Muse

Muse Rouse the Docile Coachella Crowd

The Coachella line up this year was far more vibrant than 2009, bringing younger acts and therefore a younger audience to the polo fields set deep in the LA desert. The greatest draw for many was the addition of Muse to the second day and the crowds packed in for Faith No More (the preceding set) in order to find themselves a good spot. Faith No More were not disappointing (if not a little seedy in their age and tongue gestures) and the crowd eagerly endured the 45 minute interlude before the lights dimmed.

Bellamy cruises onto the stage opening with the well received Uprising before cranking out established crowd pleasers Supermassive Black Hole and New Born. Having accepted during the previous festival that Coachella crowds tend to favour spectating over riotously joining in, I was surprised/relieved to see the front 20 rows bouncing in unison and screaming along. Anyone who didn’t believe that Bellamy is a master of his craft had been converted by New Born, as he progressed from piano for the intro to guitar for the riff-heavy sections.

The light show had been noticeably toned down, lacking the full scale flamboyance associated with Muse, but this seemed not to matter as the audience were drawn into both old and new material, separated on occasion with Hendrix and Nirvana teasers. It even appeared to escape the hypnotised masses that Bellamy had changed trousers during the bass/drum instrumental. Throw in a little pyrotechnics with Starlight, and by the time Plug In Baby comes around, my seemingly dead legs summon the energy worthy of a fit as Bellamy slings his guitar round the back of his head whilst casually tapping his foot.

When the band left the stage, the encore was inevitable, especially as the roadies hadn’t begun to remove the equipment for Tiesto, whose closing slot after Muse is a mystery to more than one. After the time it takes to knock back a bottle of water, they return set against a red mist with Stockholm Syndrome. The now frantic audience charge through Knights of Cydonia as the closing track before almost simultaneously retreating to relocate friends and attempt to figure out what just happened.

At Coachella, Muse again offered up the kind of theatricalities that have to be witnessed live, which is why I can only hope they bring the same all-consuming performance to a more responsive crowd at Glastonbury in June.