Gorillaz (1998-2017) Review

By Unknown - April 24, 2017

Gorillaz is a British virtual band consisting of Damon Albarn (lead singer of the rock band Blur) and Jamie Hewlett (creator of comic Tank Girl). The animated band consists of four members: 2-D (lead vocals, keyboards), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar and vocals), Noodle (guitar, keyboards) and Russel Hobbs (drums and percussion). Damon Albarn is the only permanent musician and often collaborates with a variety of musicians across genres. In a recent interview (5 April 2017) for WFPK, Albarn stated: “I don’t know if there is a Gorillaz ‘sound’". By the very definition, it changes every time we put a record out”. From soulful vibrations (‘Clouds of Unknowing’), to hip hop beats (‘November Has Come’ Ft. MF Doom), to reggae ('Dub Dumb'), and punk music (‘Punk’), there’s an endless assortment of sounds to satisfy Gorillaz fans. They even have a track with arabic music ('Crashing Down' ft. The Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music)!

(photo from http://www.independent.co.uk)

Gorillaz music videos have had mass appeal throughout the years, with the track ‘Clint Eastwood’ (2001) being iconic for a generation growing up on Music Channels like MTV and Kerrang. In fact, it is one of their most popular music videos alongside Plastic Beach tracks ‘On Melancholy Hill’, ‘Stylo’ and Demon Days tracks ‘DARE’, and ‘Feel Good Inc.’.

Artwork for ‘Humanz’ (2017)

(photo from http://pitchfork.com)

Gorillaz drop their newest album in just 4 days (28^th of April, 2017) with unique features such Vince Staples, D.R.A.M, Pusha T, and Rag’n’Bone Man. Be sure to take a listen while it’s fresh.

In the meantime, I have ranked Gorillaz top tracks to bring you what I consider their ‘hottest’ hits. Check all these out in the YouTube and Spotify playlists below!