UK prog-electro-arena-rock superstars Muse dropped a trailer for their latest studio album earlier this month. The movie styled teaser for The 2nd Law, due for release sometime in September, quicklysplit opinions fans with hints that the bands were embarking on a new musical direction into the harsh electronic sonicscapes of dubstep.
The trailer contained faked news footage of an anchor spouting concerns about renewable energy before the soundtrack drops the proverbial bass alongside live footage of the trio, over a soundtrack of distinctly wub wub proportions.
Now Muse have unveiled the first taste from their forthcoming sixth studio album in the form of “Survival”, a track written specifically for the 2012 London Olympic Games that has been selected by LOCOG, the official London Olympic committee, to be the official anthem for the international sporting event.
A message from the band’s official website reads:
“We are very excited to announce that a Muse song, Survival, has been selected by the London Olympic committee to be the main official song for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Matt wrote the song with the Olympics in mind. It’s about total conviction and pure determination to win.”
The song will be played throughout the Games including when athletes enter the stadium, in the lead up to the medal ceremony and also as the theme for all international TV coverage… we are honoured that the Olympics have chosen our song to officially represent the London 2012 Olympic Games across the globe.”
Not only that but “Survival” made its worldwide debut overnight as it premiered exclusively on BBC’s Radio 1.
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Paired with an orchestral prelude, with the dramatic strings and piano we’ve come to expect from the UK trio, the song begins proper with jaunty piano and a processed ‘fa fa fa’ vocal sample that sounds more like Supertramp than Skrillex.
Frontman Matt Bellamy then enters singing triumphant lines like “I’m gonna win/Yes, I’m gonna win/I’ll light the fuse/and I’ll never lose” before some epic Queen styled vocal harmonies enter (think previous single “United States of Eurasia”). There’s even the familiar middle eastern chord progressions as the track swells to ever grander proportions culminating in a monstrous guitar solo from Bellamy drops another epic guitar solo.
In an interview following the track’s premier, the frontman told presenter Zane Lowe that the album was “still being pieced together” but for those worried that Muse have indeed ‘gone dubstep’ for their new album, you can (sort of) put your fears to rest.
Talking about the infamous dubstep teaser, Bellamy detailed, “there’s only one song that’s like that. We’ve obviously tried to do what Rage Against The Machine did with hip hop in the 90s – we’ve taken an influence from the electronic world, dubstep, but try and play it with real instruments,” he explained, adding that “the rest of the album is very, very diverse… we definitely tried a bunch of new things and that trailer only gives a glimpse of that”
Bellamy said nothing of the rumoured controversy surrounding the Olympic Committee attempting to avoid paying musicians performing at the Games, asking them to ‘do it for the exposure.’ One can only assume that there has been a financial deal struck between Muse and LOCOG over the selection of “Survival” as the London Olympics’ official anthem. Chances are that you’ll be hearing it a lot more of the Official Olympics song in the next few months.
“Survival” was officially available from the band’s wesbite, Muse.mu, and through iTunes immediately after its BBC Radio 1 premier brodcast, but you can listen to a radio rip of Muse’s new Official London 2012 Olympics song, “Survival” below.
