Stream: Muse - Neutron Star Collision

Muse premiered their brand new single 'Neutron Star Collision (Love is Forever)' last night. It's due to appear on the soundtrack for the third Twilight movie, Eclipse which comes out next month. The soundtrack itself is due June 8th.

Tracklist:
1. Metric – "Eclipse (All Yours)"
2. Muse – "Neutron Star Collision (Love Is Forever)"
3. The Bravery – "Ours"
4. Florence + the Machine – "Heavy in Your Arms"
5. Sia – "My Love"
6. Fanfarlo – "Atlas"
7. Metallica - "Blackened"
8. The Black Keys – "Chop and Change"
9. The Dead Weather – "Rolling in on a Burning Tire"
10. Beck and Bat for Lashes – "Let's Get Lost"
11. Vampire Weekend – "Jonathan Low"
12. UNKLE featuring The Black Angels – "With You in My Head"
13. Eastern Conference Champions – "A Million Miles an Hour"
14. Band of Horses – "Life on Earth"
15. Cee-Lo Green – "What Part of Forever"
16. Howard Shore – "Jacob's Theme"


Stream:

Live: Oxegen 2010 Lineup Announced: Eminem Muse Jay-Z Headlining

I was at the super-special launch of Oxegen 2010 earlier today at the Academy (thus why I'm late getting around to posting about it), and my head is still trying to cope with the sheer deluge of acts announced. If you follow my twitter feed, you would have seen my many comments earlier today, but my main concern is where the hell are all the Irish acts? Just one on the lineup so far: Northern newcomers Two Door Cinema Club.

Kasabian are headlining Oxegen's Scottish sister T in the Park, but the three headliners for our own gig are Eminem, Muse, and Jay-Z. Tickets go back on sale on Friday March 12th, and 3 day camping ones cost €224.50. There's sure to be more acts announced, as well as info on who'll be playing Friday, Saturday, and Sunday 9th-11th of July 2010.

Full Lineup so far:
Eminem
Muse
Jay-Z
Black Eyed Peas
Kasabian
The Prodigy
Florence and the Machine
Paolo Nutini
Faithless
Stereophonics
David Guetta
Vampire Weekend
Mumford and Sons
John Mayer
Hot Chip
Calvin Harris
Newton Faulkner
The Gossip
The Temper Trap
Empire of the Sun
Goldfrapp
La Roux
Wolfmother
Rise Against
The Coral
Broken Social Scene
Ellie Goulding
Two Door Cinema Club

And in the Dance Arena...
Armand Van Helden
Steve Angelo
Simian Mobile Disco
Erol Alkan
Steve Aoki
A-Trak
Aeroplane

List: Best Albums of the Decade 50-41

Getting ever nearer that final ten... Part Seven of my countdown of the top 110 albums of the decade. You can find 110-101 here, 100-91 here, 90-81 here, 80-71 here, 70-61 here, and 60-51 here. But for now, here's 50-41...

50. Richard Hawley - Lady's Bridge (2007)

The fifth album from the Sheffield troubador. It's also his best work so far. Every song on here is a crooning masterpiece, but amazingly that tome of online music journalism, Pitchfork gave it 5.8. How? There's no way anyone could not like this. Beautiful, bleak, and brilliant.

49. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm (2002)

Is there a better rock song this decade than 'Banquet'? Regardless of what else was on Bloc Party's debut, that song alone would guarantee its brilliance. However, the rest of it is damn good too. The repetition of 'She's Hearing Voices' and the power of 'So Here We Are' are wonderful. 'Price of Gas' was the only low-point, but instead of playing that, just throw on 'Banquet' again.

48. World's End Girlfriend - Hurtbreak Wonderland (2007)

The only instrumental album to make my list, it's also the best album to come out of Asia this decade. It's a post-rock epic record, filled with songs capable of soundtracking any Tim Burton film. It's so easy to think of this record alongside those photos from the new Alice in Wonderland. Tim, if you don't already have someone in mind, snap up Katsuhiko Maeda already.

47. Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova/The Swell Season - Once OST (2007)

Both this and the self-titled record deserve to be here, but since they are more or less the same album, I decided to go with the one more people own, and also the one which includes the wonderful 'Gold' and the hilarious 'Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer Sucker Guy'. The highlights are endless, but I couldn't really talk about this album without mentioning that song. Worthy of every award, it's one of the most beautiful duets you'll ever hear.

