COMMUNITY CULTURE REVIEW
Muse might be a British band,
but they reached the height of
their popularity in the States
when George Bush’s presidency
turned
toward
absolute
contention. Without feeling too
abstract or derivative, Absolution
and Black Holes and Revelations
played like soundtracks to “1984”;
they spoke to our emotions,
not just our politics. You might
have even hated Muse, felt their
political slant was a bit too “holier
than thou,” but there was no
denying their talent, the magnetic
bass of Christ Wolstenholme and
Matt Bellamy’s impressive vocal
range.
This is why 2015’s Drones was
a disappointment: On a surface
level, it was a classic Muse album,
concept based and musically
exceptional.
But
the
lyrics
and concept itself were trite,
difficult to follow and downright
patronizing. Drones is comparable
to your uncle frothing conspiracy
theories during Thanksgiving
dinner; it lacked tact and tried too
hard to push a message about war
and drones. In essence, it forgot
how to have fun.
Muse’s
latest
release
Simulation
Theory
settles
somewhere
in
the
middle.
Although by no means their best
release, it handles its concept
well and brings Muse’s lyricism
back to earth. Inspired by the
“simulation hypothesis,” it talks
about sci-fi like a dystopian novel
would: thematically cautious and
immersive, elegantly riding off
the ’80s synth and pop culture
trend without sacrificing Muse’s
sound.
The initial track “Algorithm”
begins with a pounding synth
that transforms and builds; it
gets grittier and rougher until
it culminates in a softer, almost
symphonic pulsation with the
introduction of a piano and
violin. Bellamy’s iconic falsetto
carries the rising and falling of
the beat following the minute-
and-a-half mark. It plays like a
fresher intro theme to “Tron,”
with its ominous but melodic beat
that oscillates between chugging
and fluttering forward. Although
the lyrics (“Churn like a cog /
We are caged in simulations /
Algorithms evolve”) are far from
a little hard to take seriously,
it still plays well into this sort
of “Brave New World” Muse
attempts to illustrate throughout
Simulation Theory.
Conversely, the third track off
the album, “Pressure,” veers less
into abstracts. The imagery is a lot
easier to grasp as Bellamy croons
“I’m feeling the pressure / I can’t
break out / No one can hear me
scream and shout.” The phrase
“pressure building” is whispered
sporadically
throughout
the
song, further pushing the image
of someone breaking down with
building tension. Classic Muse
guitar riffs streak the song and
pull it forward as a subdued synth
slinks in the background. Heavy-
handed and perhaps a slightly
more esoteric presentation of
our current political state, the
song doesn’t make it too obvious,
playing off more anthemic and
catchy.
“Propaganda”
serves
as
the album’s most overtly ’80s
sounding
song.
Its
opening
rumbles with scratchy robotic
vocals that repeat the word
“propaganda”
erratically,
an
obvious reference to Prince’s
1999. There are vague whispers
of “Kiss”’s guitar licks and beats
that marry well with Bellamy’s
notably
high-pitched
vocals.
But where Prince succeeds in
telling his listeners “Fuck it, let’s
party” at the sight of the end of
the world, Muse fails as they
persuade us to save it, folding in
vague references to oil slicks and
lying politicians.
The rest of the album follows
the same formula of synth, a
vague ’80s reference and political
commentary. This isn’t to say the
elements do not bond well with
each other; every ingredient
works in tandem to deliver
Muse’s unwavering commentary
and caution. Musically, the album
is refreshing, deftly stitching in
influences that generally exist
strictly in genres. Despite the
heavy incorporation of synth,
the instrumentation is lavish and
full, with bass and drums making
useful appearances as well. As
a concept album, “Simulation
Theory” is polished, cohesive and
steered clear of monotony.
The problem with “Simulation
Theory” comes in the sense that it
is too polished, too clean and too
obsessed with the bigger picture.
It paints a political picture
broadly and in binaries of good
and evil rather than exploring the
more human component to our
current political climate. Muse
does not bring any new ideas to
the table despite their extensive
efforts to present themselves as
profound. Politics is a lot fuzzier
and expansive than brainwashing
and good versus evil. A political
concept
album
only
really
succeeds when it can be made
personal and tell a story — not
merely scream out abstractions
and emotive lyricism.
