Pomposity, bombast, pretension and prog-rock: they're four crimes that blight the landscape of modern music and Origin Of Symmetry--the second record by Teignmouth angst-rockers Muse--is guilty of every single one. But the truly astonishing thing about this record is the way it twists every one of these cardinal musical sins into spectacularly silly and starkly individual strengths. Where their debut album Showbiz was rightly dismissed as little more than Radiohead-lite, here Muse sound defiantly like their own band: on "New Born", they're torn somewhere between the purity of front man Matt Bellamy's angelic vocal tones and the corruption of a huge, dirty, distorted bass riff that electrifies the sound into crackling life; on the fraught, operatic "Bliss", they sound like an unholy--but very welcome--cross between synth-heavy Krautrock legends Tangerine Dream and youthful choirboy angst-peddlers JJ72; and even a wonderfully dippy take on the Nina Simone-popularised jazz standard "Feeling Good" is carried off with the requisite deadpan countenance. Bellamy's impassioned voice, in particular, is on spectacular form, soaring skywards until it cracks into a beautiful falsetto reminiscent of Jeff Buckley's greatest vocal moments. So gloriously overblown, it deserves to be huge--Origin Of Symmetry is a fascinating, flamboyant and satisfyingly individual album. --Louis Pattison

Are you a Muse Fan? If you're thinking of buying this album then you are either a Muse fanatic already, or you will be very soon, and if you haven't heard any of these songs already then I envy you - you are in for one crazy audio thrill-ride.
What's so great about this album is it's originality - it takes our usual idea of what rock music is and turns it on its head, electrocutes it, sticks it in a blender and then stuffs it down your throat, much to your masochistic glee. The music is dark, vicious and incredibly addictive, and by the time you've heard Bliss, with its ethereal arpeggios and super high voltage riffs, you will be hooked to the end. It's super badass.
Pretty much every song is unbelievable in its own right. Muse pull no stops when it comes to rocking out, and I recommend that you check out their live performances of these songs as well (they've won best live act at countless award ceremonies for a good reason). Plug In Baby is easily one of the greatest songs of all time. I remember seeing the video for it and I just couldn't belive it! It blew my mind. Citizen Erased, Newborn and Space Dementia are also fantastic. Muse even did a cover of Feeling Good by Nina Simone, and it's insane.
Its hard to believe that this is a three piece set (lead singer Matt Bellamy completely outdoes himself with amazing super high falsetto vocals, incredible guitar work and outstanding piano sections that seamlessly blend into every song). Chris Wolstenhome provides some of the craziest bass playing ever recorded, and Dominic Howard is sensational on drums. By the time you finish listening you will probably flick back to the start of Newborn and listen to it all over again, it really is that good.
Unmissable. You must buy this album!

Each track on this album is pure genius. I'd suggest if you dont already own this album you must. One of the best albums ever!

best tracks
. new born
. bliss
. space dementia
. hypermusic
. plug in baby
. citizen erazed
. darkshines
. feeling good

Matthew Bellamy. Genius. This album is what all music lovers must allow their eardrums to experience. From the first minute you hear a quick paced piano build up to a crunching distorted riff that wouldn't be out of place on a metal album, straight after you've heard that you will realise that you are hearing something different, yet amazing.

OOS will never get boring, from the brilliance of the 'plug in baby' riff, the amazing piano music that 'citizen erased' includes, and the great cover of 'feeling good' you will love it, start to finish.

I love matthew bellamy.

I bought this album a few years ago after buying Absolution and Showbiz. What surprised me was how this was by far their best album. This album has a much darker feel and uses distortion alot more without a single weak track:

1. New Born 10/10. An amazing intro track which starts in a quiet piano riff and turns into a loud and distorted guitar riff. Grabs you at first listen with his amazing vocals.

2. Bliss 8/10. Matt Bellamy claimed that he was attempting to mix in dance music with their original sound. Although that's not the case the song is still very good but doesn't stand out that much on such an amazing album.

3. Space Dementia 9/10. Sounds very classical and has a great piano ostinato (AKA riff) mixed in with Matt's sinister vocals wailing 'You make me sick, because I adore you so' and then goes in to an electronic chorus. The ending drags on a bit but with great dramatical affect.

4. Hyper Music 10/10. Once the song starts its twisted riff with Matt oohing manically in the background you may assume that this song is very dark, but then it stops and becomes very light with Matt chorusing like a wounded angel. This song goes in and out of these styles throughout the song. It sounds amazing.

5. Plug in Baby 10/10. The most famous song on the album. The riff kind of speaks the entire song for itself. Powerful and complex(ish).

6. Citizen Erazed 10/10. Kicks in with a powerful bass and a screeching guitar. With all that going on Matt just has to sound like he's slightly sane. Then they go into a chorus where he shows how high he can go (for now) and the bass/guitar duet beginss again. Then there's a middle part when it gets all quiet and Matt says 'wash me' and some other stuff. Then it continues. It's seven minutes of this. Sorry if I killed the song for you.

7. Micro Cuts 10/10. This is when Matt gets falsetto (high). Really falsetto. Operatic falsetto. Women operatic falsetto. It sounds eccentric and is one of the best songs on the album.

8. Screenager 8/10. Very quiet and subtle and in contrast to the other insanity doesn't seem special. But give it time and the creepy guitars will grow on you. I promise.

9. Darkshines 9/10. Starts off cowboy like and then gets quiet. He then beats up a piano and then starts the chorus. That's about it but it's better than screenager.

10. Feeling Good (Oh no! A cover!) 8/10. Don't worry it's not that awful. He wails into microphone which makes me laugh (no offense).

11. Megalomia 8/10. Starts quiet bursts into the chorus with an organ. The ending could have been better but still...

If you want to like Muse for their talent buy this album. If for their commercialism buy Black Holes and Revelations and hope they never make something that commercial again. Or buy both I don't care.

Id consider this Muse's best album to date (with Absolution being 2nd). The songs are very atmospheric and the vocals are excellent. The only track Id consider as a filler is "Screenager", but the rest are all top quality. One criticism I could say is that some of the tracks sound simalar/are of a simalar style (for instance "Space Dementia" sounds like "Dark Shines" in some parts), but when they sound as good as they do Im not complaining. Buy this album, you won't be dissapointed.