‘Drones’ by Muse- Review- Is Anybody Listening?

Released: 5th June 2015

Official Site:
http://muse.mu/home.htm


Our freedom’s just a loan
Run by machines and drones
They’ve got us locked into their sights
Soon they’ll control what’s left inside

Don’t try to hide it, don’t tell me it’s not there

You’ve got strength
You’ve got soul
You’ve felt pain
You’ve felt love
You can grow (you can grow)
You can grow (you can grow)
You can make this world what you want
You can revolt
You can revolt
You can revolt.’ (Revolt)


Matt Bellamy is being very direct in what he is saying here. I don't need to interpret it. I don't need to spin it. I don't need to analyse it. Just read the lyrics.

Go to YouTube, find the song, and check out the comments. What are the Muse fans saying about it? Here are some random examples:

‘F****** awesome. Full of energy and spirit, got a real nice queen vibe. All the hipsters/haters can fuck off back down their mum’s basement.’

‘I'm having nightmares about Matt chasing me while singing this silly chorus D:’

‘I looooove this song!!  But I need help, there's a part in the chorus that reminds me of and very famous old song (like in the 60s or something), but I cannot remember which one! Has anyone any idea? It's the part when he says "You can grow (you can grow!), You can grow (you can grow!) at 1:13 thanks!’

Take this one song, the message, and then the entire ‘Drones’ album as a whole, and Muse fans reaction to it, and it’s pretty much the same. They go straight into fanboy/girl mode, defending the songs, attacking ‘haters’ and then detailing why the song is good because it reminds them of something else that is also good.

That’s okay. I agree with them, the songs are good, and they remind me of other good songs too.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE THINGS HE IS ACTUALLY SINGING ABOUT????

There’s no discussion going on about that, and when it is brought up, it’s dismissed like his actual words and thoughts are completely irrelevant, even though these people are supposed to be passionate, loyal fans of his band.

So why aren’t the fans discussing what their favourite band are actually singing about?

Before I give my opinions on that, here’s a quick break-down of some of the best songs on the album, and what they are actually about.

1- Dead Inside- A good guy is turned into a selfish, cold-hearted person through his contact with a person who is ‘dead inside.’ At the end of the song the protagonist is ready to serve the system of human enslavement, death and war. He is ready to become a drone pilot.

2- Psycho- About the army indoctrination cult training process that prepares soldiers for mass slaughter and obeying orders (Nazi style).

3- Mercy- The song’s protagonist looks for forgiveness, explaining that he was trying to infiltrate the system, to change it from the inside, but has seen that this is impossible. He now wants out of it, and forgiveness for what he has done whilst serving the system.

4- Defector- The song’s protagonist loudly declares that he is a free man, unable to be brainwashed and manipulated by the anti-human control system, or ‘society’ as a whole.

Meaty stuff, don’t you think? So, again, what do the fans make of it? Go again to YouTube, pick any video and tell me what you are reading. I’ll do it now. I’ll pick one song at random, and type out the first comment that I see. Here we go:

Psycho (first comment, 24 likes):

I love the music...
Matt says: I gonna break you. 
Lol.... 
He is intense... 


So, why no discussion? Why aren’t the fans discussing the song lyrics, at all? Their hero is belting out his heart and soul, and telling them what is happening in the world NOW, and their reaction is largely banality and LOL jokes. What is going on here?

Here’s my opinion:

Muse fans are not stupid. They love the band, but they are mainstream people. They watch television, they vote, they go to school and college, they work, they have children, they like cool music, they want to rock out to a catchy tune.

In other words, they are normal, everyday people. They are not rebellious, and they don’t want to think about horrible things that are happening in the world around them. They are stuck in ‘little-me’ mode. They want a good job, friends, relationships and to be happy, and if they have to become a Drone pilot to do this, then that’s just fine, they’ll do it.

They’ll pay their taxes, support the latest wars and believe what their betters tell them to believe. They love Muse, but they are just a band, nothing more than that. They are entertainment, you don’t have to listen to what he is saying, just enjoy the cool tunes, high notes and guitar parts.

This is the attitude not just of a Muse fan, but of an indoctrinated mainstream media programmed slave, a person that will not rebel, not because s/he is stupid, but because s/he has chosen to live a life of DELIBERATE IGNORANCE. It’s a choice to accept slavery and to try to make the best of it. It’s a choice to not care about anybody in the world beside themselves, their families and any friends that they are particularly fond of this week. It’s the mindset pushed by the corporate whore mainstream media, pushed because it maintains the status quo, pushed because it turns people into mindless animals, easily controlled, and easily culled when the time comes.

‘Drones’ by Muse, is an anti New World order/globalist/neo-liberal/corporate hegemony concept album. I was always going to appreciate the lyrics, but there’s passion, defiance, fight, emotion and a lot of really good tunes in there as well. The album, tells a story, even though Muse fans are unwilling or unable to hear it at the moment, so to get the best out of it, put on your headphones and listen to the entire thing from beginning to end. This is how you will get the most out of it, and that’s what Muse fans should do as well.

Your rock God hero is trying to tell you something about truth, morality, the human experience and the world as it is today. He is telling you that all of that wacky ‘conspiracy’ stuff is real, and that you are a part of it, and that you help it move along with your quiet acquiescence and feelings of weakness and learnt helplessness. He’s telling you to wake up, telling you that you are stronger than you think, telling you to fight against the new world order beast, but only by recognising that it exists at all will the true fight begin. That’s where most Muse fans are right now. They don’t want to look under their own beds, because they fear what they WILL find there. Matt is yelling, but how many people really want to hear what he is so loudly, passionately, eloquently and beautifully saying?


Rating: 10/10 (Are you turning into a human drone?)