Muse are putting the finishing touches on their upcoming studio album, which drummer Dom Howard claims is sounding "f---ing great." Not that we'd argue but he's gotta say that, right?

"We've probably got two more [songs] to record from scratch then we might be almost looking at a complete album," Howard wrote on the band's website. "Then strings, synth sparkles, llamas toenails, gongs and anything else we can think of that will help us perceive [the songs] are finished. The hardest bit is finishing."

Meanwhile, the band will launch an extensive international tour behind the yet-to-be-titled studio disc as the support act on a number of U2's North American dates next September, including a stop in New York on Sept. 24.