Kerrang - (1999)

Muse have come a long way since their victory in a Devon-based "Battle Of The Bands" contest way back in the mid - 90s. "We were covered in Goth make-up,up against all these old men" recounts wiry vocalist/guitarist Matthew Bellamy amid the clatter of cutlery in a noisy London cafe. "We trashed our stuff and won. We weren't very good musicians, and yet it completely changed my views on music. It made me realise that music should be about attitude vibe and feel rather than technical competence". Raised on a diet of Nivana,Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jn, Bellamy and his band mates - silent bassist Chris Wolsternholme and affable drummer Dominic Howard -set about penning around 80 acerbic songs that vented their frustration at spending their formative years in the soulless seaside town of Teignmouth. The trio decided to ditch their tragic handle Rocket Baby Dolls, and re-christen themselves Muse. But despite their contemplative new moniker, early live shows met with nothing more than blank interest from elderly punters. "Most of our first gigs were in typical Devon pubs where you just go and sit down with a drink and watch VH-1 on the telly," explains Dominic "They really didn't want to see a band. All they wanted was a quite quite pint and we were in the corner just making a racket." Three determined years on, the pint-supping old folks were replaced by excited record industry folk and fans after their dazzling stint at this years InThe City music convention. Such was their confidence that the trio were swiftly snapped up by Mushroom in this country, and Madonna's Maverick in the US. Their blend of classic rock styling and jagged riff obviously won the Queen Of Pops heart, "ut were does the appeal lie.? "We definitely appeal more to a rock crowd laughs Matthew "Its the music we have always listened to - and besides, rock bands always put on a good show". The band laugh and shrug their shoulders at the suggestion that they sound more than a tiny bit like Radiohead-not least Matthews's vocals aerobics, which bear an uncanny resemblance to the Oxford miserabilists" crooner Thom Yorke. "John Leckie, who produced our debut album and Radioheads "The Bends" said Thom used to listen to a lot of Jeff Buckley, and so did I. Matthews offers in defence. "There a elements where we've been influenced by a lot of the same things, but not influenced by them, everything will be fine". Kerrang magazine

back to articles