| | Muse Showbiz CD Muse Discography of CDs
 (21 Customer Reviews)
Chris Wolstenholme (acoustic & electric basses, background vocals);
SHOWBIZ is the debut offering from the trio Muse. The album is a chilling mix of piano, guitar, drums, bass, and vocals that lends the band a sound like that of an outfit with far more members. Very few singers can match the range of singer Matthew Bellamy, whose haunting voice colors these tracks. Songs like "Sunburn" and "Falling Down" are the most representative songs that SHOWBIZ has to offer. Other outstanding tracks include "Cave," "Unintended," and "Hate This and I'll Love You," the last of which has a cool, trippy electric piano opening that builds into a hard rocker powered by Bellamy's vibrant vocals. Expect the unexpected.
harmonium, Hammond B-3 organ, Mellotron, string synthesizer, samples);
Dominic Howard (drums, percussion).
Recorded at Rak, London, England and Sawmill Studios, Fowey, Cornwall.
Personnel: Matthew Bellamy (vocals, guitar, keyboards); Dominic Howard (drums).
Audio Mixers: John Leckie; Paul Reeve; Muse.
Photographer: Ralf Strathmann.
Unknown Contributor Roles: Chris Wolstenholme; Dominic Howard.
Muse: Matthew Bellamy (vocals, guitar, piano, Wurlitzer piano,
Rolling Stone (10/14/99, pp.125-6) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...SHOWBIZ is no maverick masterstroke, but it is passionate and loud and also unexpectedly gentle - a great first shot from three guys barely old enough to drink on their U.S. tour."
Entertainment Weekly (10/1/99, p.75) - "...the trio's dark, complex sound, kick-ass musicality...and hook-laden songs...combine to make SHOWBIZ one of the more compelling rock records of the year." - Rating: B+
Q (1/01, p.92) - Included in Q's "50 Best Albums of 2000" - "...The best rock debut in years..."
Mojo (Publisher) (11/99, p.100) - "There's no getting around it, Muse sound...a lot like Radiohead....In the end it comes down to songs, and there's a lot of strong ones here..." Showbiz Music | List Price | $13.98 (You save $2.69) | | Category | Rock Albums, Pop CDs, Alternative, Rock/Pop, Progressive, British, Enhanced CD | | Label | Maverick | | Orig Year | 1999 | | All Time Sales Rank |  2065  | | CD Universe Part number | 1102261 | | Catalog number | 47382 | | Discs | 1 | | Release Date | Sep 28, 1999 | | Studio/Live | Studio | | Mono/Stereo | Stereo | | Producer | John Leckie; Paul Reeve; Paul Reeve; Muse | | Engineer | John Leckie; Paul Reeve | | Personnel | Chris Wolstenholme - acoustic & electric basses, background vocals
Matthew Bellamy - vocals, guitar, keyboards
Also: Dominic Howard |
Showbiz Music Review Average Rating: (4.4 out of 5 stars)   List All Reviews Well, better than AM radio I suppose
Not particularly innovative but certainly good for an occasional listen. As others have noted, they are derivative of Radiohead. Seem to be reaching for a slightly harder Bends-era sound but they just don't have the same level of intelligence or melodic sensibility. But hey, they're just kids at this point, Absolution at least sees them stretching out a bit lyrically.
Submitted by Wendigo (Evansville, IN, USA)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No 2 of 2 found this helpful.
wow
This is an incredible album, better than the newer stuff. They are a band that makes every song sound like an anthem and each song is beautiful in its own way. I definitely recommend this!
Submitted by geekusa16 (Minneapolis, MN) 
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No  Good album from a great band
In my opinion, the production on this album doesn't really do justice to the high energy nature of the songs in their live shows. However, this album is good from top to bottom, with highlights such as "Sunburn", "Showbiz", and "Unintended". Definitely a band that deserves more exposure on this side of the ocean.
Submitted by syknis (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
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8 out of 12
I can say I absolutely loved 8 out of the 12 songs in this CD. It's dense, intense, shocking, breathtaking.
Submitted by a reviewer (Brazil)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No  Great album
Highly recommend.
Submitted by a reviewer (San Marcos, TX, USA)
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Purchase Showbiz CD To buy, Click on price to add to cart | Muse Origin Of Symmetry CD (2001) (Import) Australia
Showbiz
 $35.29
The sophomore release by this English rock trio makes good on the promise of the band's debut, SHOWBIZ. Like that album, ORIGIN OF SYMMETRY is a lush, artfully arranged album of epic, heady ...
| | VH1 Presents The Corrs Live In Dublin CD (2002)
Showbiz
$6.39  
This audio document of The Corrs' Dublin homecoming concert has pretty much everything fans of Irish pop could wish for, including an appearance from Bono in his earthly incarnation, fresh from an audience with President George W. Bush. It's to the band's credit that the charismatic singer fails to steal the show, despite creditable efforts via an anthemized version of Ryan Adams' beautifully downtempo "When the Stars Go Blue," and a great, leering rendition of Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra's "Summer Wine."