46. The White Stripes - Elephant (2003)

If you own only one White Stripes record, it's probably this one. But don't just stop after the opener, there's so much more here than 'Seven Nation Army'. The cover of the Bacharach/David classic 'I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself' is just as amazing as their wonderful take on 'Jolene'. Don't listen to any of that crap that you've heard. Meg White is a damn good drummer. Just misunderstood.

45. Thom Yorke - The Eraser (2006)

Radiohead mainman goes it alone. Shock! But it's so much better than those who wrote it off as Radiohead-lite. Why do you think everyone went so crazy about Yorke's exploits with Flea and his odd new live band. These songs are fantastic in themselves. It's actually better than Kid A, the album it probably most closely resembles. 'Black Swan' is incredible. Listen to it. Now.

44. Muse - Original of Symmetry (2001)

Muse's second album is their best. It took what worked from the first album, Showbiz, and turned it all up to eleven. There are so many classics on here, it's hard to choose a favourite: 'New Born', 'Bliss', 'Citizen Erased', 'Plug In Baby', and that cover of 'Feeling Good'. And the solos, oh those solos...

43. Destroyer - Trouble in Dreams (2008)

Some may argue that Destroyer's Rubies is the better album, but for me this is Dan Bejar's finest hour. It's a fuller record, a more rounded album, and one that's easier to get into. You know why that is? Because it's better. A brilliant album, the perfect comfort blanket, it'll soothe you in ways you didn't know were possible.

42. Miranda Lambert - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2007)

Gretchen Wilson for grown-ups, the second album from Miranda Lambert outdid her debut in every way. Opener 'Gunpowder & Lead' just tells you what type of album this is. The second song, 'Dry Town' is penned by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings too. The album is almost as good as Gillian's best work, and marks Lambert out as one to watch. Her 2009 record wasn't as good, but she'll be back better than ever.

41. Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark (2008)

We wondered would the DBTs be as good after the exodus of Jason Isbell. We knew they could be fantastic without him, as they had been on their first three albums, but we the jury was still out on whether they could be as good. Luckily, they proved they could be. Shonna Tucker took on writing and vocal duties alongside Mike Cooley and Patterson Hood, and showed that she was damn good in her own right. It was more country than the Isbell era, but it was the rockers that shone. '3 Dimes Down', 'That Man I Shot', and 'A Ghost To Most' are among their best. Amazing.

The Countdown continues tomorrow...

List: Best Albums of the Decade 70-61

Part Five of my countdown of the top 110 albums of the decade, and we're not even half-way there. You can find 110-101 here, 100-91 here, 90-81 here, and 80-71 here. But for now, here's 70-61...

70. Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (2006)

Bruce Springsteen's most outlandish album of his career is also one of his best. A departure from everything else he's ever done, his tribute to legendary folk radical Pete Seeger showed that he could turn his hand to anything and be succesful. A compilation of ancient traditional songs, this was one of the best folk albums of the decade, and made us wonder how great Springsteen could have been had he been a folkie all along.

69. The White Stripes - Icky Thump (2007)

After the darker Get Behind Me Satan, The White Stripes returned to a more punky fuller sound on Icky Thump. It included songs that sounded like White Stripes classics such as 'You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)' and newer, edgier stuff like the excellent mariachi cover 'Conquest'. These were just some of many highlights, alongside a brilliant title track and the wonderful 'Rag and Bone'. It's the most recent White Stripes album, and bodes well for the next decade.

68. Sufjan Stevens - Michigan (2003)

The first of his now eternally delayed Fifty States project, Michigan was one of two fantatsic albums released by Sufjan Stevens in 2003/04. The other Seven Swans was a slower, more melodic album. This one paved the way for his masterpiece Illinois, it was a series of magnificent tales about his home state, and has more references than wikipedia.

67. Warren Zevon - The Wind (2003)

The legendary Zevon's last album, released just two short weeks before his death, was also his best in a long time. Featuring a splendid duet with Bruce Springsteen as well as a tremendous cover of Bob Dylan's 'Knocking on Heaven's Door', this album featured one of the best ensemble casts of musicians ever. The fact that Zevon was able to get such respected artists as Jackson Browne, Emmylou Harris, Ry Cooder, Don Henley, Dwight Yoakam, and Tom Petty just proves how respected he was, and how much he's missed by the musical community worldwide.

66. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago (2007)

Forget about the backstory with the break-ups and log cabins, the music on here would be damn good regardless of anything surrounding it. The story gets you into it, but it's the music itself that keeps you listening. Again and again. Only nine songs long, but every one of them is hauntingly beautiful and immediately enchanting. The only problem with this is that Justin Vernon will probably never make a record like this again.

65. TV on the Radio - Dear Science (2008)

Sadly dropped the comma from the official release, Dear Science, is TV on the Radio's masterpiece. It's an album that should be played in clubs. It's increidbly danceable, but sadly never hit the mainstream heights it deserved. It also showed that band member Dave Sitek was one of the finest producers around. Not a blip or beep is wasted.

64. Arcade Fire - Funeral (2005)

This was Arcade Fire's first introduction to most of the world. Their self-titled EP had got a lot of good press, but with the release of Funeral, those wacky Canadians went from relative unknowns to worldwide superstars. It has sold millions of copies worldwide, and probably is the only alternative album to ever do so. You'll probably see it high on many decade-end lists, higher than on here, but it sadly never reaches the peaks of its many singles. A great album, but they may have better in them. Wait and see.

63. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf (2002)

The album that confirmed Josh Homme as a superstar, Songs for the Deaf is probably one of the finest concept albums of the decade. It's easy to forget that aside from the splendid hard-rock singles such as 'Go With the Flow' and 'No One Knows', the album underneath was a commentary on listening to various radio stations while driving across the Mojave Desert to Los Angeles. It was clever, and brilliant, but mostly it rocked. Hard.

62. The National - Boxer (2007)

The National's fourth album is their best work so far. Singer Matt Beringer never sounded as good as he did on the dark melodies of 'Fake Empire', 'Mistake for Strangers' and the other ten fantastic songs here. It's bleakly beautiful, but most importantly: damned addictive.

61. Muse - Black Holes and Revelations (2006)

.Muse's 2009 album was a major disappointment. It's the worst thing they've done to date. Luckily, the rest of their career is far better. This, their fourth album was a change in direction, much more spacey and out-there than their previous work. This however was no mad-scientist/UFO-sighting nonsense, but instead was a fine collection of songs (apart from the awful always-skipped 'Soldier's Poem'). Each of the singles is incredible, with the lead 'Suppermassive Black Hole' the best of them. It was totally different than anything they had done before, but also one of the most sonically pleasing, danceable tracks of the noughties.

The Countdown continues tomorrow... If I can pull myself away from X Factor, of course!

Live Review: Muse, o2 Dublin, 6 November 2009

I've seen Muse a good few times at this stage. They are one of my brother's favourite bands, so he brought me along this time (thanks very much!) The first time I saw them was a few years ago at Oxegen (may even have been Witnness then) and I didn't really know much by them at the time. But I was impressed, really impressed. By them more than anyone else that weekend. This was down to the fact that Matt Bellamy is such a brilliant guitarist. The good thing is: five or more years on (possibly longer), he's just as good.

Muse's performance at the o2 was not as good as their show at the Point or the few times I've seen them at Oxegen. Alas, there is just one reason for this. The new album. The Resistance was released this year, and all these live shows are part of The Resistance Tour. Thus the trio play a lot of the new stuff. It's just a pity some of this new stuff is as boring as hell and is the worst material they have ever released.

They opened with new single 'Uprising', but this was okay, as the Blondie-aping single is one of the best of the new tunes. 'United States of Eurasia', the other new single wasn't too bad either, but it lacked the punch of earlier stuff. 'Undisclosed Desires' is much better live than on record, but the rest of the new stuff just inspires stagnation among the hopping, dancing, yelling crowd. 'Guiding Light' was all sorts of shocking. A terrible song that I hope never to hear again.

For that side of the show, the rest was totally opposite. It was two-thirds a magnificent concert. 'New Born' and 'Map of the Problematique' were amazing, and 'Supermassive Blackhole' really had the crowd going. 'Feeling Good' and 'Unintended' brought things down a notch, but were never boring. They just made the whole thing more intimate. 'Starlight' > 'Plug in Baby' > 'Time is Running Out' was definitely the best run of the show, and caused the crowd to go wild.

