NPR listeners vote "Plastic Beach" best album of the year...so far.

Stick that in the tote bag, and/or travel mug you received as your free gift during this year's NPR pledge drive. God, it was grueling listening to Chicago Public Radio this week.
Rounding out the top ten on All Songs Considered's list were a few of my other faves of the year; Teen Dream, High Violet, that one by Mumford And Sons... O.K, to be honest I haven't listened to the Mumford And Sons album, despite constant badgering from NME Radio. Is it any good? I feel like I have a duty to like a band called Mumford And Sons. We'll see.

Well done Gorillaz.

Listeners Pick 2010's Best Music (So Far) [NPR.org]

Gorillaz: The Story So Far (video)

How did Gorillaz get to point Nemo and onto Plastic Beach? Murdoc explains it all in this 15 min. video from the Guardian...
Plastic Beach is FANTASTICHE!


Also, it's been around for days, but here's the On Melancholy Hill video, gotta love that manatee... and Lou Reed in a submarine.

On Melancholy Hill

My favorite Plastic Beach track, On Melancholy Hill, is the next single to be released from Gorillaz. The new video will be on iTunes next Tuesday. As a sneak peek, here's a preview of the video (starring NOODLE!), a look at the visuals used for the live performances of the track (storyboard?), and a listen to the We Have Band remix.




BONUS:
On Melancholy Hill live on Jools Holland:

"Glitter Freeze" alternate version (Gorillaz)

[Youtube]

You Are Going To See Gorillaz

Twenty-Two (22!) shows in America says Damon. Embedded below is Damon and Jamie's interview with Zane Lowe. They mention the 22 US dates, as well as the fact that Coachella was one of Damon's top 3 shows ever. I WAS THERE, I was at one of Damon's top 3 shows people. ME. Me and 79,000 other people...but it's all about meeeee.

Off I Go To Coachella...

Ok, So I'm off to California for Coachella 2010. It's all about Gorillaz this year. Stay tuned for my recaps when I get back (there might be a delay since I don't get back to Chicago until Tuesday).
What will Gorillaz' Sunday night set be like? Who knows? They pretty much have the whole festival to themselves that night so everyone will be at the main stage. I've heard that their set up is so extensive that the main stage will be set up for Gorillaz all weekend and the other headliners will just play on it with the Gorillaz stuff covered up. They also have a long set up time, an hour and a half after Pavement. Expectations are very high, but of course they'll bring it. Get ready for severe face melt Coachella!

Barring technical glitches, I'll post wee updates of things here on my twitter twitter.com/victorianhorror.

To get properly excited, here are some Gorillaz live videos in their various incarnations; holograms, cartoons, etc...

Gorillaz rehearsal in Portsmouth: Dressed to kill, like The Adventures of Portand Bill

More videos from edd345 here

Paul and Mick dressed the part, ahoy mateys. Yes, all this just to practice for the intimate Coachella show they're performing just for me. Jim fixed it for me to have a private Gorillaz show in a polo field in the desert (didn't you know?) Some people keep saying it's a whole "festival" or some-such nonsense...idiots.

Anyway shipmates, there's no youtube videos yet of the new songs being performed. Once I scan the globe for them (read: Search youtube lazily when I remember) I'll add them to this little island of a blog that only I read.

[youtube]
[gorillaz-unofficial]

Has Murdoc been thieving? Boyzone certainly have.

WHY CAN'T WE LET GORILLAZ BE GREAT!?!?
No but seriously, last week began triumphantly with the Plastic Beach release, being number one in the midweek charts, generally brilliant reviews...and now?

They've been accused of plagiarizing Stylo from Eddy Grant, and Boyzone have stolen the top spot on the UK album charts!

OK Boyzone, one of you died. Fair play. There's really no way to beat the cache of a dead band member when it comes to the sentimentality of the UK album buying public. Just last year, a sad sack, abomination of a compilation album, Time To say Goodbye got to number 15 in the Tesco album charts (yes, people buy their albums at Tesco's now). Lame. It seems that British reality star Jade Goody's death needed a soundtrack, and my god did it get a rubbish one. So yeah, sentimentality will always win in Britain, and a "dead" cartoon character brought back as a robot just doesn't register high enough on the sympathy scale. Seriously, if you ever want to make a quick buck (pound) just release a version of Hallelujah after a high profile celebrity death in the UK and you're golden.
Sorry Gorillaz, better luck next time. Maybe try a posthumous greatest hits release; with a heart warming cover of "Fields of Gold" by Noodle and Susan Boyle.

