A Seaside Rendezvous

When a band plays a gig at thier hometown, there's deffinitely that special feeling about it. However, when that band happens to be as big as Muse, you know it'll be something huge. For two nights (on the 4th and 5th September), Muse played thier first shows in over a year at The Den in Teignmouth, Devon, which also happens to be where the band first met. They're well renound for thier excellent live performances, and this night was no exception.

Muse - A Seaside Rendezvous, The Den, Teignmouth, Devon - 05.09.09

After a long coach journey (which included meeting a lot of great Muse fans) we finally arrived at our destination, in Teignmouth. Walking through the town, and past the coast to the venue it was clear that the town was buzzing with life and energy. Ea fans swarmed the streets, with local residents setting up stalls with Muse related goods, there was a very festival feel to it all. Once at the venue, The Den, (which was pretty much a small park) we were presented with a very victorian-esque stage with a Punch & Judy feel to it. Very tounge-in-cheek Muse...

First up for the evening was Zane Lowe doing a DJ set to warm up the crowd. He was going for a "Resistance feel" with his first set, and blasted out a very eclectic selection of tracks including The Imigrant Song, Anarchy, Push the Button and many more, all mixed in wierd and wonderful ways. He did a decent job of getting the crowd going. Although it all went back a step when the first support The Sea started thier set. They were a pretty decent act and for two of them they did make a lot of noise. However, it just lacked the momentum to be something brilliant. After a 15 minute wait, if that, the next support were up, Hey Molly. Again, they were alright, but thier set seemed to lack variety, thier songs becoming a tad droll and samey. But then supporting a band like Muse, well known for thier fantastic live performances, must make it quite hard to give all the standards needed. Zane Lowe once again DJed whilst the final preperations were made, with more hits mixed in the oddest ways possible. I have to admit, he's not too bad at DJing, he did a decent job.

At 9pm, Muse finally took the stage, opening with thier new single, Uprising, and the build up of this track actually makes it a brilliant opener. "Good evening'" Matt Bellamy said to a crowd of around 10,000 "it's good to be back!" The momentum didn't stop, as Muse revisted some of the best songs from thier back-catalouge, with Hysteria and New Born just as some highlights, as well as a few tracks of thier previous album, Black Holes and Revelations. Being as this was a special gig, Muse performed Cave from thier debut album, Showbiz, for the first time in 8 years. The band had slightly revamped the song, and this newer style gave it a new breath of life, making it feel like a much darker track. Stockholm Syndrome, Plug in Baby and Knights of Cydonia as the encore were a perfect end to the night.

Throughout the night, it was apparent that Bellamy's vocals had improved dramatically as well, with him being able to sing different notes a lot more flawlessly. Of course, not everythnig was flawless, with Bellamy forgetting the (Collateral Damage) (the cover of Chopin's Nocturne No. 2) section of United State of Eurasia. Of course, this was dealt with in a hilarious way, with Bellamy playing a few notes before suddenly stopping and annoncing, "Sorry, I forgot it", before legging it off stage to grab a guitar, so all is forgiven.

With a new Muse album dawning upon us, it obviously meant one thing; new tracks, and a few were debuted for the first time during the weekend. Early on in the setlist, they performed the new title track Resistance. The song starts off with a haunting atmosphere, leading into a piano section, which blends somewhere between Starlight and Sing for Absolution, then builds up to an absolutely stunning chorus, with huge anthemic qualities. It's a strong contender for the best Muse title track ever as far as I'm concerned. Later on was the debut of Undisclosed Desires. This is a strange track; whilst it sounds nothing like Muse what-so-ever, it actually still feels like them. Think R&B meets Depeche Mode, then you'll get what I mean. A very beautiful and atmospheric track. They ended the main setlist with Unnatural Selection. For those of you looking for Origin of symmetry 2.0, this is it. It starts softly, with only organs and Bellamy's vocals, before the rest of the band kicks in and a heavy riff, very much like New Born, bashes through like a freight train out of control. The middle section slows down to a very dark almost jazz-like hybrid before picking up the pace and ending with a very huge, very Rage Against The Machine style riff.

Overall, an excellent gig, though it felt like it was over way too quickly. Though with a new abum on the way, with tracks that sound very promising, and a headlining tour later this year, it looks as if the best is yet to come.