| Absolution | |||||
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| Studio album by Muse | |||||
| Released | September 21 2003 (UK) September 28 2003 (AU) March 23 2004 (U.S.) |
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| Recorded | 2003 | ||||
| Genre | Alternative rock, progressive rock | ||||
| Length | 52:19 | ||||
| Label | Mushroom 5046685872 (UK) 5046751112 (AU re-release) |
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| Producer | Rich Costey, John Cornfield, Muse, Paul Reeve | ||||
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(Oct. 2003, p.109)Absolution is the third studio album by English alternative rock band Muse. It was released on September 21, 2003[1] in the UK and almost six months later on March 23, 2004 in the U.S. by Taste Music Limited. The album yielded the band's first big American hits - "Time Is Running Out" and "Hysteria", the former becoming their first UK Top 10 single. Unlike previous albums, the recording and releasing of Absolution was not subject to constraining schedules, allowing the band to take as much time as they felt necessary to refine and alter their songs. As with their previous albums, Absolution is targeted at the "alternative hard rock" audience,[2] and has a strong apocalyptic tone that is typical of the genre.[3] Muse's frontman Matthew Bellamy cites influences on the album from Pink Floyd's The Wall, King Crimson's In the Court of the Crimson King,and U2's Achtung Baby.
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Chart information
The album debuted at No. 1 in the UK charts, and soon after, reached No. 1 in the French charts. Within weeks of release it reached the top 5 in twelve countries, the top 10 in fifteen countries and the top 20 in twenty countries. The album reached #107 in the United States. Due to the long delay between the UK version and U.S. version releases, Absolution remained popular worldwide for an unusually long time, and saw the release of 5 singles (and 1 charity special download "Apocalypse Please"). Absolution sold 71,597 in its first week in the UK and has gone on to sell over 600,000 (in the UK), making it double platinum. It has also gone platinum in Europe as of April 2005 with sales over 1,000,000 in the continent. The album has sold 513,000 in the United States as of April 2007 making it Muse's first album to go gold there. It has also sold over 2.3 million worldwide as of April 2007.
Track listing
All lyrics written by Matthew Bellamy, All music written by Matthew Bellamy, Dominic Howard, and Chris Wolstenholme, except where noted.
- "Intro" – 0:22
- "Apocalypse Please" – 4:12
- "Time Is Running Out" – 3:56
- "Sing for Absolution" – 4:54
- "Stockholm Syndrome" – 4:58
- "Falling Away with You" – 4:40
- "Interlude" – 0:37
- "Hysteria" (Bellamy/Wolstenholme) – 3:47
- "Blackout" – 4:22
- "Butterflies and Hurricanes" – 5:01
- "The Small Print" – 3:28
- "Endlessly" – 3:49
- "Thoughts of a Dying Atheist" – 3:11
- "Ruled by Secrecy" – 4:54
Initial copies of the CD featured inlay errors, where the songs "Interlude" and "Hysteria" switched places on the track listing.
Japanese edition bonus track
- "Fury" – 5:02
Limited edition UK bonus DVD
- "The Making of Absolution" documentary
(Also Hysteria and Interlude positions are switched on the tracklisting, yet this is not the case on the album)
Australian bonus disc
- "Stockholm Syndrome" – 7:14
- "New Born" – 6:11
- "Muscle Museum" – 4:18
- "Hysteria" – 4:14
- "Bliss" – 4:01
- "Time Is Running Out" – 4:06
This bonus CD is entirely composed of live versions, recorded at the Big Day Out in Sydney, January 23 2004 for Australian radio station Triple J and broadcasted in the radio show "Live at the Wireless".
Personnel
- Matthew Bellamy – lead vocals, guitars, piano, synthesizers
- Chris Wolstenholme – backing vocals, bass guitar, synthesizers on "Hysteria"
- Dominic Howard – drums, percussion
- Paul Reeve – backing vocals, vocal samples
Singles
- "Stockholm Syndrome"
- "Time Is Running Out"
- "Hysteria"
- "Sing for Absolution"
- "Apocalypse Please"
- "Butterflies and Hurricanes"
Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | UK Albums Chart | 1 |
| 2004 | Top Heatseekers | 1 |
| 2005 | The Billboard 200 | 107 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | "Stockholm Syndrome" | UK Downloads Chart | 31 |
| 2003 | "Time Is Running Out" | UK Singles Chart | 8 |
| 2003 | "Hysteria" | UK Singles Chart | 17 |
| 2004 | "Sing for Absolution" | UK Singles Chart | 16 |
| 2004 | "Apocalypse Please" | UK Downloads Chart | 10 |
| 2004 | "Butterflies and Hurricanes" | UK Singles Chart | 14 |
| 2004 | "Time Is Running Out" | Modern Rock Tracks | 9 |
| 2005 | "Hysteria" | Modern Rock Tracks | 9 |
| 2005 | "Stockholm Syndrome" | Modern Rock Tracks | 31 |
References
- ^ Muse website. Retrieved on 2007-04-21.
- ^ Tim DiGravina. Muse - Absolution. mp3.com. Retrieved on 2007-04-21.
- ^ Richard T. Williams. Muse - Absolution. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2007-04-21.
External links
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|---|---|
| Matthew Bellamy · Dominic Howard · Christopher Wolstenholme | |
| Studio albums | Showbiz · Origin of Symmetry · Absolution · Black Holes and Revelations |
| Compilations and Live DVDs | Hullabaloo Soundtrack · Absolution Tour · The Haarp Tour: Live from Wembley |
| Demos and Extended plays | This Is a Muse Demo · Muse EP · Muscle Museum EP · 2 Tracks Demo · Random 1-8 (Japan only) · Plug In Baby EP (Greece & Cyprus only) · New Born EP (Greece & Cyprus only) · Dead Star/In Your World (Japan & France only) |
| Singles | "Uno" · "Cave" · "Muscle Museum" · "Sunburn" · "Unintended" · "Plug In Baby" · "New Born" · "Bliss" · "Hyper Music/Feeling Good" · "Dead Star/In Your World" · "Stockholm Syndrome" · "Time Is Running Out" · "Hysteria" · "Sing for Absolution" · "Apocalypse Please" · "Butterflies and Hurricanes" · "Supermassive Black Hole" · "Starlight" · "Knights of Cydonia" · "Invincible" · "Map of the Problematique" |
| Production | John Leckie · Rich Costey · Paul Reeve |
| Related articles | Discography · Taste Media |
