Nirvana are in comfortably. Next up from
khfreek
Muse
Muse formed in the early 90's in Devon, England as a Nirvana cover group that wasn't meant to last, basically. As time went on all of the band's friends quit music and went to university, but Muse continued. By the time Muse had released their first album in 1999, they had released 5 demos and 2 EPs. 'Showbiz' came out in 1999 to good reviews. The album had a large Nirvana-meets-Rage sound to it, with some prog thrown in. Muse, at first, was more popular in France and other western European countries than their home country of England. Although it had been released in the US, it was mostly ignored. They played a lot of festivals across Europe, writing new material the whole time.
In 2001, Muse released 'Origin of Symmetry', and they became huge in Europe. Every single off the album was in the top 25 on the UK charts, and they began headlining festivals across Europe. The album approaches prog constantly but never quite immerses itself in it. This, along with catchy vocal hooks, attributed to their success; they were accessible while still sounding different to most bands out there. Now, you'd think they'd have at least made a splash into the American front, but 'Origin' wasn't released in the US until 2005. Their record label, Maverick, insisted that Muse re-record the vocals for the US release, saying the falsetto would hurt sales. Muse refused, the release was stopped, the band was dropped. They re-signed to another label, and Maverick has probably been kicking itself ever since.
Muse, by this time, had amassed quite a collection of excellent B-sides. To show these to a wider audience, they decided to release 'Hullabaloo', a 2CD set. The first CD was all B-sides and the second was a live CD from their performance at Le Zenith in Paris. An accompanying DVD of the gig was also released.
In 2003 Muse released 'Absolution'. On this album the band was able to utilize all the instruments the wanted: pianos, synths, orchestras. Although the second album had shown hints of classical influence, 'Absolution' showed a whole lot more. This album helped them cross over into the American mainstream with the poppy choruses of Stockholm Syndrome and Time Is Running Out, and they became fully entrenched in their roll as Britain's rock band. In 2004 they toured all over the world.
In 2006 they released Black Holes and Revelations. Their poppiest album to date, it introduced Muse to a new audience. Songs off this album were featured in Guitar Hero and Twilight. I'll let you decide if that's a good thing or not
In all the time I've been listening to music (which to be fair isn't that long), I haven't come across a more consistent and widely accessible band. They have something for everyone, and while they have continued evolving still keep a certain quality with them that is Muse. Each member of the band is quite talented, Matt Bellamy especially. He has a powerful voice, great range, and sings songs that you want to sing along with. The rhythm section is to die for, some of the bass lines Chris Wolstenholme writes are sick. They've inspired many bands to step up their game, as well. I've noticed a lot of bands trying to get their start online claiming that they "sound like Muse". Most of them try and fail, but the fact that people are trying shows how well regarded their sound is. Muse is my favorite band, and I think their output qualifies them for the Musicbanter Hall of Fame.