Oh my Christ, what an album! The first track is something new to Muse, an intro. I don't know if you've been watching those videos that they've been putting up on the official site but if you havn't there was one where they went into a really little room and started stomping. This is the intro. It basicaly just fades in then the first song of the album starts belting out.

Now, in my opinion they could have used a better song for the first one or even replaced the song all together because, in my opinion, it really isn't very good. I mean, it's not bad but it's really the sort of thing I'd prefer as a B-side to a major album track. It starts with a lot of strong piano then in come the drums and the vocals. It's got some nice synthesizer stuff in the middle of it but apart from that it's really not the best song on the album. Onto track 3.

Time Is Running Out is the third track from the album and is also the first single to be released in the shops. Opening with some really nice bass and some interesting clicking of fingers and clapping of hands to keep the beat it goes on to be a nice mellow song but knowing Muse that surly can't last. Sure enough the guitar chords start to build up as the chorus kicks in followed by a really nice lead guitar arrangement. The second verse keeps with the harder stuff and comes off really nicely. The song ends with some nice strong guitar stuff. To put it simply, this is a really good song.

Track 4, Sing For Absolution, which is where the album title comes from is a nice piece of work. Steady bass and some nice piano work with some very good lyrics. It's a very icy song, it makes me think of cold and frozen stuff. If they did a video for it I recon it'd be set in an ice cave or something like that, anyway, on with the song. The chorus comes in after more of the same which has a slightly more uplifting vibe about it though not much. Around 3 minutes in the guitar makes an appearance and gives it that unmistakable Muse feel. This is a very good song but not one of the best. Defenatly original though.

Stockholm Syndrome is the 5th track from the album. This song immediatly grabs your attention with the awesum guitar work then in with the drums and the driving bass. A very loud song which is one of the best from the album. The music video could have been better though, too simple, they could have done better. It's remenisent of the In Your World video cause it's just them really with a heat sensor to make crazy colours around them. Anyway, the song. After a nice verse of loudness the chorus makes for a refreshingly loud but yet mellow piece as it has some piano and some calmer lyrics which have a beautiful harmony in parts but that all goes to shit when it ends and the really hard stuff comes back which is, in my opinion, marvelous. There's a nice gap for the guitar to do some nice lead stuff before the chorus comes in again for one last go. Following that is a very nice come together of the bass & the guitar as they play the same notes to make for a really good, loud, driving finish. Excellent track.

Falling Away With You is a much quieter song. Very mellow, and un-nervingly cheery really. Acoustic guitar and a nice quiet bass line. Not to worry though it soon goes crazy,... ish. Around a minute and twenty in brings in the drums and a synthesizer. Not a bad track at all really. Back to the mellowness but this time with drums. That's really all there is to this track. As it ends there's a really quiet strong guitar thing going on in the background which flows straight into the next track. Not bad but not one they'll be remembered for.

Now for an interlude. Very nice guitar stuff. It's actually quite moving but strong and powerful as well. Not very long at all really. Onto the next track.

Hysteria. Oh my god, where to begin. This is by far the best song on the album! Kicking off with some of the best bass I've ever heard (It's a joy to play incidently) The drums then start up followed by some beautiful guitar work. It's totally kick ass!!! This is obviously my favourite from the album. It's excellent, the lyrics are great n'all. The chorus comes in with some excellent lyrics, guitar, bass & drum work. The lyrics have a strange synthesizer feel to them which gives them an extra boost of excellence. Back into the verse with more of that amazing bass work. Same again but without the build up from the start. The chorus comes, the chorus goes but then comes an interlude of simply brilliantness. Amazing joint bass & guitar work then the bass goes back to what it normally does for the verses while the guitar goes off on its own with some wonderful moments. That goes into another chorus which in tern goes back to the driving part of the interlude and then it's all over. This simply reeks of awsumeness.

