So I finally got around to listening to Gorillaz's new album, Plastic Beach. I picked up my copy the very day it was released...and then I didn't listen to it until almost a week later. After I spent ages ranting about it and waiting expectantly. What the beep is wrong with me? Life gets in the way, that's the problem.
But today, finally, it was playing nicely on my car stereo, and I have to say my high expectations were definitely not dashed. It's a fun little confection of eclectic tastes, from rap to pop to orchestral tracks to middle eastern music and oh so much more, mashing it all together, bringing lots of guest stars like Snoop Dogg, Bobby Womack, De La Soul and Little Dragon into the whole sordid affair. The music has kind of an island feel to emphasize the 'beach' in the title, and, perhaps most importantly, it features cartoon characters! Beach brings to light once again what Gorillaz is all about.
Standout tracks? Well, as you may have seen in a previous post, I can't say enough good things about first single "Stylo". But, as for the rest of the album the song I had to listen to again once it was finished was "White Flag", which mixes rap by Bashy and Kano with a Arabic orchestra. Amazingly, it works really well together, and if was still belly dancing, this would be a track I would perform to. "Rhinestone Eyes" is a pretty, spooky, ethereal number, the kind of track you could film a slow motion scene to in a movie. "Glitter Freeze" has a hand clap and bass line reminiscent of Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll (Part 1 and 2)", which I'm sure is on purpose. After hearing the album's recently announced second single, "Superfast Jellyfish", I'm very surprised it was chosen as a single. It's fun, but not exactly commercial. And it's funny me saying that because the song is basically a commercial for a non existent breakfast snack. The style of the song reminded me of "Rock the House", from Gorillaz's debut album. Anyway, check it out on the band's YouTube page and you'll see my confusion (check out the other videos while you're there if you're not too familiar with the band). Future third single, "On Melancholy Hill", is a rather light, somewhat 80's sounding tune. The rest of the tracks are just as jumbled in style and genre, but all in a good way.
The only major complaint I had with Plastic Beach was that the accompanying synthesizer tracks on some of the songs, particularly "Glitter Freeze", reminded me of a dentist's drill. And seeing how I'd just had a filling about four days ago, I really didn't need that.
Of course, I picked up the Experience edition, which comes with a DVD featuring a 40 minute documentary on how the album was made. Turns out the doc is a collection of snippets from the whole process of bringing Plastic Beach to life, with no narration to help sort out what you're watching. It was interesting seeing the different guest musicians come together (Bobby Womack in particular is a treat on camera), and seeing the 8ft. model of the Plastic Beach being built and photographed for the album cover and website (I hadn't realized they'd actually built a model). But I was hoping for more information on the animated band members, and there were only bits and pieces of conversation and some preliminary drawings. Still, I enjoy seeing the creative process in action, but if you're not into seeing the magic behind the curtain you might want to give this a miss. Instead, buy the deluxe version for the access to online content, which gives you wallpapers, screen savers, extra videos and other features.
My Verdict: Totally worth the wait, Plastic Beach is something fresh, different and fun to mix into the pop music scene.
Go see the band's official website to hear the album in full, and lots of other goodies. Gorillaz websites are always worth checking out.
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