MUSE

Manchester University MEET Muse - average 20 - who just might be the saviours of the beleaguered indie scene.

The trio of Matthew Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard hail from Teignmouth, in Devon, and have already received the best new act of the year award at the NME Brat awards.

Now exploding onto the scene with primetime TV spots, the lads are blazing a trail across the country with their live shows. With influences ranging from Placebo to Radiohead, mixed with the angst and passion of Nirvana, the band grab your attention.

What sets them apart from the rest is that Bellamy is a man who not only believes in his music but has the ability to convey that belief to the audience.

He bares his soul as he rips through the hour-long set, becoming so absorbed in the performance that the encore crashes through the curfew and no-one cares.

With all the hype comes the pressure but in Muse - who already have 80 songs and four record deals - we have a band we can expect to deliver.

CLIVE LAWRENCE

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.