Muse is a two-time Grammy Award-winning rock band formed in Teignmouth, Devon, England in 1994. The band consists of Matt Bellamy (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Chris Wolstenholme (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Dominic Howard (drums). ). The band started out as a gothic rock band called the Rocket Baby Dolls.
Their first show was a battle in a group competition in which they smashed all their equipment and unexpectedly won. The band changed their name to Muse because they thought it looked good on the poster and the town of Teignmouth was said to have a muse hovering over it due to the large number of bands he created.
The childhood of the members of the Muse group
Matthew, Christopher and Dominique are childhood friends from Teignmouth, Devon. For Matthew Teignmouth was not a good city to live in, as he explains: “The only time the city comes alive is in the summer when it becomes a holiday destination for Londoners.
When summer ends, I feel trapped there. My friends were either addicted to drugs or music, but I leaned towards the latter and eventually learned to play. It became my salvation. If it wasn't for the band, I probably would have gotten into drugs myself."
All three band members are not from Teignmouth, but from other English cities.
Matt was born in Cambridge on 9 June 1978 to George Bellamy, rhythm guitarist for the 1960s English rock band Tornado, the first English band to hit No. 1 in the United States, and Marilyn James. They eventually moved to Teignmouth when Matt was 10 years old.
When Matt was 14, his parents divorced. “It was good at home until I was 14 years old. Then everything changed, my parents divorced and I went to live with my grandmother, and there was not much money. I have a sister who is older than me, she is actually my half-sister: from my father's previous marriage, and also a younger brother.
At the age of 14, music was a part of my life, as it was part of the family circle: my dad was a musician, he had a band, etc. But it wasn’t until I moved away from my grandparents that I started playing music myself.”
Love for music since childhood
Matt has been playing the piano since the age of 6, but due to the divorce of his parents, the guitar became more dear to him. Around this age, he almost learned to play the clarinet at his parents' request, but he only did it until 3rd grade and then gave up, he also tried violin and piano lessons and didn't like it.
Matt had "Levels" in music class which allowed him free classical guitar lessons at school when he was 17-18 years old. An old classical guitar since then is the only subject in which he took lessons.
Chris, however, was born in Rotherham, Yorkshire on December 2, 1978. His family moved to Teignmouth when he was 11 years old. His mother regularly bought records, which affected his ability to play the guitar. He later played drums for a post-punk band. He eventually gave up drums to play bass for Matt and Dom, who were struggling with two bass players in another band.
Dom was born on December 7, 1977 in Stockport, England. When he was 8 years old, his family moved to Teignmouth. He learned to play the drums at the age of 11, when he was inspired by a jazz band playing at his school.
Formation of the Muse group
Matt and Dom started talking about it when Matt had an Amiga 500 with a one megabyte upgrade, Dom knocked on Matt's door and said, "Can my friends and I play your Amiga?" and from these conversations they began to discuss music.
Dom was playing drums for a band called Carnage Mayhem when he met Matt. By that time, Matt did not yet have a stable group. Shortly thereafter, Matt was called in by Dom and his members as a guitarist. During this time, Chris met up with Matt and Dom. At the time, Chris was playing drums for another band in town. Over time, Matt and Dom's band would fall apart, leaving them without a bass player. Luckily, Chris gave up drums to play bass for them.
By the time they were 14/15 they were all interested in starting a band after all the other bands had fallen apart. Matt was interested in writing his own songs rather than performing covers. Before Matt decided to take on the lead role, they had another singer and Matt would come over to his house to show him the songs he had written, saying things like "look, let's write something together".
Chris and Matt's first meeting
Chris first met Matt on the football courts in Winterbourne. Chris usually remembers Matt as a "bad soccer player". And he met Dom at the “Fixed Penalty” concert. Later, Dom and Matt found Chris, as they thought he would be perfect for them, because at school he was considered a real talent.
Matt tried to convince Chris to join the band, saying, "Do you realize your band isn't going anywhere? Why don't you come and join us."
By the time they were 16, they finally started to form something similar on Muse, but at first they called themselves Rocket Baby Dolls, and with a goth image they went to battle in a band competition. “I remember the first gig we ever did was for a group competition,” says Matt.
“We were the only real rock band; everyone else was pop or funk pop, like Jamiroquai. We went on stage with makeup all over our face, were very aggressive and played very violently, and then we broke everything on stage. It was something new for everyone, so we won.
