After a five year hiatus since the release of 2005‘s “Demon Days,” the Grammy Award-winning British pop band Gorillaz have returned with their new album “Plastic Beach” on March 8.
“Plastic Beach” is a fascinating and innovative album with a superstar cast that includes musicians who have helped to define music for the last five decades, ranging from Lou Reed to Snoop Dog, to legendary soul singer Bobby Womacks and members of The Clash.
Gorillaz is a fascinating band, not simply because of the music they create, but perhaps more so because they are a cartoon band. Gorillaz is a collaborative project between British musician Daman Albarn and cartoonist Jamie Hewlett. However the actual band, in all their music videos and even live performances, is a four member cartoon band made up of 2D characters Murdoc Niccals, Russel Hobbs and Noodle. In the new album, the band has taken refuge on an island made entirely of litter. Behind their cartoon facade, however, Gorillaz are creating powerful and innovative pop music in a world where overproduced and void of meaning music has become the industry standard.
The most surprising moment in the album is probably its first. The album opens to a minute long original score played by a full orchestra, before shifting seamlessly into “Welcome to The World of The Plastic Beach,” in which a horn ensemble plays over a jazzy beat over which Snoop Dogg proceeds to rap one of his best guest verses in recent memory.
“Plastic Beach” is filled with similarly surprising collaborations. “Stylo,” the first single, has a thumping synthesized bass line straight out of the 80s and includes beautiful singing by Albarn, a guest verse by Mos Def, and soul singer Bobby Womack. Womack’s career has spanned the last four decades, and his verses make “Stylo” strange and surreal and nothing less than fantastic.
The music video to “Stylo” is nearly as strange as the song. In it the band finds themselves racing down a desert highway. After leaving a donut eating cop in the dust they are pursued by a magnum totting Bruce Willis who riddles their car with holes. The video is bizarre, entertaining and certainly worth watching.
Other high points in the album include the title track that features Paul Simonon and Mick Jones, both of the legendary British punk band The Clash, and “Some Kind of Nature” featuring Lou Reed, famous for his part in the 1960’s rock band The Velvet Underground as well as his solo work since.
“Plastic Beach” is successful not simply because it features so many world renowned musicians. Albarn’s musical vision is undoubtedly the driving force. “Rhinestone Eyes,” one of the solo songs on the album, pairs poetic lyrics with high-powered synth-lines and sped up chanting that is M.I.A.-esque, making it a perfect model for modern pop music done right.
Much like M.I.A., “Plastic Beach” dabbles in musical influences from around the world; most notably on “White Flag.” The song combines an Oriental-Arabic orchestra with British rappers Kano and Bashy. It manages to pair hand drums, flutes and violins with a thumping bass line and playful rapping. The song may be the strangest on the album.
If there is one complaint to make against “Plastic Beach,” it is that it lacks one key collaboration. In previous work, Gorillaz had paired with West Coast rapper Del Tha Funkee Homosapien. Del’s contributions on the bands first album, most notably on “Clint Eastwood,” were terrific. Del’s would have been a perfect fit for many of the songs on “Plastic Beach” but he is nowhere in sight.
As is often the case with new and innovative music, the first time listening to “Plastic Beach” much of the music may seem to venture a bit too far into uncharted territory. However, after listening to the album several times the initial shock wears off and the genius shines through. It will not be a surprise when the album goes multi-platinum in the U.K. and the U.S. or when it wins one, if not several Grammys.
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