Matt Bellamy, Dom Howard, and Chris Wolstenholme interview - Muse [CROSSBEAT (April 2000)]
“I think what we embody is a sense of “spirituality”. No matter how advanced technology becomes, the bonds between people can never be replaced by anything else.”
A multifaceted sound that combines intensity with suppleness!! Muse, who sublimates pure emotions into music, demonstrated their “authenticity” during their first visit to Japan.
Interview ● Sumi Imai
pix: Yuki Kuroyanagi (●), Yoshika Horita (★)
I could watch them a hundred times over! Why is it that Muse’s live performance is so intensely stimulating it feels like it’s burning into my skin, so deeply moving it feels like it’s tearing at my heart, and yet so refreshingly exhilarating it leaves my whole body feeling invigorated? At their first concert in Japan, held to coincide with the release of their album “Showbiz”, I was simply overwhelmed by the sheer energy—which was every bit as intense as the shows I’d seen them perform several times back in their home country of the UK. It was absolutely brilliant!
On record, their sound is dramatic, with depth and breadth, but live it’s far, far more aggressive. Yet it never becomes monotonous, because Muse’s multifaceted elements—where yin and yang, stillness and movement, tension and suppleness coexist—are amplified even further in their live shows. The contrast between the intense, explosive release of emotion and the delicate warmth is striking. The beauty of the melodies, the dynamic structure of the songs, and the staging that pulls you in with such force. Their vibe and ours blended together, amplified, giving me the real sense that I was truly caught up in it all. Matthew (Vocals, Guitar), his slender frame bent at the waist as he tears at his guitar. One moment he’s holding his guitar like a machine gun, the next the three of them are exchanging glances and laughing cheerfully, only to sing with deep feeling during acoustic songs.
The next day, the trio of childhood friends—Matthew, Chris (B), who weaves unique melodic bass lines, and Dominic (Dr), who pounds out powerful beats—got together. They spoke to us with relaxed, unpretentious smiles. Matthew, who occasionally throws in comical gestures, is actually quite a funny bloke.
—So, last night was your first live gig in Japan, how did you feel about the reaction?
Chris Wolstenholme (hereinafter C): 「It was great!」
Dominic Howard (hereinafter D): 「It was uncharted territory, so we were a bit nervous about how it would go before we started, and we were actually a bit more laid-back than usual. But as the gig went on, we could really feel the energy from the crowd.」
“My mum could communicate with the dead, and my grandmother used to channel spirits—I’m sure that’s what I’m doing too. It suddenly hit me today! I hear the voices of something spiritual, so I just listen and give them form.”
—You mentioned on stage that you oscillate between two personalities: an awkward side that wants to ‘connect with everyone’, and an aggressive side that says ‘come on then, if you’re going to come’.
Matthew Bellamy (hereinafter M): 「Yeah, it depends on the song, and even for the same song, it varies from gig to gig. Also, sometimes I express myself outwardly, as if it’s just pouring out, and other times I become very introverted. Last night we did two acoustic songs, and at that time I was completely lost in my own world.」
—It’s really striking to see you, Matthew, making all that noise on the guitar, but do you ever get so absorbed that you lose track of where you are?
M: 「Oh, yes, sometimes. Actually, that state where I can’t control myself might be the best. It’s brilliant when the sound just comes out naturally.」
—In live shows, you don’t use instruments like the piano and it’s just the three of you, producing a rougher, rawer and more energetic sound. How do you see the difference between live performances and the album?
M: 「The album is like my energy squeezed tightly onto a small disc. As for live shows…… Well, it’s like, “Come on everyone, let’s go for it together!” (Everyone laughs), that sort of vibe, but I think an album is a more personal, solitary experience. Ah, but I wonder…… They’re completely different forms of art. It’s like comparing a stage play to a film. In the studio, I expand my mind and senses, experiment, learn new things, and try out ideas. Live shows are more like a real muse, which, ah, I don’t know, it’s tricky.」
D: 「Live shows are more physical.」
M: 「In a live setting, we’re not a 10-piece band, so the types and number of instruments are limited, but we can produce high frequencies that are impossible on record, so we can really hit you with heavy guitars at full volume. On the other hand, because we can’t do that on record, we can use the piano and Mellotron to create interesting sounds. The objectives are different, so we’re doing different things. But for me, live performances might be more important…… If I were asked to choose between never performing live again or never making an album again, I’d keep doing live shows. I’d write songs in between tours and perform them live, and that’s fine.」
—Wow, I see. Oh yeah, speaking of live shows, you performed in France last November, and you’ve been selected to support America’s top band Red Hot Chili Peppers & Foo Fighters for their upcoming US tour.