Blackout, the 9th track from the album. It's a very nice, mellow song with some beautiful lyrics. A nice orchasterial acompanyment gives this a very nice vibe, along with Dom's nice, quiet drum work & Chris' mellow bassing. Not much work for Matt to do though as the doesn't really feature until half way through where it joins in with some strong stuff but at a quiet volume so it works well with the song. That part goes on for around a minute then Matt starts up the vocals again. This is a very beautiful song.

Butterflies and Hurricanes is up next. A very sadistic title really, lol. This is the first song I heard from the album next to Stockholm. I really love it. More orchesterial stuff with some chilled drum work along with the bass. It then comes in with some stronger drums and a more driving moment from the strings. The lyrics are simply wonderful. After the chorus the piano comes in and does some crazy stuff then the drums get louder along with everything else. It's a really moving song. It actually sends shivers down my spine when I listen to it. When that happens to me while I'm listening to a song I know it's a winner. The lyrics really send out a good message too. Very encouraging. Half way through we get an interlude with some very nice orchasterial stuff and a driving piece of piano. That then ends and the piano finishes off nicely. Don't be fooled though, that's not the end of the song. There's a couple of seconds brake then Matt comes back with some wonderful piano work accompanied by the strings. Back to the main song again. Very, very mellow. Not for long though as suddenly everything goes mental again for the chorus. This is one of the best songs on the album. It's simply beautiful.

Track 11, Endlessly, is a very nice song aswell. It's one of my favorites. A very mellow song. The drumming in this song is simply amazing and the work on the keys is fenominal. The lyrics are beautiful, very heart felt, or so it seems. After the chorus there's a strange kind of noise which almost seems like record scratching. It's a nice addition to the song though. As the song approaches the last third of it we get a very nice interlude with crazy synthesizer string stuff and a build up of each note on the piano. It's wonderful. Then back to the chorus for one last bash at it.

Thoughts of a Dying Atheist is up next and it's not one of my favorites at all. Very simple for what I've come to expect of them. A standard guitar thing with a simple bass line and repetitive drums. It gets better in the chorus though where it seems as if they've tried a bit harder but it's ruined by a really random vocal finish with Matt making a "yeah, yeah, yeah" moment and an "aaow" kind of noise varying in notes. The lead guitar part of the song is nothing particualy special. All in all, not a bad song but definatly not one of the best. Not by far.

Thankfully, after the last attempt, the 13th track (TSP) is a much better track. With some very nice guitar work and some nice driving drums. The chorus has a very nice rocky feel, very powerful. The vocals didn't really need an echo though in the parts where it has one. It's just not nessersary. The interlude part of this song is pretty simple, just the normal tune but without vocals really. It then heads back into the chorus and that's it.

Track 14 is the grand finarly (unless you have the Japanese import) It's a very mellow song with the piano playing the major part. Some very quiet lyrics. Around a minute and a half in the drums make their entrance to give the song a bigger feel. It's a very nice song. The mellowness of it doesn't last though. Just as it gets to the three minute mark to piano begins a really nice moment of loudness. It gives it a very powerful feeling. The piano then plays louder throughout as Matt sings louder to keep with the new vibe. The song then quietens down for the finish. This song is an excellent finish to an excellent album.

The mysterious track 15. Fury is an amazing song. I've finally heard the studio version of the track and it's, put simply, amazing. This song is excellent indeed. Starting with an excellent guitar moment, that lasts all of two seconds, before it starts doing some crazy warped stuff. It then kicks in with the bass and drums. The guitar has some wonderful notes to play, it's truly a marvel. The lyrics are very good indeed. As it comes to the chorus the guitar does some very nice up and down stuff, it's all very well complimented by the lyrics, bass & drums alike. The interlude is a bit different. Not the sort of thing you'd expect to be in a song like this. Very good though in a simple kind of way. It then comes back into how the song started with the guitar really going at it. That in turn then goes into the chorus again. Back to the interlude moment to finish the song. It's very good indeed.

All in all this is a fantastic album and is easily enjoyed by all and if not, it should be!