(MUSE) Now for the world
Wednesday, 15th September 1999
They began in Teignmouth - but rock stardom beckons
Special report by JOHN WARE
IT'S A long, rocky road to pop stardom, but Teignmouth rockers Muse are gradually pushing their way into the big time.
A great deal was expected from the trio when they caught the ear and eye of Madonna, who snapped them up for her Maverick label in a million-dollar deal earlier in the year.
But their management never expected, or wanted, them to be an overnight an sensation.
They have seen so many other Brit pop groups suddenly shoot into prominence, and then fade away into virtual obscurity.
The game plan is to patiently groom Muse into top performers so they will have a long shelf life.
But crunch time is now approaching.
Their new single, Cave, is on release and on October 4 the first album, Showbiz, will be in the shops.
The success of the CDS is not exactly make or break, but fingers are being firmly crossed they will do reasonably well in the charts and zoom them into pop mainstream.
All the signs are that they are about to take off.
The group, Matthew Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard, have enjoyed a good summer.
They played festivals all over Europe, including Glastonbury where a Guardian review predicted: "Muse will be huge."
Tour
That was followed by an eight date UK tour and the rave reviews continued. The NME enthused: "Their tunes are spectacular - any Radiohead comparisons are purely complimentary, especially as Muse are younger and more dramatic."
Kerrang proclaimed: "Massive, angst ridden anthems - Muse are set to jump up to the big league," and the Melody Maker verdict was: "They articulate emotions that draw you in, and the tunes are even better."
And the Guardian gave their Newport concert a three star rating (a Blur concert only rated one star!) describing Matt Bellamy's vocals as "scorching" and as "gripping as the guitar noise swirling around him."
The reviewer reckoned the tunes were constructed on an "epic scale" and concluded: "As for the songs, vision and attitude, they've already got them."
Next comes an 11-date UK tour, taking in Exeter University, with Skunk Anansie, followed by three weeks touring across the States to promote the album.
Both manager Dennis Smith, who is based near Totnes, and publicist Ian Cheek are agreed that the softly, softly build up to hoped for fame and fortune is the best route.
"The whole thing is building up at a steady pace. They are picking up more and more support all the time," said Dennis.
"Pop is a fickle business and there are no guarantees, but experienced people predict Muse could be massive.
"In the meantime we will be delighted if the new single gets into the top 50."
Ian added, "Muse are bubbling along very nicely. A lot of people have faith in them and are prepared to be patient and invest in the future. It may take a while, but we want them to be a big act for years to come.
They are looking after their grass-roots and becoming more and more polished."
The three first formed their own band, Gothic Plague, went they were 13 year-olds at Teignmouth Community college.
Matt, who writes all the songs, said that when Britpop and Oasis came along, it did nothing for him.
"It didn't seem passionate enough, it didn't seem to be what music should be about.
That's why we started listening to American music. It just seemed cooler somehow".
They were inspired by groups like Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Primus a...! Radiohead, but found it hard to pick up decent gigs in the South West.
"We played in pubs full of old people who only ever wanted covers of sixties hits, so we never went down very well."
Eighteen months ago they decided they had to act. All their friends had disappeared to university, they had jobs they hated, so went flat out to get a record deal.
They recorded two EPs at Dennis Smith's Sawmills studios in Fowey which were released on Dangerous Records. It gave them a cult following and regular plays on Radio 1's Evening Session.
The breakthrough came after a showcase on Santa Monica Pier in LA, when they were snapped up by Maverick. Deals soon followed with Mushroom in the UK, Motor in Germany and Naïve in France.
The Showbiz album was produced by John Leckie of Radiohead fame, and includes the single Uno which was their first top 75 success.
Matt thinks many bands do not feel that strongly about their music.
"Nirvana were the last band who had that. Music should be an outlet for your emotions.
"If it wasn't for Muse, I think I'd probably be a nasty, violent person. It's definitely a release".
Inspiration.
Matt penned all 12 numbers of Showbiz and he told the Herald Express where the inspiration for one of them, Muscle Museum, came from.
"When we were just starting out, most of our schoolmates were either into athletics or education, but we didn't care for the muscles or the museums! We were basically just stuck in the middle.
"That's basically the premise of the song. I came on the title while thumbing through a dictionary. Ironically music is listed between muscle and museum!"
And of Hate This And I'll Love You, he says: "This song is quite dark. It's about certain people who didn't believe in me, but now they've come back because I've got a record deal.
"There have been quite a few people like that in my life. Now they're trying to act like they've always been there for me, and they weren't. I tell them to read the lyrics to the song"
The group took a bit of flak when they described Teignmouth as "a living hell" and "a boring little town", but it is all publicity for the resort.
And if they do reach superstardom, the town will have an even more intense spotlight focused on it.
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