D: 「Yeah, I’m really happy about it. We’re going to play in some massive venues. I used to enjoy watching Red Hot Chili Peppers at festivals back in the day, and then there’s Dave Grohl…… he’s a great bloke. We watched each other’s gigs in Paris, and he took a liking to us. I hope we’ll get to chat more while we’re in America.」
—What do you think of them musically?
D: 「I like them, Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their latest album was brilliant. You can tell they’ve been playing together for 18 years, so they were really relaxed at the Paris show, jamming and creating amazing music on the spot. And those weird matching outfits really add to the charm, too (laughs). They were amazing in Europe, but I reckon it’ll be even crazier in America. As for the Foo Fighters, um…… well, they’re not bad, I suppose? (laughs), hehe.」
—Is that… all you’ve got to say?
D: 「No, I mean. What do you think? (turning to Chris)」
C: 「This latest album’s a bit iffy, but I reckon their second one was pretty brilliant, don’t you think?」
—Huh, Matthew’s keeping quiet (laughs).
M: 「Er, well, no, yeah (laughs).」
—You were all Nirvana fans, weren’t you, if I’m not mistaken.
C: 「They were much more intense and raw. But after being in the world’s greatest band, I think it takes real courage for (Dave) to keep making his own music like this even now, and I really respect that.」
—Take that period in the early 90s, for example. One reason Nirvana captivated people so much was that their sound and lyrics, filled with frustration and anger, really reflected the spirit of the times in a way. If there’s an aspect of Muse’s music that reflects the present day, what do you think that is?
M: 「Hmm…… I think people are always looking for something new, but what we’re reflecting is probably a “spirituality”. For example, the spiritual connection between people is something that can never be replaced by anything else, no matter how advanced technology becomes. I think we’re probably the first generation to have grown up surrounded by computers from the day we were born. In that environment, direct human relationships are becoming increasingly tenuous. I feel we’ve reached a stage where technology is now trying to take over the role that religion used to play long ago. And that has only served to deepen people’s sense of loneliness. And then, when you reach your twenties, you realise that the technology humans have invented wasn’t actually meant to enrich people’s lives, but was simply a means to make money. That’s how the illusions we’d held about the system we’d grown up believing in begin to crumble…… I suppose that’s one of the things reflected in our music…… Probably.」
—I certainly think that neither religion nor science can ever provide the answer to every question. Personally, I feel that if there is one thing we can believe in, it might be the pure emotions that humans possess. And when I spoke to Matthew the other day, I was struck by what he said: “My motivation for turning to music was to give eternal life to human emotions.”
M: 「In this album, I think I’ve expressed every emotion that has influenced my life so far. Without hiding anything or embellishing it, just being honest. Personally, I’m still in a period of uncertainty. I’m in the process of exploring the possibilities of what’s right and what’s wrong. So, rather than making definitive judgements about values or good and evil, I wanted to capture and give form to those feelings of balancing the two, or wavering between them, just as they are.」
—You mentioned that many of your songs are about the “conflict between body and mind.” I was wondering if Matthew himself often experiences that sort of inner conflict in his daily life.
M: 「Yeah, absolutely. It applies to all sorts of things, but you can’t really decide whether something is black or white; it’s that conflict of moving back and forth between the two.」
—That’s a bit abstract, so could you give me a concrete example of what you mean?
M: 「Hmm…… Let me see……」
—You know, you mentioned it before, like, ‘my body is screaming, “I want to have sex with this girl right in front of me!”, but my mind is telling me, “But you’ve got a girlfriend!”’
