Released: 2015

Genres: Alternative Rock, Progressive Rock

The Musiquarium’s Drones Review Score: 7 out of 10

With its title and the extremely on-the-nose album artwork which lacks any subtlety, Drones is Muse at their most-political, with a strong anti-war sentiment and criticism of the powers that be.

Dead Inside continues Muse’s streak of strong openers. [Drill Sergeant] leads into the bluesy Psycho, one of the best tracks on the album, and a live staple since its introduction. The piano-laced Mercy is one of the poppier songs here, with an empowering chorus where Matt Bellamy begs for mercy from our cruel overlords. Reapers evokes the spirit of glam metal and has a killer outro.

The Handler should satisfy those looking for the sound of early Muse. Defector sounds like a hybrid of the hard rock of early Queen and the anthemic side of said band’s later material. Aftermath is another track with Queen-like sensibilities. The Globalist is a 10 minute epic that has the band indulging in its bombastic side, with the title track acting as a vocal harmony outro.

Drones falls shy of greatness, though it is in many ways an improvement over The 2nd Law, with a more consistent tracklist and some solid riffs and ideas throughout. Sometimes the political theme of the album can come off a bit hackneyed, but I admire Muse for being a band that can kickstart that rebellious spark inside of its fans, helping to bring awareness of the corruption of politics and the injustices of the world to millions. Some people complain that famous bands don’t do enough with the platform they stand on, but the same can’t be said about Muse.

Trivia: Drones won Best Rock Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.

For credit breakdowns and historic release details, view Muse on Discogs.

Back to the 2015 Album Reviews Guide or the Muse Reviews page.

Written by Brett Nippard