Herald Express 2006-11-17 – Muse at their greatest live
MUSE AT THEIR GREATEST LIVE
11:00 - 17 November 2006
Opening with the exhilarating Knights of Cydonia, South Devon alternative super-group Muse began an energetic evening at Cardiff International Arena to the delight of thousands of their dedicated fans.
Concert review: Muse, Cardiff International ArenaThe Teignmouth rockers have sailed to stardom since their formation in 1994, when they played under the name Rocket Baby Dolls.
The band have recently scooped both the Q Awards and Kerrang Awards Best Live Act on top of their countless other gongs, and the honour of headlining the Carling Weekend, Leeds and Reading Festival this year.
With healthy support from warm-up group Noisettes, the keen crowd waited in anticipation for the world renowned three-piece to emerge.
As the lights dimmed and the music began, the "mosh-pit" charged forwards to the notes and beats from the new album, Black Holes and Revelations.
Classic track, Plug In Baby, was accompanied by a fantastic light show with the enthused crowd bouncing around to the buzzing chorus.
Compared to many other bands who are somewhat inferior live than when recorded, Muse's capacity to perform their songs to a soaring standard while giving a great show of enthusiasm and energy at the same time cannot be contained to a compact disc; their performance was flawless.
The band returned to the pleading crowd for an encore of the adrenaline charged Stockholm Syndrome and Take A Bow, their performance utterly watertight, before disappearing under the guise of giant plumes of smoke.
Good musicianship is not a prerequisite of being a good band - some get by on their catchy choruses alone, but Muse guitarist, pianist and vocalist, Matt Bellamy demonstrated his ability to wow audiences with his mind-blowing solos in addition to this.
The musical flair and individuality of the trio is what makes them a colossus of the music scene, a fact we should be proud of in their home county of Devon.
RACHEL CLUTTERBUCK