OK so the plagiarism. No. No. No. Nopers.
Yes the songs sound similar in style and intent, and well, the beginning is pretty close, but I think using the same pre-fab Casio beats is not grounds for plagiarism. Sorry Eddy, it's a no-go. Maybe if they'd ripped off your Princess Diana memorial duet performed with Stephen Gately using the same technology that allowed Celine Dion to perform with Elvis you'd get some sympathy from the Brits.



[Popjustice]
[NME]
[Gorillaz-Unofficial]

Why is Bruce Willis trying to kill Gorillaz?

Mark E. Smith: Gorillaz-ar styl-arrrr

blurscans via Gorillaz-unofficial

The first listen verdict of Plastic Beach

It's the most Damon Albarn-y thing you've ever heard, the lack of an outside producer has preserved his quirky genius in its original rambling form. A mess of brilliance.








1. "Orchestral Intro" (featuring sinfonia ViVA)
- An Orchestral Intro, yes
2. "Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach" (featuring Snoop Dogg and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
- Wish this was longer. I didn't think I'd love the Snoop track this much. The lazy beat is amazing... one of my faves.
3. "White Flag" (featuring Kano, Bashy and The Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music)
- Aww, bless Bashy and Kano. I love the Lebanese Orchestra with GRIME. Needs some 2D
4. "Rhinestone Eyes"
- Perhaps one of the greatest Gorillaz tracks ever? I can see this launching 1,000 remixes right now...
5. "Stylo" (featuring Bobby Womack and Mos Def)
- 70's/80's electro tastic.
6. "Superfast Jellyfish" (featuring Gruff Rhys and De La Soul)
- Yo Gabba Gabba ready...
7. "Empire Ants" (featuring Little Dragon)
- All the Little Dragon tracks are sooo pretty, Damon sounds great, and oh, THE END!
8. "Glitter Freeze" (featuring Mark E. Smith)
- It's like Gary Glitter and Muse remade the Dr. Who theme and Mark E. Smith angrily wandered into the studio. Glam Rock City. EPIC.
9. "Some Kind of Nature" (featuring Lou Reed)
- Lou, 2D, pretty, piano, love. Most like Gorillaz of yore.
10. "On Melancholy Hill"
- Lovely. Not sure about the weird guitar shredding softly in the background...
11. "Broken"
- Just like the demo. Nice. Damon belts it out.
12. "Sweepstakes" (featuring Mos Def and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
- Cacophony plus Mos Def = A song you'll learn to love. The end gets all crunchy
13. "Plastic Beach" (featuring Mick Jones and Paul Simonon)
- Spaghetti Western beginning, 2D and Mick Jones harmonic ending.
14. "To Binge" (featuring Little Dragon)
- Another lovely Little Dragon one. Britpoppy.
15. "Cloud of Unknowing" (featuring Bobby Womack and sinfonia ViVA)
- Amazing left turn, Bobby is the man.
16. "Pirate Jet"
-70's glammy genius

NPR Exclusive First Listen: Gorillaz Plastic Beach in its entirety!

Oh no, I pressed play without getting settled, I don't have a lemonade, or a comfy beach chair in the shade! Must pause it to get my Plastic Beach listening party together...
Exciting-

NPR Exclusive First Listen: Gorillaz Plastic Beach

Gorillaz Plastic Beach mix

This mix is making me have the patience of a five year old. It all sounds so pretty, and very Damon. Think slightly sinister orchestration, beautiful vocal melodies, oh and brilliance.

Not long now...
My God, is Coachella going to be epic or what?

Gorillaz Plastic Beach Mix.

Gorillaz- Superfast Jellyfish

Listen to another track from Plastic Beach (Out March 8/9th). Super Fast Jellyfish features Gruff Rhys and De La Soul. It premiered today on Radio One, and the last minute is what makes it special. what do we think?

Listen to Superfast Jellyfish

"Murdoc's" Plastic Beach track-by-track commentary: 2-D breaks the cardinal rule of music snobbery, and Damon slips up.

Murdoc gave the NME the skinny on Plastic Beach in a track-by-track recap. In it we find out that 2-D has questionable TV viewing habits:

"Empire Ants' (feat. Little Dragon)
A moment’s peace amongst the rush. I sampled a lot of this from the theme music to Tomorrow’s World, and the vocalist is Yukimi Nagano from Little Dragon, an electronic band from Sweden.
It was actually 2D who got me into Little Dragon. He played me this lovely song of theirs called 'Twice', which he first heard on the TV show Grey's Anatomy."