Everyone: 「Hahahaha (roaring with laughter)」
D: 「That’s what you call a “pang of conscience” (laughs).」
M: 「For example…… In everyday life, people use their senses to see and hear things, and based on that knowledge and experience, they come to recognise the world as it is. But sometimes, you come across something that really opens your eyes. You’re shown the nature of things from a completely different angle, discover new values, and realise just how narrow a world you’ve been living in. Living in a small town, holding down an ordinary job, starting a family and raising children…… It’s easy to form that sort of value system, all whilst staying in a safe place.
On the other hand, if you travel to India, for instance, you’ll witness people living in extreme poverty. And the validity and meaning of the values you’ve always taken for granted are called into question the moment you’re confronted with something new—something you didn’t even know existed until then.
That’s precisely why I want to avoid shaping my worldview from just one perspective, and I think it’s important to always hold onto the idea that “other values exist”. That’s the inner conflict I’m grappling with…… In any case, I think the best approach is to accept things as they are.」
—I see. It might be a bit different from a concrete example from everyday life, but I understand what you’re getting at. By the way, changing the subject, music like Fatboy Slim’s—where it’s all about dancing, you don’t have to think, and as long as it’s fun, that’s all that matters—seems to be the polar opposite of what you guys do, but…
C: 「Isn’t that fine in its own way? It’s a completely different kind of thing from what we do.」
D: 「Exactly, that music where you’re drunk in a club and just dance, dance, dance (laughs).」
M: 「It’s powerful, in a different way than ours. Dance music has a certain intensity to it, doesn’t it? In a physical sense.」
—So, for example, if a Muse fan said, “I like Fatboy Slim and idol pop too,”
D: 「Would you think, “Ugh, something’s wrong here~!”? (Everyone bursts out laughing), Haha, no way, no way (laughs), absolutely not.」
M: 「Yeah, I think having variety is a good thing. Focusing on just one thing is actually dangerous.」
—I see, I see. By the way, last year’s UK scene was all about pop and dance music, and even in rock, the mainstream was dominated by fairly solid, orthodox sounds like Stereophonics and Travis.
D: 「It’s true that safe, uncontroversial stuff is really dominating the music scene at the moment.」
C: 「The scene is probably divided into three layers. The top layer is the mainstream, then there’s the complete underground, and then something in between. Take Nirvana, for example. Their first album was totally underground, but they smashed through the wall, kicked away all that crappy mainstream music up until then, and claimed that spot for themselves. And they did it all whilst staying cool.」
—So which of those three tiers are you aiming for?
D: 「Well, totally underground!」
Everyone: 「Hahahaha (laughs)」
M: 「Well, I don’t really mind. The results will come naturally.」
—I see. By the way, Matthew, you’re very interested in spiritual matters and expressing them through music. I’ve heard that your mum was a medium, and that as a child you were quite obsessed with Ouija boards (Note: the British version of Kokkuri-san),
M: 「Yeah, yeah (laughs), that’s spot on!」
—Do you think that kind of environment and those experiences from your childhood have influenced you as an artist today?
M: 「They have, they have. My mum could make contact with the dead, and so could my grandmother. They often did spirit channeling. I’m sure that’s what I’m doing too—yeah, I suddenly realised that today! I’m not writing the songs myself; it’s because I hear the voice of something spiritual. I just listen to it and give it form. It’s a kind of mediumship, I suppose—it must be a genetic trait that runs through my family. Oh, of course, I’m not actually talking to the dead (laughs), I think it’s a different kind of sensitivity……」
—Yes, I understand that kind of feeling that people who create things have.
M: 「My mum’s actually quite happy that I’m doing music like this. When I was obsessed with Ouija boards, she seemed really worried about the bad influence, fearing I’d be tainted by evil spirits. But now that it’s channelled into music—a healthy direction—she’s relieved (laughs).」
(C&D continue to chuckle)
—Right, one last question. What, in a nutshell, constitutes good music for you, and what does it require?
C: 「Honesty and passion, I suppose.」
M: 「Hmm…… The best music, in my view, isn’t pop, or band music, or songs…… I think it’s sacred music, like a choir chanting a beautiful melody without any lyrics.」
Translator's Note: Once again, Japanese interviews are reminding me that back then, 22-year old Matt Bellamy was a shy but very horny and naughty boy. And here he thought he could get away with saying those things lmao
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