How Muse (Doesn't?) Write A Chord Progression | Artists Series S2E3 

I don't understand why everyone acts like Showbiz never happened. It's a brilliant debut.

65% existentialism thoughts 20% dramatic falsetto 15% hysteria

muse and radiohead are like two phases of bipolar disorder: muse is mania and radiohead is depression

Been to several Muse concerts, they also have the benefit of fucking wild live performances. Also, God, Chris is aces at Bass.

Their ability to modulate tension is breathtaking. It's my favorite thing about Map of the Problematique, the way the tension seems to build and build and build forever. It's like a Shepard's Tone of tension

What emotions does Muse evoke in you? Hysteria

I feel like although many of Muse's songs have a political theme, the expression in them is always emotionally-driven. With any topic they draw out the question: 'what are the emotional consequences of this?'.. which is the part that everyone forgets when they talk politics. Muse's songs are always about your state of mind. Listening to the words themselves, they are personal. Taking songs from every album... Feeling Good, Hysteria, Map of the Problematique, Showbiz, Survival, The Handler, The Dark Side and so on, you will find the words 'I', 'you', 'me' or 'my' are usually the focus. It's not about the group, it's about you and me.

Have you listened to early Muse? Very personal and dark.

Been a Muse fan for almost a decade now and I have to say you did an amazing job with this. Have to ask though - How do you make money? No ads, using copyrighted content, no patreon link... for something of such a high quality I hope you're getting the compensation you deserve

Radiohead - despair Muse - panic

This video is just a piece of art. I'm a Muse fan since Origin of Symmetry and know that Bellamy is a freaking genius, obsessed with perfection and classical music. Loved your video, so polished, so clean and so well produced. Cheers!

"A lot of their songs feel like you're floating through space or cliff diving... You feel constantly on edge, suspended in mid-air." **watches the video for "Bliss"**

As a diehard Muse fan and songwriter, let me just say you did an amazing job on this video! One of the best things I’ve watched on RU-vid-was captivating the entire time

As a longtime fan of Muse, listening to tryhards dumping on them as "low rent Radiohead", this video was edifying and validating.

Man, this makes me insecure because I have no idea about musical theory. But thanks for making me appreciate my favourite songs even more! What a lovely, smart voice you have.

For us who can't read music, it would really help your examples if you would either play the part of the track you're talking about, or simply play it on a piano. In that way we can actually learn. I feel like I could learn alot of from this, but I'm left with an empty feeling now.

Another thing to note, almost all muse songs are more minor than major. It kind of makes it sound mysterious being somewhere in between

Honestly I feel like Muse want to expose every human they can, stripping them to the bones with different types of music and lyrics. So much so that you may feel that they are political. They are totally extroverted, but they are, honestly, Drama Queens. It feels like your on a stage every time you hear one of their songs. I would say that Muse, with this, is way more personal than Radiohead.

Muse are one of the most interesting bands I've heard. They're like prog-rock in a way.

I don't know how much more work it would be for you, but it would be really cool if you could 1. play a clip of the original song 2. repeat the chord progression or melody on the piano / guitar, first at full speed and then slowly, taking it apart, while explaining what's happening. Show the details in sound and notation simultaneously, if possible. That would really help follow and understand what you are trying to say.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! I've been trying to figure out Bellamy/MUSE for soooo long, and you've just made so much make perfect sense!

It's a bit hard with the words - I am not a native english speaker. But I will try my best. Here is what the music makes me feel: Angsty excitement, followed by elation and hope. It makes me want to fight what is wrong in the world. Makes me want to held my head high while surrounded by despair. This will sound nerdy, but I kinda think some songs of Muse are the audible form of what a Patronus would feel like - hope in the face of despair that makes you fight even if the odds are not in your favour. Jeez, I sound so cheesy.

As a big Muse Fan I really enjoyed this video, this is so interesting ! Matt is a pure genius

I’m honestly surprised you didn’t mention map of the problematique that song for me is so mind blowing and incredible with the lyrics mixed with the music my jaw was on the floor it’s a perfect example of how good they actually are that song is so underrated

I watched this on a whim based on the title - I've not listened to much Muse before. I'm gonna change that right now! Thanks :)

Thing is, Muse totally used to be personal and slightly contrarian, but over time they got progressively closer to the description you gave...

David Bowie would be a perfect example for this series given his image and how it related to him as an artist. I would love to see some chilli peppers too

You have to do Queen!!!!

