SOUND JUDGEMENT

THE LATEST ALBUM RELEASES RATED AND REVIEWED

MUSE – SIMULATION THEORY

★★★★★

AN industrial thud announces the arrival of the band’s eighth album. From then on, Simulation Theory takes the listener on a rollercoaster of sounds.

The band’s signatures are here: frontman Matt Bellamy’s falsetto vocal runs, rock opera guitars and a bucket-load of bravado. Get Up And Fight, for example, is classic Muse. But there’s also a vein of new ideas running through its 11 tracks. Propaganda and Break It To Me are preposterous collisions of stadium-size vocals, UFO sounds and vocoder-warped R&B choruses.

Muse have returned to the embrace of knowing camp, and they sound all the better for it.

JEFF GOLDBLUM AND THE MILDRED SNITZER ORCHESTRA – THE CAPITOL STUDIO SESSIONS

★★★★★

JEFF GOLDBLUM, best known for roles in Jurassic Park, The Fly and Independence Day, has been tickling the ivories since he was a child, and has performed with his jazz band in New York and Los Angeles for years.

His joyous first album, recorded in front of a live audience for that authentic smoky jazz club vibe, sees Goldblum show off his hard-earned skills as a jazz pianist – and comedic conversationalist – while backed by his orchestra and Grammy-nominated trumpeter Till Bronner. The record includes plenty of on-stage chat between Goldblum and his collaborators, including US comedian Sarah Silverman, for a further splash of realness.

If you’re new to the genre, this is a good first step.

IMAGINE DRAGONS – ORIGIN ★★★★★ BILLED as a “sister album” to Evolve, Origin is packed with everything from the band’s signature rock sound with a twist to folky-sounding tunes.

Dan Reynolds, Wayne Sermon, Ben McKee and Daniel Platzman aren’t scared to experiment with sound, although songs like Bad Liar have the feel of past hits Believer and West Coast has a lullaby quality that reminds you of a long-lost love song.

The 15-track offering doesn’t stick to one sound or recipe and it makes for an intricate listening experience.