Muse’s Matt Bellamy: ‘The guitar is no longer a lead instrument’

Stating that rock bands who just play just guitar, bass and drums have “one foot in the past”, Bellamy argued that a lot of “exciting” contemporary music melds different genres – something he believes Muse have always striven to do.

"The guitar has become a textural instrument rather than a lead instrument and I think that's probably a good thing,” Bellamy told the BBC.  

"What's exciting about this period of music is you can mix classical with hip-hop and rock in the same song.

"As a rock band you're slightly one foot in the past, playing instruments like guitar, bass and drums."

Extolling the virtues of eclecticism, Bellamy continued: "It's almost like genre was an aesthetic that people attached themselves to, not just in music but also in the way they dressed and the kind of friends they hung around with.

"I feel like that age has come to an end and what's interesting about music now is not just the style-blending but the era-blending.

"So, you'll have an artist like (pop singer) Lana Del Rey doing a song that sounds and feels like it's set in the 1950s, but she's singing about video games.

"It's an interesting time for era-blending and creating something which is timeless, and not particularly attached to any time. It becomes something ethereal and different."

Commenting on Muse’s recently premiered new single ‘Thought Contagion’ which uses “Trap beats” - often utilised by dance music producers - Matt added: "That's the first time we've used something like that - big 808 (drum machine) drops and stuff.

"We've always kept an eye on what's going on, and we've taken influence from things we think are cool in contemporary music. It's always been a theme."

Elsewhere in the interview, Bellamy confirmed that Muse will have "a full album together by the end of the year” and are eyeing up a “full world tour” in 2019.