Has Muse Gone Too Mainstream?

[Questo]

I had to make an account so I could jump into this conversation .

I wouldn't say their new album has made them "too mainstream" as such. Sure, it is a change of direction from them, but I don't think that's so much because they're pandering to a wider audience as that they want to try something different. So I wouldn't say they've sold out or anything. The Resistance does have some quality tracks on it (MK Ultra, Unnatural Selection, Undisclosed Desires), even if they are balanced out by horribly pretentious crap (*cough United States of Eurasia cough*).

As to putting their songs on the Twilight albums, that doesn't mean selling out at all. They're stealing money off retarded Twilight fangirls? I don't see an issue. And for the record, the New Moon soundtrack is actually oddly quite good.

 

[Firenz]

I think that with their new albumn they have shown that they are not "too mainstream" as the OP put it.

Stylistically similar to Opera in some places and with what can only be described as a huge influence from Queen I think it's gone more 'academic' than their previous albumns.

 

[Sven und EIN HUND]

Well, at first, I absolutely despised the direction they had gone in for the new one. It grew on me eventually though, and now it's uhhh, alright. They're definitely not gonna put out another Origin of Symmetry or Absolution though, that's for sure.

 

[BENZOOKA]

Why do people start thinking that "BAD=MAINSTREAM"? I'm pretty sure Muse has been mainstream for a while.

Precisely this.

 

[RanD00M]

I don´t care if they are going mainstream.
As long as they music that I like.I´ll keep on listening.

 

[jeff02x2]

*sigh* I hate the whole idea that if other people start liking the music you like then your not allowed to like it anymore.

I have no problems with listning to mainstream music after it has become popular or, like with muse, following them and enjoying the fact they have become so popular. It just depends if I still enjoy listening to them, thats all that matters.

 

[Deadlydorito]

Ok lets take a look at linkin park. When they made minutes to midnight, did they change to mainstream? Im trying to understand this, because it sounds like a similar situation. I loved linkin park, then they released that album and turned to shit (in my opinion). Some of my friends like it more now, but i think they have become totally craptastic. So, did linkin park become more mainstream? or more indie? They definitely changed, but which way.

 

[Master Kuja]

I'm kinda getting tired of people who equate mainstream with being shit, Muse changed, like every artist is entitled to over the years, you can't expect them to play the same thing for years and years or they simply won't get anywhere, to be fair, just because you don't like what they're doing, it doesn't make them anything less than talented artists, because if they have that many fans then they're clearly doing something right.
I personally really liked The Resistance and I've been following them since Showbiz, and you could even argue the change of style/mainstream-ness when Origins of Symmetry came out.

They're still true to their fans and what originally made them great, they still have a fantastic stage presence, but like all bands, they're perfectly entitled to experiment with their musical style and see what happens, I found The Resistance miles better than Black Holes anyway. ._.

Ok lets take a look at linkin park. When they made minutes to midnight, did they change to mainstream? Im trying to understand this, because it sounds like a similar situation. I loved linkin park, then they released that album and turned to shit (in my opinion). Some of my friends like it more now, but i think they have become totally craptastic. So, did linkin park become more mainstream? or more indie? They definitely changed, but which way.

Here I'm inclined to agree, Linkin Park changed, never been sure if they went mainstream though because most people still don't give a shit about them, but what we see with them is a complete change in genre, from one that I kinda liked (Nu-Metal), to one I've never been a fan of anyway (Alt-Rock). That's why I think they went to shit, but there are still a lot of fans following them, so, as I said in Muse's case, they're obviously doing something right.

 

[serenitatis]

I love Muse with a passion, they are my favourite band by a long shot. While i prefer Origin of Symmetry i love Resistance. I love Exogenesis part 1, 2 and 3 because i also love operatic music. Saying this i hope the next album is more like Origin, Absolution or Black Holes

 

[Dudemeister]

Popular does not = bad.

 

[Angerwing]

I saw Muse live 8 days ago actually. Trust me, they still know how to rock in a unique and awesome way.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

If something good becomes popular, and thus mainstream, does it become bad?

NO.

It does not.

Just because bad things become mainstream (Soulja Boy), doesn't mean that good things can't, too.

 

[mrpenguinismyhomeboy]

The Last good album Muse did was Black Holes and Revelations. This new one is just a can of George Orwell references, which they think they can pull off without being dorky just cause they are British. They've lost all their sincerity.

 

[Outright Villainy]

It's not the fact that they're popular rather than they're more boring these days. They were always pretty popular for as long as i can remember anyay, they don't just suck more because more people like them, that makes no sense. They suck more because the music sucks more, plain and simple. I quite liked absolution actually...

 

[TraumaHound]

]and them putting songs on the *shudder* goddamn Twilight album

Oh jeez, is that why the teen-girl scene is so latched onto them? I've been following their Twitter feed [http://twitter.com/muse] while they're on tour, which mostly consists of behind-the-scenes pics they post, and all the pics are flooded with teenie-comments that amount to what I imagine Tiger Beat's inbox gets flooded with. My sister is coming to visit in April and we're going to see Muse play at Key Arena. I suspect we'll be the oldest ones there. :/

For what it's worth, though, "Take a Bow" was on the Watchmen soundtrack, a less teenie-movie, at least.

