Origin of Symmetry is the second studio album by English alternative rock band Muse,
released on 17 June 2001 by Mushroom Records.[1] Recording took place at Ridge Farm
Studios in Surrey and Real World Studio in Wiltshire, and additional recordings were
made at Astoria Studios, Richmond Studios and Abbey Road Studios in London and Sawmills
Studio in Fowey, Cornwall. The album was mixed at Sawmills and mastered at Sony Music
Studios in London. Origin of Symmetry was produced by David Bottrill, John Leckie
(who previously worked on the band's first album, Showbiz) and the band themselves.
In the UK it reached #3[2] and was certified platinum.[3] The title for the album
comes from a concept put forward by Michio Kaku in his book Hyperspace.
The album was met with overwhelmingly positive reviews and in 2006 earned the
spot of 74 on Q Magazine's 100 Greatest Albums of all Time.[5] Later in February
2008 a Public Vote for Q Magazine placed the album in #28 of the Best British Albums
of all time. Acclaimed Music ranks Origin of Symmetry as the 1,247th greatest album
of all time.[6]
Origin of Symmetry is seen as a departure from the alternative rock sound of Showbiz,
as the band experimented instrumentally throughout the album. Dominic Howard (drums)
augmented the standard rock drum kit with various other items of his own, and Matthew
Bellamy uses a pipe organ at St Mary the Virgin's Church, Bathwick on "Megalomania".
Due to the requirement of a pipe organ, this song is rarely played live by Muse,
perhaps the most notable occasions being at Muse's charity gig at the Royal Albert
Hall and during the Hullabaloo concert in Paris.
Throughout the album, the bass line is used as the driving force, often with the
guitar providing only an extra layer to the song rather than carrying the melody.
The bass has distortion and other effects applied to it to achieve a greater weight,
allowing the guitar to digress from the main chord progression and play higher notes.
Track listing
All songs were written by Matthew Bellamy, except "Feeling Good" by Leslie Bricusse
and Anthony Newley.
No. Title Length
1. "New Born" 6:03
2. "Bliss" 4:12
3. "Space Dementia" 6:20
4. "Hyper Music" 3:21
5. "Plug In Baby" 3:39
6. "Citizen Erased" 7:19
7. "Micro Cuts" 3:38
8. "Screenager" 4:20
9. "Darkshines" 4:47
10. "Feeling Good" 3:19
11. "Megalomania" 4:38
[edit] Bonus Tracks
No. Title Length
11. "Futurism" (Japan CD and iTunes bonus track (Megalomania is track 12 on these versions).
It was later featured as a B-side to the Dead Star/In Your World single.) 3:27
Format : MPEG Audio
File size : 13.9 MiB
Duration : 6mn 3s
Overall bit rate : 320 Kbps
Album : Origin of Symmetry
Track name : New Born
Track name/Position : 1
Performer : Muse
Audio
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Mode : Joint stereo
Duration : 6mn 3s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 320 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 44.1 KHz
Stream size : 13.9 MiB (100%)