, but the coexistence between the new releases and the monuments of bygone times was excellent. Is it because the trio decided to return to a heavier sound for this album? Possible.
The hard stance of Won’t Stand Down was well received, while the distinctive Time Is Running Out was one of the songs whose chorus was spontaneously taken up by the crowd. In this respect, Madness, Plug In Baby and of course Uprising have unleashed passions.
It was still fascinating to see brand new songs like “We Are Fucking Fucked” and “You Make Me Feel Like It’s Halloween” resonate so well. There is a real bond of loyalty that has been forged between the Quebecers and the English over the years. Wednesday’s concert at the Bell Center will be the fourth of five nights in Quebec (after the double at the Videotron Center this weekend).
Will the scenario that Muse proposes in the song Will of the People – a revolution come true?
Curiously, the answer may have come through the last words of a 15+ year old Knights of Cydonia classic performed at the very end of the concert, preceded as usual by the instrumental The Man with the Harmonica by Ennio Morricone.
So that everyone understood the end of the concert, the lyrics ran across the screens in oversized letters.
You and I must fight for our rights / You and I must fight to survive.
Apparently, for Muse, the people’s struggle is not over. But on Tuesday, the band gave people exactly what they wanted.