MagsThe world’s first virtual band has reached new levels. Nearly twenty years on, Gorillaz have upgraded even further to spellbinding stadium show.
What might seem like a big leap for 2D, Noodle, Murdoc and Russel, makes complete sense once you see the hoards of fans sporting Gorillaz merch spanning every era of album release. From Demon Days, Plastic Beach, Cracker Island to their latest release The Mountain, Gorillaz have always remained present in the zeitgeist. But now, their impact has never felt bigger. With a feature list as long and polished as a child’s letter to Santa, Gorillaz can put on a show.
Support Acts
We arrived 15 minutes before gates opened at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium in London. Already there was a queue snaking its way around the corner for the merchandise shop alone. The line for the stadium itself only took about 5 minutes for pitch standing.
Trueno
Starting off the festivities at 5pm was Argentinian rapper Trueno, who featured on the song “The Manifesto” off The Mountain. With effortless groove in every bar, the cameraman captured some exceptional fluid shots of the young rapper with street‑born musicality that felt as natural as breathing. Energetic, enthusiastic and earnest on a huge stage, a great start to this star-studded night.
Sparks
The second opener was none other than American pop/rock duo Sparks. I went into this not knowing any Sparks songs (bar “The Happy Dictator” off The Mountain). I was greeted with a man who looks like a more flamboyant version of Paul Simon and an evil villain awaiting his arch nemesis’ demise playing the keyboard. The stark contrast between the two was so unexpected and fun, and that burst of catchy lightness in the music made the whole moment land even more for me. Sparks ultra fans were also spotted in the crowd with many older fans adorning their Sparks t-shirts and socks.
My only complaint was that they only played for about 25 minutes. As a new Sparks fan, it would have been great to see more of their catalogue. Otherwise, two solid openers.
Crying Over Cartoons
Gorillaz took stage at 8pm, with Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlit walking out to their biggest show ever. Sixty thousand people awaited their dearly beloved characters 2D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel to make their journey up the mountain.
On many occasions throughout the gig I felt a lump in my throat, my brow furrow and my eyes get glassy after hearing the first few sweet notes of the sitar and an image of grown up Noodle on the screen. Maybe this feeling is close to how parents feel when they see their child grow up. But for me, I felt a sense of transformation and change after growing up with these characters.
Different places, new music, new style. It’s not limited to those aspects alone that made me well up, but the reminder of how much Gorillaz have shaped my life. I can pinpoint each album to a specific time in my life. Walking into second year of college listening to “19-2000” and “El Mañana” every day. The period of time when I would have said that “Melancholy Hill” was my favourite song ever. Singing “Cracker Island” with a car full of friends driving into Hollywood on a road trip (sounds corny but it happened).
The coolest band to like
Seeing a band with such a wide catalogue, with such an intricate backstory spanning an extended period standing the test of time makes me emotional. I love Gorillaz. I thought Gorillaz were the coolest band to like when I was 19. Still I think Gorillaz are the coolest band to like now.
Being reminded why I love this band so much simply from glancing at one image and hearing one note of a song tells me this band is special. We grew up with them on their adventures (which undoubtably are more colourful than most bands given they’re a cartoon and are not limited to the living world). Seeing so many younger kids/teens at the gig who also have that chance to mature with them, makes it an almost spiritual experience.
Multiply that feeling by 60,000 people.
That’s the level of love we are talking.
And that’s how it felt in there.
Anyways, back to the music.
The Dam(o)n Genuis
Aside from Damon Albarn being musically gifted with us mere mortals having to counterfeit any sort of musical inspiration that comes our way, his other major talent lies with being able to perfectly handpick a group of artists to come together and craft an intricate and breathtaking piece of work.
Going into the gig, the feature list was released and bore a whopping 29 artists. Yes, you heard that correctly. We got 29 guest performances on stage spanning over 30 songs. This must be how winning a gold medal in the Olympics feels. An ecstatic transcendence ebbing and flowing from older songs that are ingrained in your brain like “Clint Eastwood”, “Dirty Harry” and “Plastic Beach” to Indian-inspired compositions such as “The Moon Cave” and “The Happy Dictator” that remind you that the world is small.