The encore was a mixed bag, beginning with yawnfest 'Overture' and then heading into so-so 'Stockholm Syndrome', 'Man with a Harmonica' and ending with the utterly fantastic 'Knights of Cydonia'. Everyone left on a high after 'Knights' and this may have rose-tinted their memories of the show, forgetting all about the poorer new stuff - probably because that was when they went to the jacks or the bar - and remembering the brilliant 'New Born', 'Plug in Baby', 'Unintended' and the rest of the classics.

The stage itself was fantastic, and the whole thing was brilliantly produced. It's just a pity there was so much new stuff. Otherwise it would have been the gig of the year.

Read my other posts on this gig:
Watch the entire thing here.
Setlist here.

Watch: Muse, o2 Dublin, 6 November 2009

Here's as much of the show that is on youtube so far. If you missed the show, why don't you watch Muse's Irish date at Dublin's O2 Arena last night. It used to be the Point Theatre, you know? The quality varies per video, but at least it'll give you a taste of the gig last night. Do note though, I went for length of song over quality of the video!

(I'll update this with any more I see when/if they are uploaded to youtube!)

Intro & 'Uprising':


'The Resistance':


'New Born':


'Map of the Problematique':


'Supermassive Black Hole':


'Guiding Light':
(Not uploaded yet...)

'Interlude':


'Hysteria':


'United States of Eurasia':


'Feeling Good':


'Unintended':


'Undisclosed Desires':
(not uploaded yet)

'Starlight':


'Plug In Baby':


'Time is Running Out':


'Unnatural Selection':


'Exogenesis Symphony Part I: Overture':
(Not uploaded yet)

'Stockholm Syndrome':


'Knights of Cydonia':

Setlist: Muse, O2 Dublin, 6 November 2009

I was at this gig in the O2 in Dublin last night, so I should have a live review up pretty soon of Muse's fantastic performance last night. But for now here's Muse's setlist from their only Irish date this year.

Setlist:
Uprising
The Resistence
New Born
Map of the Problematique
Supermassive Black Hole
Guiding Light
Interlude
Hysteria
United States of Eurasia
Feeling Good
Unintended
Bass and Drum Instrumental >
Undisclosed Desires
Starlight
Plug In Baby
Time is Running Out (Foxy lady riff tease outro)
Unnatural Selection
---
Exogenesis Symphony Part I: Overture
Stockholm Syndrome
Man With a Harmonica >
Knights of Cydonia

Stream: Muse - The Resistance

MCD.ie (Ireland's number one music promoter, for those visiting from abroad) is allowing their visitors to stream the entire new Muse album The Resistance in advance of its Irish release tomorrow.

Muse play the O2 in Dublin on November 6th and it's already sold out. You can also get a 2 euro off voucher at the MCD site to redeem against your album purchase tomorrow.

Stream here:
http://www.mcd.ie/home/fn.php?c=4586374&ar=muse&cat=all

Watch: Muse - The Resistance

Muse played a homecoming gig in "lovely" Teignmouth at the Den, where they played some new material from The Resistance which will be released next week. Here's the title track.

Watch Muse - 'The Resistance':

Album Cover: Muse - The Resistance

The album cover for the new Muse album has been released on an unsuspecting public. And it's not dark and menacing like I expected! What do you think?

Listen: Muse - United States of Eurasia

'United States of Eurasia' is the first single from Muse's new album The Resistance. Have a listen here...

Watch/Listen:

Album News: Muse - The Resistance Tracklist

Not sure what the "+"s are for, because I found this on some French blog, but here's the reported tracklist. I'm really liking the idea of the Exogenesis Symphony, although it could well be some overindulgent nonsense. Hopefully not.

1. Uprising
2. Resistance
3. Undisclosed Desires
4. United States of Eurasia + Collateral Damage
5. Guiding Light
6. Unnatural Selection
7. Mk. Ultra
8. I Belong to You + Mon Coeur S'Ouvre A Ta Voix (My heart opens itself to your voice)
9. Exogenesis : Symphony Part I (Overture)
10. Exogenesis : Symphony Part II (Cross Pollination)
11. Exogenesis: Symphony Part III (Redemption)

Live: Muse at the O2

Muse return to the Point, now named the O2, of course. This time it's to promote their new album The Resistance.

They haven't said much about the album but Dom posted this on his MySpace last week:

Hi,

Yes, The Resistance is on it’s 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 its coming along nicely.
See you guys soon..

Dom.

Tickets priced €54.80 (Standing) and €59.80 (Seated) including booking fee are on sale tomorrow morning at 9.

More info:
http://www.museresistance.com/