« KOWPAT Arts Update | Main | YEE-HAW! »

Blackouts and Inebriations

muse.jpg
Another exclusive on Snackbox diaries as we get a track-by-track walkthrough of "Blackouts and Inebriations"; the corking new concept album from MUSE.

Joining us is Matt Bellamy who is listed on the album as contributing "vocals, guitar, pocket theremin, upright banjo, handclaps, ghost noises, atmospheric clatters". Take it away Matt...

"What's interesting about Blackouts and Inebriations is that it took four years to painstakingly sculpt, yet it only describes six hours in the life of our hero (Benny Wrexler, Starfighter and Raconteur). Benny is just back to Earth-One after a torrid campaign fighting Vermicious Snoods in Hamegga-Nine and decides to let his long flowing blonde hair down."

1. Take a bottle
"The album could only ever open with this track; it establishes context with the sound of Benny and his mates getting a titanium taxi into town and entering a holo-hostelry. They mull over the beverages on offer before plumping for cybercider."

2. Discolight
"This track sees Benny and his fellow starfighters busting some moves on the dancefloor of McGurk's Dancing Emporium. The sound of appreciative female whooping noises intersperses the track, as well as an occasional snatch of the opening track."

3. Supermassive Big Hole (on your woman)
"This marks the beginning of Benny's descent into dark, dank drunkenness. Having taken many a bottle, he and his friends decide to sit it out for a while. His unsavoury comment is directed at one of the many female dancers in his line of vision (which is also beginning to dance at this stage)".

4. Map of Africa
"This refers to the stain which appears on Benny's chinos when he nods off and loses control of his bladder."

5. Soldier's Song
"Never a good move when you're in uncertain company. Having pissed himself, Benny stands on one of the tables and starts roaring out the Irish national anthem before slipping on a soggy beermat and crashing through the table behind him. Obviously, Benny gets ejected from McGurk's at this point."

6. Inebriated
"We really went freeform on this in the studio. Lots of unusual instruments, lots of track loops and of course some cartoonish wobble noises."

7. Asshole
"Again, we're seeing Benny at a low ebb. He's stumbled into Luigi's chipper and has barged into the top of the queue. People are getting annoyed."

8. Exo-n-Toast
"Benny's lucky that he hasn't been pummeled at this stage, but he really starts to push his luck when he insists that Luigi makes him eggs on toast. This leads to his second ejection of the night."

9. City of Delusion
"This is really the sad song on the album. Up to this point, you could really sing along and tap your feet even though Benny was going downwards at a rate of knots. Not with this one! Your heart will literally sunder as you accompany Benny on his journey of rejection and pain and hunger around the streets."

10. Hoowaugh
"What can you say about vomit? It sounds like that. Benny exorcises his gastric demons with a well-placed spew. Again, this track is kind of freeform and distorted at the start but slowly transmogrifies into a life-affirming section avec gospel choir and birdsong as Benny's tum-tum feels decidedly better."

11. Knights of Cidona
"This track is all about rebirth; redemption. Benny's suffered terribly at the hands of cybercider, but can see a new dawn breaking with alcohol-free carbonated apple beverages."

"Blackouts and Inebriations" is available in the offie now (and here)

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.currychips.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/113

Comments (1)

Post a comment

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)

About

This page contains a single entry from the blog posted on July 25, 2006 9:22 AM.

The previous post in this blog was KOWPAT Arts Update.

The next post in this blog is YEE-HAW!.

Many more can be found on the main index page or by looking through the archives.

Powered by
Movable Type 3.35