SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE

To accompany the re-release of 2007's Dead Reckoning, complete with instrumental versions of each song, Threshold put out a digital single featuring a Muse cover and an edit of one of their most popular songs.

Muse's styles span multiple genres, including but not limited to hard rock/borderline metal, orchestral prog, grunge, electronic (on some later occasions), and pop. Supermassive Black Hole falls in the last category, but Threshold makes it properly heavy, although they don't work their progressive magic on it. Verses feature distorted guitars, effortlessly transitioning into the pre-choruses with spacey, smooth keyboards. Mac is not able to pull off Matt Bellamy's falsetto and his voice is less suited to the song, but he puts more feeling into it than Bellamy does. They did not at all alter the solo (can it really be called that?), disappointingly enough. Muse gave little thought to that portion, and Threshold did not seek to fix it. Overall, however, they've improved the song, turning Supermassive Black Hole from a radio-friendly hit to something you can actually headbang to.

The other track on the single is an edit of Slipstream, the first song from Dead Reckoning. It is one of two Threshold songs containing harsh vocals (the other is Elusive, from the same album), and they have turned the growls into an electronic robot voice. It's been shortened as well, by a whole minute and a half, as a result of removing the ending and many of the instrumental parts. It follows a more predictable structure now and has lost much of its "progressive" feel. I think I'll stick to the original this time.

It seems almost as if some of the characteristics of the two songs have been switched with each other, the cover becoming heavier and a little bit more progressive (due to the sudden shifts between distorted guitar and keyboard) and Slipstream's shortening and cutting back on the prog elements.

The single is worth a listen for fans of the band who also enjoy Muse (or are at least familiar with Supermassive Black Hole), and a novelty for other Threshold fans. Whichever group you're in, it's a good way to kill six minutes.

Originally posted to www.metal-archives.com