With a career that spands a decade, including six studio albums and a string of world tours, under their belt, you wouldn’t be mistaken for thinking stadium rock gods Muse were too big to play the Manchester Academy.
Tonight though, the Grammy Award winning trio did just that when they returned to the city to play a rare and intimate gig at the packed out venue.
Renowned for their energetic and extravagant live performances, the Devon rockers arrived on stage to a rapturous applause from the crowed and ripped through their back catalogue.
The opening riff to their latest single and the tours namesake Psycho was enough to send the sea of bodies crammed in to the tiny space into frenzy.
Considering it was only released a week prior to this, the crowd shouted the lyrics in unison, back at front man Matt Bellamy who looked reminiscent of when the band last played here in 2001.
The set list saw the return of obscurer rarities from their extensive back catalogue, favorites of old and new fans alike and a sneak peak of a couple of tracks from new album Drones.
Following the bold introduction, they treated the hardcore fans to rarely aired B-Sides The Groove and Dead Star, to the full-capacity crowd’s sheer delight.
The sing-a-long that followed for the iconic Time Is Running Out threatened to blow the roof off of the academy.
The monstrous intro to Supermassive Black Hole sent shockwaves through the venue as a sea of bodies jumped up and down in sync with the momentous bass.
The band launched into their second new song of the evening, Reapers, complete with trademark unworldly solos from Bellamy and judging by the response from the crowd, it could prove to be an anthem in the making.
Fury restored some familiarity with the crowd to start the encore, before the pulsating Plug In Baby set the gig up for a furious, fast-paced finale.
The Teignmouth rockers seem to be rejuvenated and reborn following their two and a half year absence following their last album.
Their newest sound is far apart from their last experimental albums offering which toyed with several musical sub genres.
Their last album, 2nd Law, split critics and fans alike, but this new sound has certainly pulled everyone back together in harmony.
Bellamy’s unique at times, improbably high pitched tones contrasted by the bold, no-nonsense musical styling of Wolstenholme and Howard was a sight to behold.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros, via Youtube, with thanks.
