Muse’s forthcoming album is informed by “the increasing uncertainty and instability in the world.”
The Matt Bellamy-fronted rock trio – completed by Chris Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard – have unveiled their ninth studio album,‘Will Of The People’, and revealed penning the collection was their way of processing this “worrying and scary time” amid the war in Ukraine, the coronavirus pandemic, “rising authoritarianism” and the climate crisis.
Sharing the themes behind the record, Matt said: “A pandemic, new wars in Europe, massive protests and riots, an attempted insurrection, Western democracy wavering, rising authoritarianism, wildfires and natural disasters and the destabilisation of the global order all informed ‘Will Of The People’.
“It has been a worrying and scary time for all of us as the Western empire and the natural world, which have cradled us for so long are genuinely threatened. This album is a personal navigation through those fears and preparation for what comes next.”
The ‘Plug in Baby’ rockers have presented the second single, ‘Compliance’ – along with a chilling music promo filmed in Poland – which follows January’s ‘Won’t Stand Down’.
On the meaning behind the synth-heavy track, he added: “‘Compliance’ is about submission to authoritarian rules and reassuring untruths to be accepted to an in-group.
“Gangs, governments, demagogues, social media algorithms and religions seduce us during times of vulnerability, creating arbitrary rules and distorted ideas for us to comply with. They sell us comforting myths, telling us only they can explain reality while simultaneously diminishing our freedom, autonomy and independent thought.
“We are not just coerced, we are herded, frightened and corralled to produce a daily ‘two minutes of hate’ against an out-group of their choosing and to turn a blind eye to our own internal voice of reason and compassion. They just need our Compliance.”
‘Will Of The People’ – the follow-up to 2018’s ‘Simulation Theory’ – is released on August 26.
The track-listing for ‘Will Of The People’ is:
1. ‘Will Of The People’
2. ‘Compliance’
3. ‘Liberation’
4. ‘Won’t Stand Down’
5. ‘Ghosts (How Can I Move On)’
6. ‘You Make Me Feel Like It’s Halloween’
7. ‘Kill Or Be Killed’
8. ‘Verona’
9. ‘Euphoria’
10.‘We Are F****** F*****’