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Matthew Bellamy of Muse hits all the right notes
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March 26, 2008, 12:30
By Tanja Bencun
SA's biggest rock festival The My Coke Fest 2008 has come and gone. Taking place in Johannesburg and Cape Town over the long weekend the festival delivered when it came to bands and sound quality but once again fell short in the beer and food stalls department.
After 12 hours of standing around in the mud and having your audio senses overloaded by 10 bands with very different music styles, one band is bound to stand out and that band was undoubtedly British band Muse.
Voted best Live British Band for two years at the Brits 2006 and 2007, and most recently NME crowned them Best Live Act last month, it is clear to see why they have earned themselves this title. From the sound to the lights to the sheer talent this three-piece band thrilled the crowds.
Multi-talented trio
With the lead singer Matthew Bellamy showing off some serious skills on the guitar, piano and keyboards, his voice, although strong and edgy, touched on a classical range which gave the show such diversity, one had to be reminded that the show was indeed live. The trio have been performing together since 1994 and it shows with bass player Christopher Wolstenholme, drummer Dominic Howard, and Bellamy completely in tune and with each other.
Their most recent album Black Holes & Revelations, which was released in June 2006, charted at No.1 in the UK, much of Europe, and Australia and also achieved American success, reaching No. 9 in the Billboard 200 album chart. On April 1 the trio plan to launch their DVD/CD package H.A.A.R.P - High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program - a scientific research program aimed at studying the properties and behaviour of the ionosphere. The CD and DVD document the live concerts performed by the band at Wembley stadium in London on June 16 and 17, 2007 respectively. The band plans to release their fifth studio album later this year.
'We love SA'
The bands thoroughly enjoyed being in South Africa. "We love South Africa and are coming back." These were the words echoed at the Coke Fest on Friday in Johannesburg by the lead singer for 30 Seconds to Mars, Jared Leto. Having written their hit song Beautiful Lie in SA a few years ago, being able to play it live to a South African audience was "the best."
Good Charlotte also expressed their eagerness to come and tour in SA very soon and maybe even live here. Overall, the show was a resounding success and next year promises to be bigger and better.
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