Glastonbury 2010: MUSE

Muse were, in my mind, indisputably the best act of Glastonbury 2010. For a long time, the 3-piece Devon band have been one of the big names I’ve wanted to tick off my list and to say they did not disappoint is an almighty understatement. Their full-blown, high-voltage set had the 100,000 strong crowd losing all their inhibitions and surrendering to the waves of heavy volume and blinding light that erupted from the Pyramid Stage for the full 2 hours of their electrifying set.

With the sound absolutely perfect and the light show a brilliant spectacle (although possibly less of a focus than previous Muse gigs), the set was overwhelming from whatever your position amongst the huge, hero-worshipping audience; consuming every crowd member and getting everyone on their feet and screaming along with the hit-after-hit pouring effortlessly from front-man Matthew Bellamy’s lips.

The great thing about seeing a band like Muse is that - unlike unfortunate Friday night headliners, Gorillaz, who unwittingly filled their set with barely-known songs from their brand new album – they have such a vast amount of material and such extensive success that literally every song of their set is a scream-your-guts-out super-hit that gets the whole crowd jumping. No wonder I’d lost my voice when I woke up in my tent on Sunday! Almost every song was a high point in my eyes, the set getting bigger and better with each one, but the ultimate “Oh my God, I can’t believe they’re playing this,” moments had to be at Plug in Baby in the finale, and the appearance of U2’s The Edge playing guitar for a brave but perfect cover of U2 song, Where the Streets Have No Name.

They were – in a word – unbelievable, and without a doubt my highlight of the festival for this year.

For more information about Glastonbury Festival, and to register for tickets for 2011, visit www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk

For extensive BBC coverage of the festival and over 40 hours of live performances, visit www.bbc.co.uk/glastonbury/

Photos by Rosie Blake.