What do you think of Muse's 2nd Law?

I'm enjoying it a fair bit. I don't think it's on the level of Absolution or BH&R but it's a huge improvement over The Resistance, which was extremely disappointing. I'm not sure how I'd rank The 2nd Law against Showbiz or Origin of Symmetry yet.

The thing I noticed about this album is that it still retains the same poppy 'epicness' that was prevalent throughout The Resistance, but unlike that album, there is actually songwriting present here. The biggest problem with The Resistance is that the entire album tried to sound so 'big' but there was no substance to it. That sound had no underlying substance. There was no foundation upon which that big sound was based. With the exception of 3-4 songs, the entire albums was just big for the sake of big.

The 2nd Law isn't like that. While it retains many of the same sonic characteristics, it feels like that 'big' sound is actually based off of something. Whether we're talking about interesting electronics, creative guitar riffs, or pretty melodies, the songs actually have something to them. They have their own sounds and are not just big for the sake of being big.

i would say its better than Resistance and Black Holes and Showbiz, but in my opinion thats not really saying much. Origins of Symmetry is my favorite, followed closely by Absolution. Though one thing The 2nd Law has going for it, is that the HD version sounds freaking impeccable, loads of dynamic range and it never even gets close to clipping. so thats a plus, so its got the best sound quality out of any of their cds

i got it from the muse website though, not HDTracks, it was more money there, and you have to deal with their downloader thing 

I have to disagree... This might be the first Muse album I won't be buying 

I really wanted to enjoy it, but I was very disappointed when I heard the full album. Although I didn't like any of the songs that were released previously, I kept an open mind. I actually can't remember any truly great and epic songs, or even guitar riffs. I admire when bands are willing to experiment and explore new influences and sounds, but in this case this album is a mess, different styles and concepts thrown in together in a way that lacks cohesiveness. Sorry if I sound too harsh or negative, but I didn't like this album at all.  

The only songs I liked from this album were Follow Me and a bit of Liquid State. As a whole I found it even just as dissapointing as The Resistance if not more. I ended up deleting the ones with a dubstep-y sound from my library. Although I have to agree that in 24/96 the quality is impecable.

The HD FLAC version has a different master so it has more dynamic sound and doens't clip compared to the MP3 or CD versions.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pmc64 

The HD FLAC version has a different master so it has more dynamic sound and doens't clip compared to the MP3 or CD versions.

Do you have any sources for that?

I've bought the album through iTunes and checked the files in Audacity. There are no signs of any 'brickwalling' and I wouldn't expect any clipping at all.

See: http://www.emusician.com/artists/0767/muse/149550

I would be surprised if the mp3 and CD versions would differ, but you never know..

I've liked most of what Muse has released but after hearing Undisclosed Desires, I had the feeling that they were going in a different direction and the new album proves that to me. When I heard the first single, Madness, from 2nd Law, I was very disappointed but remained open to possibly buying it anyway. After I heard all the songs when they streamed them, I knew that I wouldn't be buying it and didn't.

I blame Kate Hudson. It seems like many good bands have gone astray after one of the members gets together with or marries a movie or TV actress. 

I think they need to call it a day now, they've wrote some great stuff and are a fantastic live band but he's just pouring out bad Queen rip offs these days. Seems to be Hot Space he's into with this album.. Nevermind. They were a brilliant band for a while!

That's the single of Madness on Amazon MP3 on the top. And the 96/24 FLAC on the bottom. The single and album version might be different. Also when I stream it on Zune or Spotify and I check the peak meter on the windows volume control it stays maxed out and the end of the song.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LugBug1 

I think they need to call it a day now, they've wrote some great stuff and are a fantastic live band but he's just pouring out bad Queen rip offs these days. Seems to be Hot Space he's into with this album.. Nevermind. They were a brilliant band for a while!

My thoughts as well.  I listened to the album once and haven't felt like hearing it again.  They've gone in a direction I don't care for.  The over the top style and their derivative nature is really wearing on me now.  "Absolution" was really good.  "Black Holes" was even better.  "The Resistance" was a step back and this one is a major leap back from that.