Even though Muse followed up Showbiz with Absolution and Origin Of Symmetry, arguably the two greatest albums they've ever released, these days fans (and a good number of critics) hold a special place in their heart for their debut record Showbiz, released in 1999. Simply put, without Showbiz, Muse wouldn't exist as we know them. Yet the English alt-rock trio faced quite a lot of negative feedback when Showbiz first dropped. There were positive reviews out there, but the vast majority were mixed or negative. Many critics dismissed the album as derivative of other alt-rock bands of the 90s, and many latched onto a rather unfavourable Radiohead comparison, due to singer Matt Bellamy's similarly airy, falsetto-driven vocals. NME also described the album as overwrought and prone to excruciatingly bad pseudo poetry. Nevertheless time and context within Muse's career has spurred a much greater appreciation of the record, with it making several top British albums lists and getting many subsequent reappraisals. As well as that, tracks from Showbiz remain some extremely solid fan favourites.
