Another top class performance
To say Muse were warming up for their Wembley shows with a gig this size is doing the Isle of Wight a disservice, and there was no real clue as to what the band might have in store visually when they play the home of English football next weekend. Here they played with their 2006 stage set as seen on the arena tour in November. The light show was, as ever, suitably impressive, justifying their status as enormadome fillers that they are.
As with the Leeds Festival headline slot last August, they opened with 'Knights Of Cydonia' and closed with 'Take A Bow', swapping them round from the album and arena setlist.
There was once a random fact doing the rounds suggesting that if you filled the Isle of Wight with people and told them all to jump at the same time it would knock the world off it's axis. Muse had a bloody good stab with the opening five songs of this gig. 'Knights Of Cydonia' was followed by 'Hysteria', 'Supermassive Blackhole', the monstrously brilliant rock powerhouse that is next single 'Map Of The Problematique' and 'Butterflies & Hurricanes' all combining to rock the Isle of Wight to it's very core.
'Black Holes and Revelations' tracks 'Assassin' and 'Hoodoo' came next, followed by 'Absolution' opener 'Apocalypse Please'. Then it was the turn of the massive sing-along fan favourite 'Feeling Good', the first of two covers in the setlist, the other being a version of the Shadows track 'Man Of Mystery'.
Further crowd pleasers came in the form of 'Starlight', 'Time Is Running Out' and 'New Born'.
As you might imagine the fans were in the mood for a special night, one that for Matt Bellamy marked his 29th birthday. All concerned looking for an evening to remember knew they'd got what they wanted long before the encore, that featured 'City Of Delusion', 'Plug In Baby' complete with balloons showering confetti over the front of the audience, 'Absolution' track 'Stockholm Syndrome', all rounded off with 'Take A Bow'.
At the risk of appearing to be a bit of a cop out, there are some shows where it's very difficult to convey the shear size and power of the performance and do it justice with words. The basic fact is though that, if you've never done so, seeing Muse live must be on your to do list.
So the juggernaut rumbles on to Wembley next Saturday where special things are expected. Given that Muse are exactly the band you'd want to make history in a new stadium, it still seems odd that the start of a new musical chapter at Wembley was opened by one half of Wham. Not that this remotely bothered the massive, and in the case of those down the front knackered, collective of Muse fanatics that through themselves into this gig as much as the band did. Even though Muse were sharing the top billing with the rock legends the Rolling Stones, they still pulled off the set of the festival without question.