Coming after the cranked-up, stadium-sized bombast of their official London 2012 Olympics anthem, “Survival,” Muse has run in the complete opposite direction with “Madness.” The comparatively subdued tune is the first official single from the British band’s forthcoming album, The 2nd Law, due October 2.

With the slightest dubstep wobble squirming underneath the track — a sound that Muse reportedly explores further on The 2nd Law — the minimalist “Madness” manages to conjure up classic Queen, George Michael’s “I Want Your Sex,” and early ’90s U2 (namely “Numb”) in under five minutes. Masterfully mixed by Mark “Spike” Stent, has Muse frontman Matthew Bellamy ever sounded so spectacularly restrained on record?

Purchase Muse – “Madness” via iTunes, Amazon MP3.