Philly Muse concert proves creative capability of drones during futuristic show
WRITTEN BY: SIENA SOHN
On Sunday, Jan. 31, English rock band, Muse, paid a visit to the Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia for their Drones World Tour, with a heavy emphasis on drones.
The stage opened with twelve visually stunning sphere drones circling above the audience. Beams of light radiated off of each one, creating a spectacular, lively atmosphere for their opener, “Psycho,” which is off of their recently released 2015 album “Drones.”
As the show continued, so did the special effects: smoke, augmented images projected onto screens, confetti, strobe lights, and of course, more drones. The entire set was nearly twenty songs, hitting all of their most popular tracks like “Supermassive Black Hole,” “Madness,” and “Starlight.”
Throughout the show, the English trio paid homage to music legends like Jimi Hendrix, AC/DC, and Led Zeppelin by playing riffs in between their original tunes.
Most of the audience attendees came from nearby areas, like Ryan McClean, a student at The College of New Jersey, who thought the show was both “energetic and entertaining,” especially when they played “The Handler,” and “used screens to make it appear like the lead singer was attached to a huge floating hand that controlled him by pulling on strings.”
Muse is most notable for lead singer Matt Bellamy’s revolutionary political views, which is evident in songs like “Assassin” and “Uprising.” Bellamy incorporated his stances into the show by projecting one of John F. Kennedy’s speeches onto a screen during the show.
Muse’s show in Philadelphia was one of the band’s last gigs before they head over the Atlantic to Europe for the next half of their Drones World Tour.
