The announcement came yesterday, exactly one month to go before the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games, which will be held in London from July 27 to August 12, 2012: “Survival”, the new single from Muse, has been chosen as the official song for London 2012.
With Muse’s 6th album, The 2nd Law, due to be released on September 17, 2012, Muse will benefit from promotion on an international scale, which should delight fans around the world! To be chosen to represent music at the world’s largest sporting competition is a crowning glory for the British trio.
Click here for a preview of the album, “The 2nd Law”
The more operatic direction taken with the last album, “The Resistance”, in 2009 is once again evident on this single, which starts with the surging sound of violins supported by the piano, just like in “Exogenesis”, the three-part symphony that Matthew Bellamy composed to draw the band’s fifth album to a close. Was that in fact just the opening to this new opus? “Survival” certainly invites us to believe as such.
Don’t mistake us though, because although this group is strongly influenced by classical music, that isn’t to say that Muse is any less of a rock band. After the operatic intro, Matthew Bellamy’s piano is accompanied by choir singers, giving the piece a very Queenesque feel. The song then rises to a crescendo so typical of rock, and so typical of Muse. The choir singers and the piano are swiftly joined by a percussion section and electric guitars, providing us with several moments of exhilarating, scintillating and wonderful intensity, with Matt once again displaying all the power of his exceptional vocal talents. Goosebumps guaranteed!
It is a song bursting with energy, like a stick of dynamite, a musical fireball written especially for the Games and which will be played out in the stadiums and arenas. These are places where we talk about “total conviction and determination to win”, where life is compared to a race, a race to victory, a race for survival, a battle to be won, where defeat is not an option. This is a real anthem that embodies the spirit of competition; we can bet that it will spur the athletes on to excel themselves, whilst also adding to the atmosphere inside the arenas. The fortunate few will be those who will be there in person to see this battle between champions.
“Survival” is already available for download on Muse.mu and on iTunes, and you can also listen to it on the BBC website where the song received its world exclusive first play on Wednesday night. I will add the clip as soon as it becomes available.
I’m already a massive (blackhole) fan of this track, but how about you? Are you disappointed or has it surpassed your expectations?
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