HAARP Live from Wembley Stadium

**** out of *****

It is a good thing Muse band members Matthew Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme, and Dominic Howard are such conspiracy buffs; the only way their excellent new live concert recording CD/DVD, HAARP, will ever become popular in the United States is through grassroots methods popular among Bigfoot followers, UFO sighters and Ron Paul supporters. Without these campaigns not only will this CD never become commercially profitable, but it may have even doomed the band's chances at increased or continued success in the United States.

Please, do not get the wrong impression. For aficionados of the British band, HAARP is an excellent album. Many of Muse's most popular songs are included, but "Falling Away With You," notoriously never played in concert is still absent from the live lineup. The songs, taken from the band's four studio CDs (Showbiz, Origins of Symmetry, Absolution and Black Holes and Revelations), are played if not with energy and enthusiasm, then at least at a slightly up-tempo pace.

In many cases, the pieces are so precisely played as to sound spot on to the studio recordings. And herein lies the problem - they are almost too good. One of the greatest values of a live show is to hear the artists' slight interpretations and spontaneous variances. HAARP's case is no different. Bassist Wolstenhome's improvisations on "Supermassive Black Hole" and Bellamy's extended keyboard arpeggios on "Butterflies and Hurricanes" are what add this quality to the album and make it valuable. However, the original albums were themselves so intricate and grandiose that the uninitiated might not notice or appreciate the extra adornments. This type of listener might get more for her or his dollar by downloading the original cuts from the various albums on iTunes.

There are also no new songs on HAARP. This means Muse is not planning to tour any time soon. Most likely not until after their next CD is planned to be released (sometime in late 2008 or early 2009), since it is unlikely that most would want to pay for a reenactment of a CD of that same live performance. Tours are one of the best ways for bands to gain fans and also one of a band's most profitable outlets.

Especially in recent months, Muse hasn't had much radio airtime - their most recent spot on the Billboard top 200 was in 2006, at ninth place. Without new songs, HAARP won't change that and stations will be wary of playing songs similar to those that had just dropped off the charts. Without tours or airplay casual fans of Muse may succumb to the notorious American short attention span. It is almost silly even for a talented band on the rise such as Muse to stay out of the airwaves and touring circuit for so long.

Shame on Muse for putting out such an excellent album and then putting so little effort into grassroots marketing. Bellamy's talents have been compared frequently to Radiohead vocalist Thom Yorke. It is unfortunate that the comparison cannot be drawn into the realm of music distribution. Especially in a time when counter intuition in the music industry is so popular (see: Madonna, Trent Reznor, et cetera), and when they really have no innovative information to give the consumer.

In ancient Greek mythology, the Muses were a group of goddesses who personify the arts and give artistic inspiration through their own music, acting and dance. It is time for Muse to step into the role of its namesake and set an example for the artistic community worldwide. The band members should be on the cutting edge to inspire new ways of marketing and promoting their product.

- by Andrea P, special to The Daily Iowan