Muse, “Will of the People.”

U.K.’s Muse has taken on a variety of personalities over the band’s lifespan, now approaching three decades. From cutting edge alt-rockers to stadium rock revivalists and space-age prog pushers, Muse has spanned the spectrum. On the group’s ninth record, Will of the People, the trio has pulled off a fairly difficult feat in creating a record that takes all those past sounds and blends them in a masterfully cohesive way that recognizes the past and charts a course. While 2018 LP Simulation Theory was big bombastic fun, the new record is a refreshing callback to the trio’s urgency and immediacy.

On one side, Will of the People features some of the heaviest riffs of the band’s career while also bringing back the orchestral piano balladry from which Matt Bellamy and co. had really moved away. Fans of Black Holes and Revelations and The Resistance especially will find a lot to like over the course of these 10 tracks.

Things start off on straight-ahead riff-forward rocker “Will of the People.” The fist-pumping political anthem is all about solidarity of the masses in the face of an oppressive ruling class. That messages sticks for slick melodic alt-pop rocker “Compliance.”

“We just need your compliance/ You will feel no pain anymore/ No more defiance,” Bellamy sings on the chorus.

The arrangement and instrumentation on Will of the People are some the band’s best in years, each passing track expertly crafted to the point that even the interludes shine. Bellamy’s signature falsetto returns on the hyper-urgent stadium rock ballad “Liberation.” Fans of “United States of Eurasia” will likely be very excited about this Queen-inspired track that features multipart vocal harmonies and driving rhythms. Bellamy is one of the most dynamic vocalists in rock and it’s good hear him deliver this dramatic ballad, where the vocals are front and center, which the band had stayed away from over its last couple of albums.

“Won’t Stand Down” jumps between bass-driven grooves to high-octane riffs. Much of the album’s messaging comes in on this one song. Drummer Dominic Howard and bassist Chris Wolstenholme drive the rhythm section on one of the heaviest tracks Muse has ever released. The band’s precision and supreme musicianship shines through here.

Bellamy breaks out the piano again on exquisite earnest ballad “Ghosts (How Can I Move On).” The rest of the band takes a backseat while Bellamy’s classically inspired piano playing, a la Rachmaninoff, returns. For a band known for its proggy musical complexity, its a welcome change to mix in a track that’s more understated in its arrangement.

Spacey rocker “You Make Me Feel Like It’s Halloween” arrives a little bit out of nowhere. The jumpy electro-rock number feels more in line with the band’s later work—booming percussion, synths, riffs and a blistering guitar solo. With an ’80s pop aesthetic and a modern alt-rock foundation, the track is fun, unusual and stands out from the rest of the album.

The heaviness returns on the ferocious “Kill or Be Killed,” a riff-driven track that once again finds Muse churning out some of its most intense work. The pinpoint musicianship feels like a throwback to some of the band’s earliest work. The nearly five-minute track is paired up with another of about the same length in “Verona,” which is an atmospheric synth-heavy mid-tempo ballad that builds as it develops.

“Euphoria” grows from a dance-rock tune into a fist-pumping classic rock chorus. The band seamlessly blends the synths with Bellamy’s guitar attack. The album closes out on the aptly titled doomsday rock of “We’re Fucking Fucked,” about the perils of compounding environmental, political and health crises. It’s got a sarcastic tone but delivers on the urgency of a “life in crisis.”

Simply put, Will of the People delivers some of this band’s best work in years and should offer excitement to fans of all eras. Muse clearly has plenty left to say.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.