The Resistance is the fifth studio album by English alternative rock band Muse, released in Europe on 14 September 2009, and in North America on 15 September 2009. Upon its release, it topped the album charts in 19 countries. It also debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 128,000 copies during the first week. It also surpassed its predecessor, Black Holes and Revelations, in album sales in its debut week in the UK, selling approximately 148,000 copies, as well as worldwide, with 479,000 copies sold. Critics were mostly complimentary about the album, with much of the praise directed towards its ambition and classical music influences.

The 2nd Law is the sixth studio album by English rock band Muse. It was released on 1 October 2012 in the United Kingdom and elsewhere on 28 September, 2 and 3 October under Warner Bros. Records and the band's own Helium-3 imprint. The title of the album refers to the second law of thermodynamics and the album's cover art features a map of the human brain's pathways, which was taken from the Human Connectome Project.