Blackout (song)
| Muse song | |
|---|---|
| Name | Blackout |
| Album/single |
|
| Length | 4:22 |
| Alternative titles | Black Out (Arpeggio) |
| First live performance | 3rd September 2003 |
| Latest live performance | 1st March 2016 |
| Recorded | Air Studios, London, 2002/2003 |
| Writer/composer | Matthew Bellamy |
| Producer | John Cornfield, Paul Reeve, Mark Newby (The Awakening Mix) |
| Song Nav | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hysteria | < | Blackout | > | Butterflies & Hurricanes |
| Album Nav | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hullabaloo (2002) | < | Absolution (2003) | > | Black Holes and Revelations (2006) |
Description
Lilting waltz. Blackout talks about life being too good to last. Matt stated that the song is from the point of view of someone facing their end, reviewing the positive points of their life.[1]
Matt: "This kind of song is trying to imagine what goes through your mind in the last few minutes of your life, trying to conjure up some uplifting thoughts about enjoying your life to the fullest in the time you did have".[2]
Additional information
Bellamy said that track talks about life being too short and commented: "I used a mandolin on Blackout. I think it was written with that in mind. I spent a fair bit of time in Italy last summer and I think that track was influenced by some of the sounds I heard there - a combination of some of the folk music and some opera. The mandolin is a very traditional instrument there and it seemed like the right thing to go on that song".
He has cited the likes of Frank Sinatra as another influence for the song.
When played live, the string section is played either by Chris, or by a chap named "Barry", as mentioned in this Virtual Festivals review of the Bournemouth 2003 gig.
When played live at Wembley Stadium, the performance was accompanied by two acrobats suspended by Helium balloons (named heliospheres on the setlist) floating out above the standing audience, moving as the song was played.
When played live at Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Matt sang "Ave Maria" during the end of the song.
Alternate versions
One remix, entitled The Awakening Mix, made by Mark "DJ Distomak" Newby was created. It is available in the Muselive.com Share Your Stuff forum. This mix features a sped up track with additional percussion taken from blink-182's "I Miss You".
The orchestral part of the Absolution track was used as background music for the credits on the HAARP DVD.
Live
Blackout was played rather often in 2003, appearing at the majority of gigs though it was skipped at the occasional gig. Upon reaching 2004, however, it was performed only somewhat often throughout the January and February gigs. As a result, very few early 2004 Blackout recordings exist. It would go on to appear at none of the American gigs of April and May 2004, though Blackout would return for a handful of dates before officially returning to the main setlist starting with Glastonbury Festival 2004.
Lyrics
Don't kid yourself
And don't fool yourself This love's too good to last And I'm too old to dream
Don't grow up too fast And don't embrace the past This life's too good to last And I'm too young to care
Don't kid yourself And don't fool yourself This life could be the last And we're too young to see
Alternative lyrics
This life will be the last
instead of
This life could be the last