MUSE

During their live show this galactic theme is on display and super-enhanced with hundreds of lights, lasers and projections – as well as the occasional giant balloon full of confetti. As the lights first go down you can see the outlines of vast light arrays built into every spare surface on the stage. There are lasers in the drum kit. Etched into the lid of the grand piano on stage left are banks of LEDs quietly powering up. The only noise is of the crowd stirring as the band walks through darkness onto the stage. Suddenly, a swirl of fluorescent glows pulse from a plasma display on a floating guitar. The crowd erupts. Muse will now be sending you into space.

The set launches with Take a Bow. Its rumbling chords pierce the shadows of the auditorium and steadily grow louder. Within ground control instruments are being checked and re-checked. Synthesizer sputter and then spiral into ignition and with a blinding blast of light and sound the room shakes as the crowd loses contact with the ground.

With no effort every patron has come under the control of guitarist and lead singer Matt Bellamy. The energy of thousands fuels the rocketing entertainment centre through a superbly balanced collection of Muse's latest album's singles and the best tracks from their earlier albums. Adelaide is particularly lucky tonight, Citizen Erased has rarely been played during the last few years but its opening riffs come in hot after last year's chart topper Supermassive Black Hole.

After six high energy tracks we have now officially left the Earth behind. The slower Ruled by Secrecy is piano heavy and Bellamy leaves the guitar to show his skills as a pianist. The cascading keys create a stargazing feel which works as an excellent peak of energy for the first half of the set. The next song is Feeling Good, and its chirpier keyboard lines pulse from the piano lid to light up the stage. It signifies our exit from the exosphere. This contrastingly lighter tune propels us to contentedly soar between the planets and suns, now freed from the clutches of gravity. The crowd all sing along.

Muse could never be accused of playing an intimate show. Their songs are built to be performed live and loud and the rest of the journey through the stars maintains the same energy of the first half. The balance between past albums and new material stays true all evening. Chunky riffs tease the audience between each epic orchestration and the opening bars of every song are greeted by cheers and screams. Dead Star gets the biggest response, plunging the crowd into a dying galaxy complete with the occasional UFO – though most could later be identified as glow sticks or empty beer cups.

After almost a hundred minutes of sound the wailing guitars of Knights of Cydonia finally come to rest, the lasers settle down and the lights go dim. Re-entry to Earth is now disappointingly complete. But Muse is less of a concert than it is an experience, and this is a journey that will be hard to forget.