Somewhat more mysteriously, Rolling Stone Ron Wood also turns up on what sounds dangerously close to a lounge version of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing," but this minor faux pas is redeemed by the Irish folk medley ...
| | Porcupine Tree In Absentia CD (2002)
Showbiz
$8.59 
There's a breed of (post-1980s) bands with the same degree of grand rock experimentalism as Pink Floyd and Yes, who simultaneously adhere to the concept of concise songwriting. Porcupine Tree is one such band--their sound is a balance of lush ambient textures, charming vocal harmonies, rock & roll directness, and acoustically- and electronically-generated sounds. Their debut IN ABSENTIA shows all these elements in place, rich with the likely possibility of them becoming a contemporary counterpart to Pink Floyd.
Hailed by Billboard as 'cinematic...simple gorgeous', Porcupine Tree are unquestionably one of the UK's most inspired and inventive rock groups. In Absentia is their eagerly anticipated Lava Records debut. Digipak. 2002.
Recorded at Avatar Studio, New York, New York between March & April 2002.
Porcupine Tree: Richard Barbieri, Colin Edwin, Gavin Harrison, Steven Wilson.
Personnel: John Wesley (guitar, background vocals); Julian Leaper, ...
| | Muse Absolution CD (2003)
Showbiz
$9.89
Muse lead vocalist Matthew Bellamy's vocal timbre bears a distinct similarity to that of Thom Yorke, leading some to dismiss Muse as simply a band of Radiohead-worshippers. With ABSOLUTION, however, the UK-based group proves that it's much more than the sum of its influences, delivering a work that revels in the enormity of its ambition, the breadth of its sonic palette, and the intensity of its emotional resonance. Employing a daring ...
| | Muse Black Holes And Revelations CD (2006)
Showbiz
$12.89
Over the course of their first three studio albums Muse slowly gained ground as one of the more progressive and accomplished ...
| | Foot In Coldwater Or All Around Us CD (1974) (Import) Import; Canada
Showbiz
$12.87 
| | Fuzzbox Love Is A Slug: Complete BBC Sessions CD (2002) (Import) United Kingdom
Showbiz
$17.95
When a company is down to releasing Fuzzbox's BBC sessions, it's clear that the very bottom of the barrel is not too far off. An extremely short-lived sensation in their native U.K. whose U.S. profile was only slightly higher than that of baked beans on toast for breakfast, Fuzzbox were a gleefully prefab all-female quartet whose records were a sometimes compelling clash between inspired amateurism and slick production. On these 18 tracks, the slickness has been dispensed with, leaving only the amateurishness. It's not enough, unfortunately. Stripped of the glossy sheen of the original, their signature tune, "Love is the Slug," simply sounds echoey and drony, like a single by one of those early-'80s third-tier Manchester bands who were shunted off to the Factory Benelux label because they weren't good enough to be on the mother label. Even the a cappella "Bohemian Rhapsody" sounds dull-witted compared to the absolutely terrifying ...
| | Best Of Smokie CD (2003)
Showbiz
$9.79
| | Rubinoos Crimes Against Music V.1 CD (2002) (Import) United Kingdom
Showbiz
$13.69
This album by the Rubinoos finds the veteran ensemble offering up power-pop renditions of rock classics such as "Pump It Up," "Evil Hearted You," "Heroes and Villains."
The title of this disc is just screaming out for a witty play on words, an easy chance for the critic to make a joke at the band's expense. Because of the stature of the legendary Rubinoos and a strange compulsion to take the high road, all such impulses will be held in check -- maybe. The Rubinoos are indeed legends of power pop; their re-formation in the late '90s was welcomed by all fans of the genre and they put out a nice little record at that time, too. Why they chose to follow it up with a disc of covers is a bit of a mystery -- first because they are great songwriters and second because their choice of songs to cover is a bit problematic. Some of the songs are so familiar that any cover of them seems futile, such as "Bend Me Shape Me" or "Brandy." Some of the songs are so perfect in their original form that they shouldn't be messed around with, like the Flamin' Groovies' "Shake Some Action" (in which they replace the amazing guitar interplay of the original with some cheesy organ), the Beach Boys' "Heroes and Villains" (which they tackle in a cappella fashion and come off as a slightly hip Whiffenpoofs-style group), and Del Shannon's "Hats off to Larry." Some of the tracks are outright embarrassments; the faux-big band arrangement of Elvis Costello's "Pump It Up is goofy and the cornball vocals on their take of the Yardbirds' "Evil Hearted You" strips the song of all its inherent menace. A few songs are not too bad: "Thorn in My Side," the best song here, is a wonderful recasting of a Eurythmics song as a classic power pop gem and the Sweet's "Little Willy" is a fun romp with some great handclaps. Rock rule number 37: Everything sounds better with handclaps. The group also does a nice job with the Todd Rundgren ballad "There Goes My Inspiration." Unfortunately, the title of that track could apply to this record. Although the group in the liner notes talks about how each of these songs inspires them in some way, the record sounds flat, uninspired, and unnecessary. The Rubinoos should go back to the drawing board and leave the lousy covers to the bar bands. The true crime would be if someone bought this instead of ...
| | Taking Back Sunday Where You Wan To Be CD (2004) (Import) Japan
Showbiz
$32.85
| | Thaw Holy Cat CD (2002) Reissued
Showbiz
$16.45
| | Joe Dolan More & More CD (1998)
Showbiz
$7.19
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