Ugh. The first rule of music snobbery is that when you discover a cool band via a very uncool means (Grey's Anatomy, a Volkswagen commercial, Gossip Girl) you NEVER disclose the source! Just say you've "been into them for a while", or "they just popped up on my radar". Goddamn 2-D.
Tomorrow's World, however, is the shit. A perfectly acceptable, nay awesome, sample.


In the description for the track Plastic Beach Damon slips up, revealing either:
A) Damon is Murdoc
B) Murdoc is Damon
C) Damon's not that great at keeping up the Gorillaz facade.

Murdoc apparently masterminded The Good The Bad And The Queen. Oh did you Murdoc? DID YOU?

"`Plastic Beach' (featuring Mick Jones and Paul Simonon)
It’s a special moment for fans of Gorillaz and the Clash. How did this come about? Well, I had commandeered Paul Simonon from the Good, The Bad And The Queen. And it made sense."

Alright, so I'm being pedantic. Honestly the description of these tracks is making me excited beyond belief for the album's release.

For a more impartial track-by-track description read Drowned In Sounds brilliantly in-depth recap.

EDIT: I read this line: "I had commandeered Paul Simonon from the Good, The Bad And The Queen. And it made sense" as "I had commandeered Paul Simonon FOR the Good, The Bad And The Queen. And it made sense"

I take it back, illusion intact. Sorry Damon (although this is obviously you writing these comments). I thought Murdoc was saying he got Paul for The Good The Bad And The Queen, but he got him FROM them. Oops
Whatevs, Grey's Anatomy still sucks, you can't get out of that one.

Official Plastic Beach Orchestral Trailer: How much is it to buy a condo? Is it a timeshare?

There are many reasons to love Gorillaz, one of the main ones (in my opinion) is that they're absolutely bonkers. Check out the orchestral trailer for Plastic Beach. Yeah, what?

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach Orchestral Trailer

Gorillaz | MySpace Music Videos

Lou Reed, Gorillaz Style

Here's Lou's Gorillaz look. He's going to be on Plastic Beach, did you hear? I've only written about it a million times.

This pic reminds me of the film Labyrinth. You know how Sarah's bedroom has all those dolls and toys that are brought to life in the Labyrinth, but at the end it's all like "was it just a dream, was she just imagining it?" You know, the Jareth blow up doll, the Hoggle trapper keeper and such? Well Lou's got a wee Plastic Beach in his glass, and teeny Gorillaz dolls in a bowl. Is he going to wake up tomorrow and think Murdoc was all a dream? Is 2D going to reappear to instigate a dance party in his room for one last hurrah (while we all know it was really imagined, but we humor him?) Have I watched Labyrinth too much? Maybe, but whatever, YOU HAVE NO POWER OVER ME.

I have no idea why I just wrote about a David Bowie movie whilst describing an illustration of Lou Reed. Oh wait, I remember.

Gorillaz Q cover, studio videos

Q's Gorillaz edition is out now in the UK. You'll probably be able to pick one up in the next couple weeks if you're in the US at a Borders or something for $10.
Click here to see QTV's exclusive footage of Gorillaz in the studio, featuring Paul Simonon and Mick Jones.

Stereogum posts new Plastic Beach tracklist

What? No Horrors? Ah well, this looks pretty definitive. Sinfonia ViVA (the orchestra from the Midlands, who I assume are on the "Electric Shock" demo) were all but confirmed.
Mick Jones and Paul Simonon! What!? A Clash reunion (of sorts) only Damon could pull that off.
Little Dragon are a Swedish electronic group. The rest are pretty self explanatory.


01 "Orchestral Intro" (featuring Sinfonia ViVA)
02 "Welcome To The World Of The Plastic Beach" (feat. Snoop Dogg & Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
03 "White Flag" (feat. Kano, Bashy & The National Orchestra For Arabic Music)
04 "Rhinestone Eyes"
05 "Stylo" (feat. Bobby Womack & Mos Def)
06 "Superfast Jellyfish" (feat. Gruff Rhys & De La Soul)
07 "Empire Ants" (feat. Little Dragon)
08 "Glitter Freeze" (feat. Mark E Smith)
09 "Some Kind Of Nature" (feat. Lou Reed)
10 "On Melancholy Hill"
11 "Broken"
12 "Sweepstakes" (feat. Mos Def & Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
13 "Plastic Beach" (feat. Mick Jones & Paul Simonon)
14 "To Binge" (feat. Little Dragon)
15 "Cloud Of Unknowing" (feat. Bobby Womack and Sinfonia ViVA)
16 "Pirate Jet"

[Stereogum]

Gorillaz Reflection: Plastic Beach Teaser Video