Music Monday: “Butterflies and Hurricanes” by Muse

Music Monday is a meme, created by Drew at The Tattooed Book Geek, where I focus on a song I absolutely love and feel needs to be shared.

Song: “Butterflies and Hurricanes”
Artist: Muse
Album: Absolution (2003)

Lyrics taken from genius.com

[Verse 1]
Change everything you are
And everything you were
Your number has been called
Fights and battles have begun
Revenge will surely come
Your hard times are ahead

[Chorus]
Best, you’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

[Verse 2]
Change everything you are
And everything you were
Your number has been called
Fights and battles have begun
Revenge will surely come
Your hard times are ahead

[Chorus]
Best, you’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

[Piano solo]

[Bridge]
Don’t let yourself down
Don’t let yourself go
Your last chance has arrived

[Chorus]
Best, you’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

Modern hard-rock legends Muse gained mainstream success for the singles off of their 2006 album, Black Holes and Revelations, but their sound truly became defined in their previous album, Absolution (2003). “Butterflies and Hurricanes” is a stand out in its showcase of classical elements used to thicken the band’s sound. Beginning with a simmering synthesizer, Matt Bellamy’s vocals slide in with the bass and cymbal joining above strings to crescendo. As the song builds, Bellamy sings motivational lines calling someone to action, to take their chance. When the drums and bass really come in, the song transforms into a hard hitting rock tune that will cause instant grooving. This pattern continues until a classical, Rachmaninoff/Gershwin hybrid of a piano solo showcases Bellamy’s prowess on the keys. I love this song for its simple lyrical structure over a transforming musical landscape that includes strings, the traditional rock three-piece, and anthemic vocal lines.