Of the whole world of music critics out there, you are LITERALLY the only person I have seen truly explain the key elements of a band or musician’s style using authentic music theory. In many cases I don’t think the artists you are focusing on necessarily know they are doing what they are doing with music. I think it just feels right to them. Nirvana would be a good example of that. I think Kurt decided that most songs jump up two frets on the guitar when playing power chords, so he would do three or four fret jumps instead just to be different. I don’t think he realized the implications of leaving out the third in his compositions. That made an occasional major to minor chord transition (A to Am for example) totally possible with the rest being power chords. I really think Kurt was learning how it sounded and why but he couldn’t have explained it the way you did. Likewise this video finally gives me the language to say why I like Muse just slightly better than Radiohead. I love both, but Muse is more exultant (that was one of my three things I came up with to definite their style). Theatrical also comes to mind. Perhaps the only thing I don’t like more about Muse is that they are a bit too theatrical and dramatic compared to Thom Yorke’s occasional deadpan delivery. So, as far as suggestions, I haven’t even looked in your line up for these videos yet, but I would love if you did Hendrix, The Doors, Beck, Pearl Jam/Eddie Vedder, and the lesser known Kasabian. You may well have done some of these already and I haven’t gotten to them. If so then sorry. I hope there are at least some on that list you haven’t gotten to. I say Hendrix because his songs had incredible complexity that only seemed to increase just before he died. It took me a long time to appreciate the jazz influence within the Doors, and how much the underappreciated Kreiger really added to that band. Beck’s Sea Change album and his most recent work really have some fascinating chord transitions. They use big jumps like Nirvana’s, but seem to integrate them better. Stone Goddard and Eddie Vedder (Mike, etc.) write some really uniquely exhaltant chord changes, particularly in the 90s work. Eddie’s solo work has really shown some good songwriting too. Finally, Kasabian are hit or miss for me, so a little inconsistent, but they go from phrenetic changes to much more traditional. I’m Looking for a common theme for them... I’ll now look and see if you’ve already covered any of the musicians I suggested! Great videos and I’m glad to see someone out there doing what I would always try to do as a guitar teacher.

Muse is pure Bliss 🙃

It just brings Matt Bellamy as one of the biggest artist alive !!

Muse: ethereal angst revolution The fourth word would be sensual The difference from Muse to Radiohead: - revolution + destitute

My honest answers to the two leading questions: Muse evokes a sense of size more than anything else. They just sound huge to me. The second question, how Muse differs from Radiohead: Muse feels faster, bigger, and epic. I was intrigued at seeing what your answers were! Great video, keep it up.

He is not a rock artist, but I would love to hear an analysis on Hans Zimmer.

I started to learn the first instrument ever at the age of 40. Guitar, ofc. One of the first songs I learned to play and sing was Newborn. I enjoy to play and sing it so much I could not put it into words. Thank you for this vid.

Please do Jeff Buckley, such a great song writer

When you watch a video and you want to go to the comments to see people's thoughts of the video but you cant because the video is a part of a series and the comments are literally just suggestions for other videos

Ah, yes. I'm so glad that google scraped my history for research into Muse's chord progressions and presented the results to me in RU-vid. This video was a wonderful surprise!

I started doing this on my own i cant believe i found a channel that breaks down songs and not just tge harmony. Really nice

If only this video came out 10 years ago when I was a teenager who discovered Muse right after losing my father to suicide and decided to pursue music because of their fresh, un-American sounds. Now 25 and having competed 2 levels of college theory, RU-vid delivers this to my recommendations and I feel re-invigorated to continue this path of musical exploration my inner-compass compels me to explore. My 16 year old self and I thank you from the bottom of my heart, no exaggeration, for this wise and concise technical breakdown of Muse's magic.

I'd like to add that even though they sound smart or sophisticated, their songs don't sound complex. They're still sing-a-long-able with a clear beat and recognizable melodies. Which is my main appeal with Muse. They're never overly complicated, even when they use unconventional time signatures or other things. But they do have that little extra that piques my interest.

Muse is perfect for any mood

I’m learning music theory but still I didn’t understood almost nothing from this video, still it seems really interesting so I will make sure to come back once I have a better knowledge of music theory

For me Muse sounds like a mixture of Queen, U2 and Depeche Mode.