According to some interviews by Matthew, Dom and Chris, they chose the name 'Muse' because it was short and looked good on the poster. The first thing they heard about the word was when someone in Teignmouth suggested that the reason so many people became members of the groups was because of the muse hovering over the city.
The origins of Muse's success
For Muse's 2001 Origin of symmetry album, they took a more experimental approach with Bellamy, incorporating more of their high-pitched falsetto singing, classical music, influenced guitar and piano playing, and use of the church organ, the Mellotron. And even using animal bones for percussion.
The Origin of Symmetry received positive reviews in England, but was not released in America until 2005 (Warner Bros.) due to a conflict with Maverick Records, who asked Bellamy to re-record his vocals in falsetto, which the label said were not "radio friendly". ". The band refused and left Maverick Records.
Breakthrough album 'Absolution'
After signing with Warner Bros. in the US, Muse released their third album Absolution on September 15, 2003. The album brought success to the band in the US, releasing singles and videos for "Time Is Running Out" and "Hysteria" as hits and receiving significant MTV airplay. Absolution became the first Muse album to be certified gold (500 units sold) in the US.
The album continued the band's classic rock sound, with Bellamy's lyrics dealing with themes of conspiracy, theology, science, futurism, computing, and the supernatural. Muse headlined Glastonbury's English Festival on 27 June 2004, which Bellamy described as "the best gig of our lives" during the show.
Tragically, hours after the show ended, Dominic Howard's father, Bill Howard, died of a heart attack after his son performed at the festival. Although the incident was a major tragedy for the band, Bellamy later said, "I think he [Dominic] was happy that at least his father saw him, probably at the best moment of the band's life."
'Black Holes and Revelations'
The fourth album, Muse, was released on July 3, 2006 and received some of the band's best reviews. Musically, the album covered a wide range of alternative rock styles, including classical and techno influences. Lyrically, Bellemy continued to explore topics such as conspiracy theories and outer space.
Muse released the singles "Knights of Cydonia", "Supermassive Black Hole" and "Starlight" which became international hits. With this album, Muse became the scene of a rock band. They sold out the show at the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium on 16 July 2007 in 45 minutes and added a second show. Muse also headlined Madison Square Garden and toured worldwide from 2006 to 2007.
'The Resistance'
On September 14, 2009, Muse released their fifth album, The Resistance, the first self-produced album by the band. The album became Muse's third album in the UK, peaked at number 3 on the US Billboard 200 and topped the charts in 19 countries. The Resistance won Muse their first Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in 2011.
Muse toured all over the world for this album, including headlining two nights in September 2010 at Wembley Stadium and supporting U2 on their record-breaking U2 360° tour in the US in 2009 and the South. America in 2011.
'The 2nd Law'
The band's sixth album was released on September 28, 2012. Second Law was primarily produced by Muse and influenced by acts such as Queen, David Bowie and electronic dance music artist Skrillex.
The single "Madness" topped the Billboard Alternative Songs chart for nineteen weeks, breaking the previous record set by the Foo Fighters single "The Pretender". The song "Madness" was chosen as the official song for the 2012 Summer Olympics. Law 2 was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 2013 Grammy Awards.
'Drones'
Muse's seventh album is more rock work than their previous albums, thanks in part to legendary co-producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange (AC/DC, Def Leppard). The "human drone" concept album that eventually finds defects contains some of Muse's simpler rock songs, "Dead Inside" and "Psycho", as well as more organized songs like "Mercy" and "Revolt". Muse received a second Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in 2016 for Drones. The band continued to tour worldwide throughout 2015 and 2016.
Released in June of that year, the concept album became the UK's fifth number-one album and first US number-one release, earning it the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album in February 2016. The 'Drones' that flew over the audience were filmed and released in theaters in the summer of 2018.
By then, the band had already been busy promoting their eighth, neon-inspired eightieth album, Simulation Theory, the singles Dig, Pressure, and The Dark Side. Effort was released last November.
The Muse team today
The rock band Muse celebrated the anniversary of the second studio album by presenting the disc Origin of Symmetry: XX Anniversary RemiXX. The collection included remixes of 12 songs included in the second LP.
For 4 years, the guys did not release new products. In December 2021, they dropped a cool track. The song was called Won't Stand Down. The video was filmed on the territory of Ukraine, more precisely in Kyiv. The video was directed by Jared Hogan (known to fans for his work with Joji and Girl In Red). By the way, this is the first single of the artists from the upcoming LP.
