From the intimacy of a Hanwell pub to the expanse of the O2 arena in the space of one day, but then I can't imagine Muse playing at the Inn on the Green somehow.
As usual with Muse, the show was on an epic scale and featured drone orbs to fit in with the theme of their latest album, plus the inevitable sci-fi themed visuals. The set included all the standard Muse favourites plus a few songs from the Drones album, with the crowd singing along in all the right places.
In spite of living just down the road from Hanwell for over ten years, I had never attended the Hootie, which is very similar in principle to the somewhat better known Camden Crawl. Basically all the pubs in Hanwell, plus several pop-up venues, each host a selection of live bands for the afternoon/evening. Judging by this year's event, it has now become possibly too popular for its own good, with most of the venues being absolutely rammed with capacity audiences. We enjoyed a couple of bands before calling it a day. Well worth the effort, but hard work!
