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Muse<\/a> frontman Matt Bellamy<\/a> has looked back on the \u201900s guitar rock scene, while recalling his recent run-ins with Jack White<\/a> and Albert Hammond Jr<\/a>.<\/p>\n Bellamy recently spoke to NME<\/em><\/a> about the space rock trio\u2019s 10th studio album, \u2018The Wow!\u2019 Signal\u2019<\/a>, which was released last Friday (June 26).<\/p>\n At one point in the chat, it was put to the musician that Muse were perhaps outsiders when they first burst onto the scene with music in the late \u201990s, before enjoying huge success in the \u201900s.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were three things going on back then: the end of Britpop, nu-metal in America, and then the new exciting thing was The Strokes<\/a>,\u00a0The White Stripes<\/a>, that retro rock \u2018n\u2019 roll thing,\u201d Bellamy remembered of that era.<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t fit in with any of those things \u2013 and that, in hindsight, was a blessing really.\u201d<\/p>\n He continued: \u201cThe fact that we somehow found an audience without being part of a trend is amazing, and I think that\u2019s why we\u2019re still here. We are the definition of alternative, and I\u2019m very, very happy about that.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve never been in fashion enough that when the limelight moves away from you, you\u2019re just finished.\u201d<\/p>\n The frontman then spoke about his time at this year\u2019s Coachella<\/a>, where he crossed paths with two other musicians from huge \u201900s bands. Bellamy was on site at the California festival for a surprise appearance during Anyma\u2019s set<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI was at Coachella the other week and I bumped into Jack White and Albert [Hammond Jr] from The Strokes,\u201d he told NME<\/em>, adding that he was somewhat surprised the three of them were still going strong in 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cI was just backstage chatting to them and I went, \u2018Fuck, we\u2019re still here!\u2019\u201d Bellamy said. \u201cWe were like, \u2018We\u2019re the guitarists from the 2000s! We did it!\u2019 It was so cool. Maybe there was a bit of a scene back then, but it was defined by being a little bit alternative to the mainstream.\u201d<\/p>\n Bellamy told NME<\/em> that he was \u201cvery glad we didn\u2019t fit in\u201d during their earlier days.<\/p>\n When asked if he had talked about forming \u201ca crazy modern shredding version of the Travelling Wilburys\u201d with White and Hammond Jr, the singer responded: \u201cHa! No, because they would embarrass me with how good they are!\u201d<\/p>\n Replying to whether White could \u201coutshred\u201d him on guitar, Bellamy admitted: \u201cI think so. He\u2019s a real lead guitarist. In every song, he\u2019s doing pretty busy solos. Solos were something I was trying to push down a little bit.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like when we first came up, the guitar solo was already an embarrassing thing to do. If anything, I would say that Jack White brought it back. I\u2019m a singer as well, so I\u2019ve never been totally driven by being technical on the guitar.\u201d<\/p>\n He concluded: \u201cThere might be a couple of things that I can do, but if it comes to blues then he\u2019s going to kill me!\u201d<\/p>\n Bellamy shared a photo of himself with White and Hammond Jr at Coachella on Instagram. Check out the post above.<\/p>\n Elsewhere in his interview with NME<\/em>, Bellamy revealed some ambitious plans for Muse\u2019s 2026 UK and European arena tour<\/a>, telling us: \u201cWe\u2019re trying to build a spaceship<\/a> \u2013 as you do.<\/p>\n \u201cThe quote came in and it\u2019s more expensive than some of these houses [in Primrose Hill], and that\u2019s saying something around here.\u201d<\/p>\n Bellamy also opened up about how \u2018The Wow! Signal\u2019 sees him confront his inner turmoil after a period of \u201cpersonal struggles\u201d. He spoke about the words of wisdom he got from Coldplay<\/a>\u2019s\u00a0Chris Martin<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0The Rolling Stones<\/a>\u2019\u00a0Mick Jagger<\/a>, too, as well as how he believes Muse have still \u201cgot another good 10 years left in us\u201d. Read the conversation in full here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Following on from\u00a0their North American tour with Bloc Party and more<\/a> this summer, Muse\u2019s forthcoming UK leg will kick off with two shows at Manchester\u2019s Co-op Live on November 12 and 13. The trio are then scheduled to play two huge concerts at The O2 in London on November 15 and 16. Find any remaining tickets here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Muse launched their new era with an intimate gig at Brixton Academy in April<\/a>. Here,\u00a0they debuted the song \u2018Cryogen\u2019<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 which\u00a0has since been released as a single<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 and gave lead track\u00a0\u2018Be With You\u2019<\/a>\u00a0its live debut.<\/p>\n In a four-star review<\/a>, NME<\/em> hailed \u2018The Wow! Signal\u2019 as Muse\u2019s \u201cbest album in 20 years\u201d, calling it \u201cundoubtedly their most consistent and satisfying album since \u2018Black Holes & Revelations\u2019<\/a>\u201c.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/blockquote>\n
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