‘Simulation Theory’ is an
unconvincing dystopia
DIANA YASSIN
Daily Arts Writer
WARNER BROS. RECORDS
Rude Mechanicals wows
in ‘Let the Right One In’
Blind dates are always an
interesting experience. Like most
things, they can go one of two
ways: well, or not so well. You run
the risk of commiting to a long
interaction with a person you do
not get along with at all, or you
get the awesome experience of
meeting a person that you mesh
really well with that you never
would have known otherwise.
Last Sunday, I had a blind date
with the Rude Mechanicals’s
production of “Let the Right One
In.”
It started off pretty well; The
show started on time and the
set was beautiful. However, the
conversation I was about to have
was dramatically different than I
was expecting. I was expecting
a performance about letting
the right people into your life,
or something along those lines.
However, when the production
opened with a gruesome murder,
I was surprised, to say the least.
One might expect someone
writing a review of this play to
have done a little more research
before actually seeing said play.
While most of the time I agree,
the initial, raw reactions are also
interesting and noteworthy.
The story follows a young
boy, Oskar, and his recently
established
friendship
with
the new girl in town, Eli. Amid
merciless bullying and a less
than great life at home, Oskar’s
relationship with his new friend
blossoms. However, Oskar starts
to realize a connection between
the sudden murders in the town
with the appearance of Eli.
After such an intense opening
scene, I was hooked. Director
James Harbaugh seemed to do
everything in his power to grab
the audience and keep them
intrigued from the get-go in this
almost three-hour performance.
The opening details seemed
perfect;
the
beautiful
set,
complete with seemingly realistic
snow and trees, created an eerie
environment that portrayed the
dark woods of a Norwegian town
quite well. Seeing the snow fly up
in gusts as characters ran from
stage left to stage right reminded
me of winter here in Mich.
The production used a fitting
soundtrack of industrial-based
synth music, adding tension to
climaxes and atmosphere to
other scenes. However, there
were times when it felt like the
production seemed to rely a
bit too much on the music for
each of those things. One of the
biggest action sequences towards
the end felt slightly reliant on
the sudden burst of sound to
startle the audience, when the
screams and movement on stage
were just as alarming. These
effects definitely added to the
experience, but they crept a bit
too much into the fore every once
in a while.
Relationships
between
characters
proved
to
be
a
central
element
throughout
the play, whether it be Oskar’s
relationship with Eli, his bully
or his separated parents. The
production
does
this
quite
well
through
juxtaposition.
Slight changes in SMTD Junior
Bryan
Chan’s
portrayal
of
Oskar highlighted the other
characters’
current
struggles
with relationships. Even Oskar’s
lonesome
walks
across
the
stage through the fake snow
displayed elements of character
development.
SMTD
Sophomore
Emma
Steiner’s
portrayal
of
Eli,
however,
was
absolutely
haunting.
Every
action
she
performed gave more and more
depth to her character. From
every breath she took to every
scream she belted, it felt as if it
was coming from a 200 year-old
vampire. And not the vampires
that
“Twilight”
glamorized:
Her portrayal was monstrous,
sickening and terrifying at times,
yet I felt sympathy for her. I
wasn’t disgusted, and I wasn’t
sure why. That level of depth
from the character, even after
killing and dining on blood, had
me concerned for the characters’
safety and well-being at times.
The production was dark,
both physically and conceptually.
However, while there were small,
more subtle instances of comic
relief inserted (and I mean, very
subtle), the audience seemed to
crack up at these small moments,
almost ruining the mood and
continuity of the performance
for me. This isn’t necessarily a
critique of the performance itself,
just an observation on going to a
live event. You’re in the space
with other people, and that adds
to the aspect of live performance,
whether you like it to or not. The
date itself was great, it’s just
that the atmosphere was a bit
distracting.
I regret not seeing more
student theater productions here
on campus. As someone who has
only briefly participated on stage,
I really respect the work these
students put into their craft,
and after working on multiple
projects with actors both in
and outside of the School of
Music, Theatre & Dance, I know
how talented they are. After a
successful first date, to say that
I’m excited for more dates with
the Rude Mechanicals would be
an understatement.
RYAN COX
Daily Arts Writer
Simulation
Theory
Muse
Warner Bros.
Records
ALBUM REVIEW
Muse does
not bring any
new ideas to the
table despite
their extensive
efforts to present
themselves as
profound
6A — Monday, November 12, 2018
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com