The basics of Prog Rock are Complexity, Baroque and Musical Formalism. Muse is full blown Prog Rock. Radiohead is similar but changes the Baroque for Minimalism, which makes them closer to German Prog/Psychedelic music than to traditional Prog. People say Radiohead is all about emotion, thats completly wrong, Nirvana Unplugged is all about emotion, Radiohead is using musical theory and complexity to convey emotion. Prog Rock, like It or not, was key for the development of many indie and shoegazer bands. King Crimson and Pink Floyd particularly, and, in the case of The Resistance by Muse, Queen (dont forget Brian May was a huge Genesis fan, and the song Bohemian Rhapsody is full blown Prog). I would add to Complexity, Baroque and Musical Formalism, Ambition and Experimentation. Even minimalist or simple bands like Pink Floyd are full with textures and details. So yeah both Muse and Radiohead kind of qualify as prog rock. Porcupine Tree's Steven Wilson is a fan of Radiohead and both Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy and Genesis's Steve Hacket have a liking for muse. Hackett said The Resistance was one of his favorite new prog albums. Radiohead, Muse, Tool, Mars Volta, etc. All prog rock bands, even if they dont sound like clasic prog.

Really enjoyed this one. Muse is a favorite of mine. Would love to see an analysis of Nine Inch Nails and of Big Wreck.

Just saw them live last night, they are amazing live!

Muse is my favorite band, try royal blood next, only bass and drums and big riffs

As a layperson who knows nothing, this makes me appreciate the skill in Muse's compositions. Even if you know nothing, you can hear the sophistication in the arrangments.

I’m not a musician and I can hardly descent C from D, but this video is highly educational and gives a great peek into how legends are built. Excellent

thank you so much for this video. my favorite band of all time is Muse and i love their music so much. you really hit all the points about their songwriting. amazing video!

One of the greatest Rock band of alltime..

Love the video! I've been a fan of Muse since forever and they are really unique and you really explain them well. I bet it takes a lot of time to prepare these kinds of videos so thank you for doing this! Arctic Monkeys should be one of your next videos for sure, also consider talking about Tame Impala. Have a great day, I subscribed!

Loved this! Thought the video was at first just going to bash how they write their music, but ended up being delighted to hear an in depth analysis showing Bellamy's classical side! Subscribed!

Muse makes also songs about love, isolation, etc. I was thinking about the emotions their music rises than any technical / sophisticated terms. The new song The dark side is something else too. The lyrics fit perfectly to the hauntingly beautiful melody of the singing. Still being definitely the Muse we know. Interesting video.

You really need to get around to doing Pink Floyd sometime, sooo much to dig into there

Thanks for doing muse ,wanted it for soo long

muse will always have a place in my heart

Been a huge fan of Muse for 15 years I cannot describe the way their music makes me feel in only three or four words. They are simply the most amazing artists of all time!!

This was the video which got me obsessed with Muse, nearly a year later nothing has changed

I'm interested in seeing a video that covers Gorillaz, really curious on what you'd have to say

This looks like a great video but it is for rather advanced musicians and people who know this stuff. For me you're speaking alien. Wish i was more knowledgeable. I have questions though. 1 - Does Bellamy really sits down and writes notes on a sheet, like a composer would I guess, or do they play stuff and work it out from there? In other words, does he create instinctively or is it fabricated, maybe a mix? 2 - When people read written music, do they hear it in their head? All in all, I know Muse works for me. In the 80s and 90s I was a big fan of bands like Pink Floyd, U2, Depeche Mode, Beastie Boys, Run DMC, Ministry. All these bands I listened to because family members or friends brought those to me. When I discovered Muse in the 2000, It was an instant crush. It was a band I discovered by myself and to this day still love and worship. The first song I heard from them was Time is running out and the Absolution album. I was already late in discovering them but no matter, I did find them. And was I in for a treat as Absolution is not their best album, imo.

I think if Matt Bellamy was born a few hundred years ago, he would probably be counted today as one of the great composers of the past. He never really studied any musical theory, he is just innately genius in my opinion.

As a big Muse fan I'm saying THANK YOU so much for this video! Such a good work! Muse are legends and Matt is truly genius and amazingly talented!

my three words for muse were: desperation, triumph and groove i think tension fits somewhere in the first two so yeh.

YES MUSE IS MY FAVOURITE BAND YES

Radiohead and Muse are my music influences but Muse got me more

Try RHCP !! I think there is a lot u can analyze from flea's bass and frusciante's guitar in their songs. I just love you videos man. Hello from Chile !

This video made me want to revisit my late teens/early 20s and rock out to Muse! Thanks for opening the door again.

It's like being in space Showbiz and Origin of Symmetry give me the perception of being on some exosystem and floating around stars and exoplanets, with that odd and beautiful sound! Absolution and Black Holes give me the mood of some epic action scene from movies! Resistence is something new for my feeling. It's like being somewhere in an unknown place, where there's a guerrila against power and capitalism! (Exogenesis is a masterpiece, mostly Cross-pollination) 2nd law is a record that doesn't gives me an exact mood, it's like Muse has mixed up some synthetizers with and orchestra and there is a majestic but kind sound that gives me goosebump! Drones album remids me some nostalgic memories, but it's something personal. The album is pretty heavy and every song in my head is linked to the story that they have connected.