As for the mainstream=downfall thoughts, I can see that argument if bands start to cater to the radio-friendly crowd simply to get radio-time and the subsequent record sales. I don't think Muse has gone that route, unless they're more radio-friendly in the UK than here in the States.

 

[Nemu]

Why do people start thinking that "BAD=MAINSTREAM"? I'm pretty sure Muse has been mainstream for a while.

This.

Unless you live in the UK, Muse ONLY became popular with Absolution. People are crying "SELL OUTS!" and calling them mainstream now cos they've toured with U2 (and the Cure a few years ago).

Fact is: they've been popular for years, people are only now just hearing about them.

 

[Mako SOLDIER]

The Last good album Muse did was Black Holes and Revelations. This new one is just a can of George Orwell references, which they think they can pull off without being dorky just cause they are British. They've lost all their sincerity.

How on earth is referencing Orwell 'dorky'? That's like saying "Being able to read and write is for nerds!". Good god man, Orwell is amongst the classic authors of all time, would you prefer they were referencing some trashy tv drama?

If you can be cultured enough to enjoy (IMO their best album) Origin of Symmetry's jumps between baroque and romantic piano styles (etc) then frankly it's hypocrisy to then criticise them for Orwellian content. They've always been a fairly academic band, and while I do personally feel that The Resistance is their weakest album to date it does have it's good points. However, the content is what really makes the best tracks on the album, ie United States of Eurasia(it kinda sounds like what you would get if you mixed 1984 and Les Miserables).

 

[mrpenguinismyhomeboy]

The Last good album Muse did was Black Holes and Revelations. This new one is just a can of George Orwell references, which they think they can pull off without being dorky just cause they are British. They've lost all their sincerity.

How on earth is referencing Orwell 'dorky'? That's like saying "Being able to read and write is for nerds!". Good god man, Orwell is amongst the classic authors of all time, would you prefer they were referencing some trashy tv drama?

If you can be cultured enough to enjoy (IMO their best album) Origin of Symmetry's jumps between baroque and romantic piano styles (etc) then frankly it's hypocrisy to then criticise them for Orwellian content. They've always been a fairly academic band, and while I do personally feel that The Resistance is their weakest album to date it does have it's good points. However, the content is what really makes the best tracks on the album, ie United States of Eurasia(it kinda sounds like what you would get if you mixed 1984 and Les Miserables).

What I am saying is, political rebellion is dorky. I love George Orwell, and I loved 1984, but the thing is when he did it he was serious about it. He didn't write it cause he felt like it, he wrote it cause he literally thought that people needed to know the consequence of communism. What he describes in his novel is a world he thought would be completely possible. He took it seriously, and as a result we can take him seriously.

I, however, cannot take Muse seriously, in Resistance. It comes off as dorky. And slightly humorous. But political rebellion is not supposed to be like that. As far as I can gather, the only two bands that I have heard that have been able to pull of political Rebellion without being silly are Rage Against the Machine and Elvis Costello and the Attractions. There are few other bands I have heard that can talk about political rebellion and freedom and all that good stuff without looking like idiots in my eyes. And when Muse does it, on every song practically in their new album, I cannot take them seriously, and as a result, I think it sounds dorky and stupid, akin to that picture of a man in a dunce cap with the caption "It's a conspiracy" misspelled and in capital letters.

In effect, political rebellion is almost as mainstream as you can get. In fact, if you don't do political rebellion, in my eyes, you would be less mainstream.

 

[SmartIdiot]

Ok I'd expect a thread like this for a band that was actually obscure but Muse!?

Jesus christ man, they've been mainstream from the word go! Showbiz got them heard, Origin of Symmetry catapulted them to fame, Absolution ensured they would rule the earth, Black Holes and Revelations began on previously mentioned ruling the earth and now their latest offering, The Resistance is just to make sure that EVERYONE from this generation remembers them.

Has Muse gone too mainstream? I'm a believer that there are no stupid questions, only stupid people, but THAT was a stupid question. Does it matter? As long as a band is making good music and using their abilities to the fullest who gives a fuck where they sit, be it at the top of the charts or in a friends garage.

While we're here, has Coldplay gone too mainstream?

 

[BonsaiK]

]I am a huge Muse fan, own every album etc, etc. I think it's good for a band to change their sound, lest they get stale, but songs like Undisclosed Desires and them putting songs on the *shudder* goddamn Twilight album is slowly leading me to think that the glory days of the sounds of Absolution are gone and that Muse are going mainstream. Whaddya think, Escapists?

I thought that Muse were extremely mainstream right back to their very first material. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing though. I don't really like their stuff personally but hey they sell millions of records so someone obviously does. I've got no problem with it.