Drones

1. bgrass13

   Jun 9, 2015

   10

   The more I listen to it (10+ times), the more I find this to be a very satisfying record. Very heavy alt-rock-prog effort with a compellingThe more I listen to it (10+ times), the more I find this to be a very satisfying record. Very heavy alt-rock-prog effort with a compelling storyline that flows from song to song. Bellamy's guitar sounds crisp, crunchy and prominent where it should be; the rhythm section is thunderous and spot on. Vocally, Bellamy is untouchable - rock's best falsetto. The band are one of the top rock bands out there these days and this record is a welcome addition to their canon. Highly recommended by these old ears. (60+)
   These are MY opinions and should be treated as such.… Expand

   • 18 of 26 users found this helpful
2. Guzaman

   Jun 23, 2015

   10

   More than a back to basics, Drones is a tribute to all their previous work, and also is a step forward. Maybe the last four songs sound aMore than a back to basics, Drones is a tribute to all their previous work, and also is a step forward. Maybe the last four songs sound a little flat the fist time you listen to them, but if you hear them more focused, its just the final that the album deserves.… Expand

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful
4. Intonarumori

   Jun 9, 2015

   9

   Muse's seventh offering sounds like they are revisiting their past and offering a bit of everything for everyone. Usually this results inMuse's seventh offering sounds like they are revisiting their past and offering a bit of everything for everyone. Usually this results in discombobulated albums that never really reach their goal, but this is not one of those. Most songs are very much to the point and they sound good in unison. This is achieved by a very deliberate focus on the guitar sound and the producer really did a good job there. Drones sounds vibrant, fresh and the songwriting is about as good as Muse has ever been (except for the lyrics).
   
   Not everything is great though. The album starts of with a series of great songs, but it kind of fizzles towards the end with a couple of somewhat uninteresting songs that also feel seriously underpowered compared to the rest of the album (not counting the de facto outro song). Second point: the lyrics. While these childish lyrics seem to kind of work, it tends to give every song a rather silly undertone, which I think is unfortunate.
   
   Muse has done a great job here, giving us a good set of new songs that work well as an album.
   
   Highlights for me: The Handler, Reapers, Mercy… Expand

   • 13 of 13 users found this helpful
5. Argeon

   Nov 13, 2015

   7

   A very respectable album. It's a mixed bag, but when you get something good, you dig out gems that are sure to be new classics. The Handler,A very respectable album. It's a mixed bag, but when you get something good, you dig out gems that are sure to be new classics. The Handler, The Globalist, Reapers - there are plenty of good songs intertwined with some mediocre songs (Revolt, especially - to a lesser extent, Mercy and Defector).
   
   However, I do enjoy this album for what it is. It's certainly better than The 2nd Law, and it is more serious in tone compared to previous works. If I had to describe it compared to other albums, I think it mixes the angst of their earlier works with the sophistication of The Resistance.
   
   A step in the right direction, and definitely worth a purchase for a Muse fan.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
6. Fennekin

   Jun 9, 2015

   7

   TL;DR version: Muse is back to sounding like Muse but not with their fullest potential. Satisfying album for Muse fans, won't win back anyTL;DR version: Muse is back to sounding like Muse but not with their fullest potential. Satisfying album for Muse fans, won't win back any Symmetry fanboys. Muse is moving in a forward direction and I'm looking forward to their next release.
   
   Muse takes a step back from the previous two albums and goes back to their roots a little. I say "a little" because the orchestral and electronic elements that characterize 'The Resistance' and 'The 2nd Law' respectively are still present, but overall the band has stopped making experimental crap. That said, like The 2nd Law, the album's sound is rather scattered, shifting from pop to hard rock to stadium rock, the list goes on. It's not THAT big of a deal in hindsight, and at least the album is, again, identifiable as a Muse record. Each song seems to attribute to an older song so there's something for everyone, but that essentially means that only Muse fans will really enjoy this album and it probably won't draw in many newer fans, and older "fans" who only like pre-BH&R Muse will probably dislike it besides a couple tracks. Individually, most songs are /okay/. They hold their own alright, but the only GREAT tracks are 'Reapers' and 'The Handler', the former of which stands out the most due to its EPIC outro; both songs also have awesome progression and great solos. Other songs I'll explicitly mention are 'The Globalist', which has its moments but feels a little underwhelming for a 10-minute track, 'Drones' for being... weird; not sure if it would've been better as an interlude or if it's just out of place entirely (something tells me Matt REALLY wanted to do an a capella), 'Defector' for having rather questionable songwriting, at least in the verses, and 'Revolt' for being too cheesy. ...I guess I just don't like the second half that much. First half has some good stuff, though.
   
   The last thing that I'll bring up are the lyrics. Lyrics are more like an extra credit assignment; it's nice to read and hear good lyrics, but they're not the focus because the actual music is more important (at least for rock), and can easily be overlooked. But the lyrics on this album are bad. Matt has never been an outstanding lyricist, but now he's trying to write something "important" and it's not pretty. It's a concept album with a political edge, and probably for the sake of the album's progression, some songs are reduced to absolute slop for lyrics, screaming the message at you until you can't ignore it (which is actually literal in the case of 'Psycho'). I can't say the actual plotline is outstanding either, but it's not bad at least. I actually like how it takes a turning point at the end, but it's nothing to take too seriously in the end. ...Oh, and I guess I can be a dick and complain about the printing of the album. **** spacing, man, why are the lyrics hard to read when you're encouraged to read them in the first place?
   
   I think that's all I wanted to say, though. Sorry if this is too long.… Expand

   • 7 of 9 users found this helpful
7. SocialKebab

   Jun 5, 2016

   6

   At first... This album was a bit of a disappointment but when I started to listen the album even more I started to like it even more and now IAt first... This album was a bit of a disappointment but when I started to listen the album even more I started to like it even more and now I just love it somehow! This album contains pure hard rock and brings some stuff from old days from Muse. Every good stuff from every rock album is mashed up to this one album and taste of Muse to it! Nothing can match the perfection of "Origin Of Symmetry" but this album got VERY CLOSE to it and I love it!… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
8. Alskiz

   Jun 14, 2015

   0

   Subtly was never Muse's thing, I get that. They loved to be simple and bombastic. The music was never good but at least they were fun. OnSubtly was never Muse's thing, I get that. They loved to be simple and bombastic. The music was never good but at least they were fun. On 'Drones' the band fail to do even that, each track is lousy, generic and embarrassing. Bar the excruciating narrative, the tunes themselves sound horrendous. 'Dead Inside' and 'Psycho' rip off Personal Jesus but recreate it via the most generic of sounds. 'Mercy' sounds like a rework of 'Starlight', but Bellamy's falsetto is even more off-putting this time round. Reapers may be the worst song of Muse's already bad collection. Nothing works, everything fails. Unimaginably bad. The worst album in a generation.… Expand

   • 9 of 30 users found this helpful

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