For a change this weekend I didn’t go to the theatre. Shocking, I know. That’s not to say I sat at home twiddling my thumbs. I did go and see Muse play live at Wembley Stadium.

I’m not one of those long time fans of Muse. I only got into them a couple of years ago, but when I did get into them I really did. I think it was Knights of Cydonia and Hysteria that got me thinking, I really like this music, maybe I should explore more. From then on I had grabbed pretty much all of their back catalogue and I was hooked. I digress.

(This is a bit of a long one! Read on to read all of my thoughts)

Muse, Wembley Stadium. Support acts were I Am Arrows, White Lies and Biffy Clyro. Never heard of I Am Arrows but as they were supporting Muse I figured they should be good.

Day started relatively early. Joining a massive queue of people to get into the stadium just after 2pm. I say queue. It was more of a throng. Which just got bigger. I didn’t want to look back to see just how many people there were.

Once in the stadium I stood and gawked at the amazing set onstage until I realised, being as short as I am, I had no chance of remaining in the standing area and still being able to see something so wandered over to some of the unreserved seating and settled in.

Think it must have been about 5:30pm when I Am Arrows began their set. Pleasantly surprised. Nice enough music. Though being such a small band they really struggled in the stadium. Their sound didn’t quite fill it. Though really liked their cover of Tears for Fears’ Everybody Wants to Rule the World. Here’s their complete set list:

1. Nun
2. Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Tears for Fears cover)
3. Hurricane
4. Green Grass

Mini-playlist of their set on Spotify, minus the Tears for Fears cover.

Not long after the second support act started – White Lies. I was really looking forward to them play. Fan of the few tracks I’ve heard on the radio – Farewell to the Fairground, Lose My Life and Death. Wondered how they’d sound in the stadium and I was disappointed. They really got the crowd going. Brilliant and loud and just filled the stadium with their songs. They played a few off of their new album and the ones I knew:

1. Strangers
2. To Lose My Life
3. Streetlights
4. Bigger Than Us
5. Death
6. Farewell To The Fairground

Was quite happy singing along to To Lose my Life and Farewell to the Fairground, love the lyrics in those two songs. Will need to investigate this second album of theirs.

After listening to them at the stadium I think I’d quite like to go to a gig of theirs’, that’s not in such a massive venue. Something a little smaller. Here’s the rather limited Spotify playlist for this set.

Can’t remember when Biffy Clyro, the third and final support act, came on. Just remember it was getting dark. Which was a good thing for Biffy as they had one amazing light show for their set. They started with the well know That Golden Rule and really started with a bang. The crowd really got going now. Nothing like listening to them on the radio though – really amazing and loud and just brilliant. I think out of their whole set my favourite track they played was Who’s got a Match?, mostly because it was brilliant hearing the crowd sing, ‘I’m a fire and I burn, burn, burn tonight’.

Biffy Clyro really blasted it out to the whole stadium – I was blown away. I knew I liked their songs on the radio, but they sound like a different band on stage. Just amazing. Here’s their set list and a playlist on Spotify:

1. That Golden Rule
2. Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies
3. Glitter And Trauma
4. Bubbles
5. Who’s Got A Match?
6. God & Satan
7. Mountains
8. Born On A Horse
9. Shock Shock
10. Many Of Horror
11. The Captain

It’s night by now and I am totally and utterly amped up for Muse to come on. They ran, pretty much, to schedule and just before 9pm Muse began. The excitement!

Before the concert I was trying to see if I could guess what song they’d open with. It would have to be something off their latest album, The Resistance. Something that could really kick things off. So my guess was Uprising. I was right! Perfect new song to open with. They had some people marching around the stage and into the crowds with flags. I started recording the opening song on my camera, but figured I’d much rather see it with my own eyes than watch it through a viewfinder.

With such a massive back catalogue, Muse couldn’t really go wrong with what they decided to play. Of course I had my own wish list, but that wish list disappeared as soon as they started playing and I was jumping up and down with the rest of the fans.

My favourites played were probably MK Ultra, Hysteria, Feeling Good, Undisclosed Desires, Resistance and Time is Running Out. Well, before the encore that is.

The way they set the lighting up of the stage was amazing. Things were played on mini screens throughout the stage. The lighting was stunning. The whole band really made use of the whole stage with Matt Bellamy and Chris Wolstenholme not standing still for any one moment. Chris and Dominic Howard had a brilliant guitar/drum solo where they moved onto a moving platform. Dominic had a brilliant light up drum kit and it looked amazing!

With the main set seemingly over with Unnatural Selection there were a few people heading for the exit to beat the rush. Why? Everyone knows the best stuff is saved for the encores! This time was no different.

Everything went very dark and then out of the back of the left hand side of the stage this massive UFO looking thing started floating into the crowd! It circled the whole left side of the crowds and then stopped. Something came out from underneath it! An acrobat! It then carried on its tour of the stadium with the acrobat hanging from some wires doing some pretty amazing tumbling. While this was going on Exogenesis: Symphony, Part 1: Overture was playing. Something I thought I’d never hear at a Muse concert, but it was so well worked in.

Second song in the first encore was Stockholm Syndrome – they couldn’t not play that! Though after that was done I was a bit disappointed that neither Plug in Baby nor Knights of Cydonia were played and hoped that they were in another encore.

Again, I was right, and they were. Not really all that unpredictable really considering they are big songs for the band. Knights of Cydonia ended the concert and I jumped up and down until I got a little bit dizzy, to that song. I couldn’t not jump up and down. Knights of Cydonia was the perfect song to end the concert with – I doubt there’s a single Muse fan in that stadium that would disagree with that. Well, I’m guessing not!

Then it was all over and the mass exodus to Wembley Park station had begun. What an amazing night. Here’s what was played from start to end and also here’s the Spotify playlist for the entire set handily compiled by Kieran:

1. Uprising
2. Supermassive Black Hole
3. MK Ultra (+ Township Rebellion riff)
4. Map of the Problematique (+Who Knows Who riff)
5. Bliss
6. Guiding Light
7. Hysteria (Interlude Intro + Back in Black riff)
8. Citizen Erased
9. Nishe
10. United States Of Eurasia
11. Ruled by Secrecy
12. Feeling Good
13. MK Jam
14. Undisclosed Desires
15. Resistance
16. Starlight Play Video
17. Time Is Running Out (House of the Rising Sun intro + Voodoo Child riff and Jimmy Jam Outro)
18. Unnatural Selection
19. Encore 1:
    1. Exogenesis: Symphony, Part 1: Overture
    2. Stockholm Syndrome (War within a Breath riff and Ashamed Outro)
20. Encore 2:
    1. Take A Bow
    2. Plug In Baby
    3. Knights of Cydonia (Man With a Harmonica Intro)

I wish I had taken more photos/videos of Muse but I thought I’d rather watch them live than record it all on semi ok photos and some motion sickness inducing videos. (Though I did manage to get a few photos, here on flickr.) That decision of mine meant I could jump around quite happily. Well worth it!