Adam KennyGorillaz
There was once a time when you’d wait up to 5-7 years for a new Gorillaz album. Their debut was 2001. You would then wait till 2005 for Demon Days. Plastic Beach was then released in 2010. The wait for the next album, Humanz, was all the way until 2017. Damon Albarn’s and Jamie Hewlett’s virtual had an incredible run of albums. Their debut having an all time classic with “Clint Eastwood”. Demon Days of course having “Feel Good Inc”, “Dare”, and “Kids with Guns”. To then add Plastic Beach into the mix which for me still remains some of their best most complete work.
Conceptually, sonically, aesthetically and musically there’s not one bad area of Plastic Beach. “On Melancholy Hill” remains a favourite for me till this day. In recent years “Empire Ants” has gained some further popularity. Their 2017 album, Humanz, for many people was their first misstep. It’s a massive album weighing in at over an hour and ten minutes run time, with over 26 tracks (6 of which are interludes). Whilst being considered a bit disjointed and bloated in some places, you still had a handful of songs you’d walk away with like “Saturnz Barz” and “She’s My Collar”.
More Gorillaz than ever before
Since Humanz released nearly 9 years ago, we’ve now had 4 new Gorillaz albums. All of which being improvements over Humanz, but still not hitting that mark the first few albums did. The closest of the bunch being “Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez”. Which brings us to now (now), where Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett have brought us The Mountain, which is shaping up to be one of the most ambitious albums from virtual band.
Musical and spiritual collaboration
Starting off, The Mountain is the most cohesive project the band has produced since Plastic Beach. The album focuses on several themes of spirituality. Particularly death, life and the afterlife. Much of the album’s sonic influence is inspired by and performed by traditional Indian instruments and vocals (Albarn and Hewlett recorded much of the album in India). The cover art for the album itself features the title spelt in Devanagari. Albarn continues the tradition of the album featuring many contributors such as the likes of Anoushka Shankar, Johnny Marr, IDLEs, Kara Jackson, and even contains some posthumous performances from past collaborators from the likes of Tony Allen.
The Gorillaz are not locked down to one genre. Consistently they show a versatility and ability to adapt and to their sonic circumstances. “The Moon Cave” is a great example of what the album has to show. The opening track had this wonderful flute introduction that carries you into the “The Moon and Cave” where Albarn and co bring back the wacky melodic singing paired with this alternative production. Songs like “Orange County” is classic Gorillaz with a fresh twist. The hook being this simple yet gorgeous whistling that will be stuck in your head all day.
One of the best parts of The Mountain is how well it flows together. The Gorillaz have always been good for having a few hits, but The Mountain just feels so much more fleshed out. The thought and time put into each track and how they evolve into one another is brilliant.
Where Albarn ends and 2-D Starts
A complaint I had with Humanz was that there was too many…humans and collaborators. It felt less like I was listening to the Gorillaz and more like “Damon Albarn and friends”. Which, yes, is what the Gorillaz is all about, but The Mountain features Albarn far more than Humanz did. Albarn’s vocals, or rather 2-D’s vocals are one of the main attractions. The Mountain shares the album time around much better. 2-D’s vocals on the likes of “The Shadowy Light” for instance, taking over the main harmonics and hook is exactly what is needed, but still leaving room for his own verse. At the end of the day, the Gorillaz is a virtual band, so it’s always good to see the characteristics and traits of those characters appear in the music.
Production on The Mountain is absolutely incredible. There are so many vibrant, fresh and funky ideas on this album. The use of classic Indian orchestration throughout many of the songs pairs so well with the aesthetic and vibe of the album. “The Manifesto” is a wonderful example of this. You still get some of the more whackier Gorillaz songs like “Delirium”, but sonically the band has focused and bought into a specific sound to reference and use throughout the album. A sound and decision that I think helped create a clear vision and blueprint for the album.
Overall
The Mountain, is an incredibly dense album. I’m only scratching the surface of it here. Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett’s virtual band has been around now for nearly 25 years. They’ve shown time and time again their ability to adapt and transform whilst maintaining the core idea of the Gorillaz. I think The Mountain is their best album since Plastic Beach, and I can see it becoming something I grow to love more and more over the coming Summer.