I think that an analisis for The Beatles could be really cool, try to figure out why they were so successful and how they maintain relevant 'til this day.

For anyone wondering what that block of text was at 1:04 "I wanted to add a picture of a d*** here but RU-vid wouldn't let me. Thanks RU-vid. (It's the first rule of RU-vid. It's also the second rule.) Also, if you have no idea what I'm talking about - REALLY? It's 2018 and you STILL haven't seen Fight Club?"

Can you make a video about Prince's chord progressions (and melodies) ?

the difference between Muse and radiohead is.... i listen to Muse

You're like Vsauce but strictly for music

Excellent work, man! Love it. And thorough! Mr Bungle or Faith no More would be a super fun analysis too.

I usually feel hope when I listen to Muse, but that's partially due to his voice.

I just discovered this series and I'm enjoying it! Soundgarden would be a fascinating band to hear about. They have so many unusual time signatures, weird tuning, a giant variety of sounds from album to album... It would be extremely interesting to see a professional breakdown of all that.

Love Muse and you did a brilliant job on there chord progression break down. I've i just started listening to the band Royal Blood (Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher) would love to see you do a segment on them

This is the most useful video about songwriting I've ever seen, thank you

Muse part 2 Please !!

Do the RHCP next...or SOAD, well it's up to you they're both "iconic" in their unique way.

Why does everyone compare muse and radiohead? Pretty different bands

i didnt open this video expecting asmr but here we are

*Listening to Muse is like wearing a Guy Fawkes mask and a Monocle, at the same time!*

It'd be super cool to see you do an Artists Series video on Nine Inch Nails! I'd imagine it'd be a lot of fun with the chromaticism and all the contradictory things about their accessible/inaccessible sound.

This series has been the best till now. Keep the good work on bruh. Do tell us your thoughts about *Dream Theater* and the progressive music scene. Eagerly waiting 🤘.

Emotions I feel when listening to Muse: panic, wonder, bewilderment. Muse is political, otherworldly, and extroverted. Radiohead is eccentric, very down-to-earth, and introspective.

Really great explanation and concepts..I adhere to most ,I´ve been observing Muse a lot, and you´re completely right Thanks a lot for this!

Great video as always! Really appreciate you playing the exact examples along with the chord progressions and notes, really clears things up

I bought a second habd MiniDisc during my military service back in 02-04 and got 20 discs with it. Some were not wiped and one contained Muse. Time is running out was the first Muse song I ever heard and it was different from anything I'd ever heard before with the base line making out the primary melody and the incredible drum pattern in the third chorus. But also Bellamy's amazing singing which always struck me as Defiant, passionate and with a hint of desperation, in lack of a better word. Another song that completely blew me away was Dreams of a dying atheist which was so really rather sad but presentes in an upbeat almoat happy sounding melody. Those minidiscs changed my life and got me really aware of the world around me and the shady shit going on in politics etc and Muse only seem to be getting better and better (imo) as Reaistance was just about the best thing ever and then Drones was released and to my surprise I found it even better. Unnatural Selection is to me a strong critic of gender politics with their redefining of words and lust for unrest and uproar Defector referensing the cowardly or selfserving politicians trying to fill their pockets by decieving the public."your blood is blue, your minds gone green, but your bellies are all yellow" and ofc "You cant brainwash me, you got a problem" Reapers is on of my favorite songs of all times and might be the most relevant song of our generation, while probably aimed at the Obama administration it really hit its stride as Hillary peaked, funny how that worked out. Muse is pure brilliance imo and even though being as famous as they are I still find them under rated as there are still way more people who have no idea who they are than the people who do.

Queens of the Stone Age

Watches this video, then 50 Muse videos after..

When you speak, I can't help but give you my undivided attention (which is rare for me) but all the theory terms you're using make me want to pick up my college books again. I think you're brilliant. Keep up the awesome work, and keep inspiring.

Thank you for this breakdown. I’ve been working on grade 6 theory this year, and this brings a lot of it to life, and with one of my favourite bands!

Chris Cornell

I would like to see a video on Queen too!

1:30 you just descrived the music of YES, particularly Relayer. Another hint Muse is a modern prog band.

Wow...I love how you explain the the un-explainable resonance of music's power. My IQ went up a several points watching this video. I applaud you Sir!

This is one of the most thought provoking video I’ve watched in years. Amazing amazing job on this man!!!!