# Muscle Museum

"Muscle Museum" is a song by the English rock band Muse, released as the third single from their 1999 debut album Showbiz. Written by lead singer Matt Bellamy, the song's title likely derives from the fact that the words "muscle" and "museum" come immediately before and after the word "muse" in some dictionaries. The song peaked at number 25 on the UK Singles Chart.

## Music video

The music video is directed by Joseph Kahn and features different people in a suburban neighbourhood, crying in different situations, as Muse plays in a high school after a party, as a janitor cleans up. As the video goes on, some of the townspeople attempt suicide, and by the end of the video, the janitor breaks down. Joseph Kahn wanted to express the "sadness" of life in the suburbs where every house looks more or less the same. Individual expression is not possible because of the surroundings and the rules in those suburbs, happiness (or pretending to be happy) is mandatory.
Though Joseph Kahn himself thinks of the video as one of the best he made, he believes that most people, including Muse, don't like the video.

## Release

"Muscle Museum" was released on 22 November 1999 on 7" vinyl—backed with "Minimum"—and double CD—backed with "Do We Need This?", a live acoustic version of the song, "Pink Ego Box" and "Con-Science". It reached #43 in the UK Singles Chart—an improvement of nine positions on "Cave".
The song is available to play on Rocksmith 2014 as part of a Muse 5-song pack.

## Live performances

"Muscle Museum" was a staple in the band's live performances from 1997 until 2004. The song made occasional appearances on the Black Holes and Revelations Tour, and later, the Psycho Tour and Drones World Tour. The song has not been performed since 2018.

## Charts

| Chart (1999–2000) | Peak performance |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100) | 100 |
| UK Singles (OCC) | 25 |
| UK Indie (OCC) | 5 |

## Track listing

All tracks are written by Matthew Bellamy

## Personnel

Personnel adapted from Showbiz liner notes

## Re-release

A "US Mix" of "Muscle Museum" was released on 9 October 2000 on 7" vinyl—backed with a live version of "Escape"—and double CD—backed with a live version of "Agitated", the 'Timo Maas Sunstroke Remix' of "Sunburn", the 'Saint US Mix' of "Sober" and the 'Soulwax Remix' of the song. It reached number 25 in the UK Singles Chart—eighteen positions higher than its original release.

## Release history

| Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
| United Kingdom | 22 November 1999 | Mushroom | 7" | MUSH66S |
| United Kingdom | 22 November 1999 | Mushroom | 2CD | MUSH66CDS/MUSH66CDSX |
| United Kingdom | 22 November 1999 | Mushroom | CD | MUSE 5 |
| Australia | 22 November 1999 | Mushroom | CD | 561 360-2 |
| Benelux | 22 November 1999 | Play It Again Sam | CD | 481.2002.22 |
| France | 22 November 1999 | Naïve | 2CD | NV 3212-4/NV 3212-5 |
| Germany | 22 November 1999 | Motor | CD+ | 561 360-2 |
| United States | 22 November 1999 | Maverick | CD | PRO-CD-9841 |
| Worldwide reissue | 9 October 2000 | Mushroom | 7" | MUSH84S |
| Worldwide reissue | 9 October 2000 | Mushroom | 2CD | MUSH84CDS/MUSH84CDSX |
| Worldwide reissue | 9 October 2000 | Mushroom | CD | MUSE 10 |