EPIC STUFF
For a band of such compact size, Muse sure packs a punch. The trio’s got the kind of mammoth presence that fills stadiums, sells records and acquires fans. And with the recent release of their ninth album, The Resistance, these Britons are proving to be an everlasting alt-rock stronghold. Before their smashing performance at Big Night Out early this year, we squeezed in a chat with the band’s bassist, Chris Wolstenholme.

So how do things work in a three-piece band, anyway?
Um, we just always liked the kind of space you have with a three-piece, you know? Sometimes when you’re recording, it’s very easy to get carried away by putting in layers and layers on top of things – which we do sometimes. But being a three-piece, we can all strip back. The less people there are, the more importance placed on each individual. It’s all a “three-legs on a tripod” thing, you know.

For a band this small, your sound’s pretty epic.
Yeah. We’ll quite often push things too far in the studio. But sometimes it works. “United States of Eurasian” was a song that when we were recording sounded quite ridiculous. It started off as a piano ballad, but when we all got into a room and played together, it became this massive, over-the-top, ridiculous song with all your backing vocals. We kinda like doing that!

The Resistance sounds very much like a collection of rebellion anthems. Are you guys fighting something?
I think so. There are certainly songs, like “Uprising”, in particular, that sound like it – dealing with the world like the banking crisis. There are other songs like it in other albums that deal with this thrust for power, the people who are in control, the governments, people who are maybe above the governments. It’s a weird world we live in.

Did the conceptualisation of the album happen organically?
It’s a bit of both, really. Matt writes the lyrics, so obviously, he’s always got lyrical concepts before me and Don ever really hear them. But in terms of music, we always want things to happen naturally. Sometimes we’ll deliberately finish off a song then put it aside and we’ll think, “Okay, let’s try the same song but do it with a completely different approach.” So you know, we like to try things, mess around and jam a lot.

www.muse.mu

Text: Dianna Tai
Image & interview courtesy of: Warner Music