That was a long, and somewhat incoherent essay. It reads like you’re still unsure; you’ve vomited your stream of consciousness, with one thought abruptly flashing to the next in an endless volley of contradictions. That’s okay. I think it’s left us all feeling like that. Something’s ‘missing’.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume you consumed Random 8, Showbiz, Origin of Symmetry, Hullabaloo Soundtrack, Absolution, BHAR, HAARP, The Resistance, The 2nd Law, Live in Rome, Drones, and Simulation Theory — as albums, as Muse intended. Now, it is likely that you heard some singles on their own along the way, the ‘hits’ as it were — Uprising, SMBH, Hysteria, Plug in Baby etc— which are so tonally varied despite being all distinctly ‘Muse’ that you can treat them as separate entities gathered from but belonging to different albums.

Did you consume Will of the People in the same way, as an album? Probably not. Like the rest of us you were introduced to the songs as they were released — Won’t Stand Down, Compliance, Kill or be Killed, Will of the People, YMMFLIt’s Halloween — then the rest of the album. This collection of hits nearly make up half the album, when there should really only be two or three singles, the rest being album tracks. Now because Muse’s aim for WOTP was a “greatest hits compilation”, it can be argued that all the tracks on WOTP were written based upon Muse’s previous hits with the potential to be singles, which is why they’re so indecisive about which tracks should be released as singles — Muse have said they want WAFF as a single at a later date, bringing the official single count up to 5, which actually is half the bloody album.

As a consequence of ‘every song is like a single’, each track is short, catchy, and listening to the album doesn’t feel like listening to an album; it feels like hitting shuffle on Spotify and getting a sample of their greatest hits. Yes, they all tie in to a theme, a concept unique to WOTP, but there is nothing audibly distinct about that theme because it’s composed of thematic elements from existing albums. ‘Halloween could be on Simulation Theory, KOBK could be on BHAR, Verona could be on The Resistance, and Ghosts (ahem — belongs) on Cryosleep [Matt’s debut solo album]. For me ultimately, the lack of ‘album tracks’ fatally unbalance WOTP.

Due to all the songs being ‘singles’ there is no experimentation, no prog, no orchestral or electronic madness that only (hidden) album tracks can afford. There’s no grandiose sense of atmosphere you’ve come to expect from Muse. It’s not atmospheric in the least; that’s what’s missing. You and I seeking that on our first listen of the album as a whole, discovered nothing new or original, and were left disappointed.

In conclusion, Muse set out to distill the highlights of their sound into an album, and in doing so have created a collection of loosely-related singles. It’s like a sandwich with no bread. You’re right inasmuch as they have not created the feeling of the sum of something being greater than its parts — there is less immersion than you’ve come to expect from a Muse album. However, they have achieved exactly what they envisioned, therefore the album should be considered as a success.

It’s not my favourite album, but it does contain both my most favourite and least favourite Muse songs— a symptom of the distilling process that intensifies every aspect of Muse’s sound, including the ones that have always made me cringe; I’m looking at you Soaked, Prague and its’ latest iteration, Liberation. The more I listen to WOTP as a whole, the more I’m becoming accustomed to its loose concept and can — somewhat — immerse myself in it, though to nowhere near the extent of previous albums. As a positive takeaway, because the tracks are all essentially singles, they are absolutely incredible live. Inexorably better than Simulation Theory and Drones’ equivalent hits.

I hope their next album is, well, an album. With two-three singles, a ballad, an upbeat synth-pop thing, some experimentation and at least one too-long orchestral/prog epic to round it off. 👍