By Darryl Smyers, Special Contributor
Due to technical problems at Muse's show Tuesday night in Houston, the band decided to delay the show on Wednesday night at American Airlines Center for nearly two hours. Accommodations were even made by DART, extending the evening's train schedules for fans going home at such a late hour. Who knew rock bands had such a controlling influence?
The lengthy tardiness didn't detract from Muse's muscular, textured sound, though. Despite an evening ending past the bedtimes of many in attendance, the music was a celebration of power and light.
Wednesday night's show was everything an arena rock concert should be: epic, loud and eventful. The British trio of guitarist/vocalist Matt Bellamy, bassist Chris Wolstenholme and drummer Dominic Howard delivered a technically astounding two hours that recalled everything from Judas Priest to Van Halen to U2 to, especially, Queen. The near capacity crowd embraced each moment as if each came from the jukebox of their dreams.
Beginning with "Psycho" from Muse's most recent album, Drones, Bellamy and crew merged several music styles with disarming ease. The guitar intro to "Reapers" was a dead ringer for prime Eddie Van Halen. "Resistance" started off as a power ballad and ended up like an outtake from U2's Joshua Tree. One of the evening's best cuts was "Starlight," another mid-tempo number that gave the vibe of Bono fronting mid-period Queen.
Muse's players have an amazing talent for blending these influences and producing something neither tritely reverential nor derivative. Muse is unflinching in its commitment to details and epic scope. Listening to its material can be exhilarating one moment and perplexing within minutes.
What it can be as well, however, is a tad long. Take "The Globalist" for example, a lengthy cut from Drones. Featuring a drawn-out piano intro and a never ending operatic finale, the song wore out its welcome several minutes before drawing to an exasperated end. Again, the song featured cool videos and elaborate staging, but the music couldn't stand up to the extravagant trimmings.
Part of the delay to the show was the painfully intricate stage set up and light show. It's almost as though Muse doesn't trust the quality of its own songs. Each track featured enough special effects to make even George Lucas mutter, "No mas."
All three members of Muse are talented and driven musicians. Their commitment to their craft and the bond they forge with their audience is undeniable.
Yet Wednesday's show somehow felt a bit shallow, like a great Shakespeare play updated with all the wrong stage direction and set in some modern locale that makes the dialogue sound phony and forced. There is no denying Muse's muscular force and top-notch instrumental prowess. What this trio does isn't easy and isn't easily classifiable. And for that, they are to be commended and applauded.
But the power needs to be presented in the songs themselves, not the show. Presentation should always take a backseat to the kinds of verses and choruses that resonate across genres and generations.
Darryl Smyers is a Dallas freelance writer.