At any point during the gig, you could look at the stage and see at least five different nationalities plucking strings, tapping keys or harmonically interweaving their voices. The curator of course, is Damon Albarn. I can’t think of many other musicians who could fit that people manager role in the musical world. A beautiful multicultural experience from start to finish.
The Merch Dimension
Sitting in a rare cultural sweet spot, Gorillaz manage to captivate the 40–50 year old crowd while simultaneously magnetising the 13–18 year olds. Pulling both ends of the spectrum toward a shared, unmistakably Gorillaz‑charged centre. Gorillaz decked out an entire shop outside to solely sell merch. From somebody who is a concert veteran – I can’t comprehend how much money they must have made off merch alone.
Era‑spanning Gorillaz merch offers tees from every chapter, showcasing the characters as they evolve through time. Limitless Gorillaz options create a spread so varied it’s hard not to stumble on a tee that fits you. T-shirts and jerseys were outwardly boasted and modelled in the crowd. The same people also held up additional bags of merch from posters and hoodies. The cultural phenomenon I can only call, decked out for the conert.
If the merch is anything to go by, 2D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel must be stinking rich.
HD Viewing
I’ve been to a handful of stadium gigs in my time – I usually prefer something more intimate. In this case, the size of the stadium ended up giving the performance a surprising lift. Firstly, the gargantuan screens were the most high definition screens I have ever seen in my life. This is extremely important when half the band live in the virtual world and their only means of visual communication unfold through a shifting tapestry of pixels, sketches, and animated life that gives their digital selves form and attitude. The screen’s importance is two-fold. With constant shifts between videos and guest features, the flickering screens became genuinely mesmerising.
Gorillaz opened with the beautiful Jungle Book style 60’s animation. We followed the band along their journey up the Mountain led primarily by Noodle to reach enlightenment. A faint “The Mountain, where all good souls come to rest” drifted across the stadium. The size of the stadium was swapped for someting more intimate, the air felt like it was whispering.
The Show Begins
The band were joined back on stage by Sparks for “The Happy Dictator” to get the crowd singing. Helplessly, we’re launched back into the early 2000s with “19-200”, “Tranz”, “Tomorrow Comes Today” and “Rhinestone Eyes”. The pacing of the setlist felt very polished. For their first stadium gig it was inevitable that there needed to be the perfect balance between The Mountain and the rest of their catalogue. They got this right on the nose. They gave the crowd what they wanted but also captured the essence of Gorillaz by including songs with less airtime.
The whole show didn’t just feel like a concert, it felt like a spectacle. Fading back into “The Moon Cave” accompanied by the newer virtual storyline on the screens and ebbing back into older songs like “El Mañana,” “Empire Ants” and “Desolé”.
I have to commend the stage screw working overtime up there trying to get each artist and off between each song, running around with cables and guitars and dodging the main screen camera. I’m sure they slept well that night.
A True Gorillaz-shaped show
One of my favourite things about the night that kept me laughing was Damon Albarn’s stage presence. A man who is so deeply ingrained in modern music over the past 30 years who says absolute nonsense into the microphone in front of 60,000 people, smiles to himself and walks away. I don’t know if I ever understood a full sentence he said, or understood what he meant but the joy on his face was undeniable. This man loves music and he loves performing.
Fan favourites “Stylo” and “Dirty Harry” entranced everybody into hand raising and hip swaying. The screens blasted the colourful music videos across the stadium. The jumping started for me with Little Simz showing up for “Garage Palace”. Not only is she one of the coolest people alive but she arrived with unrivalled vitality that cannot be matched. Every song was met with fervour and zeal from the crowd with bursts of singing and movement.
They pulled some more leftfield songs onto their setlist like “White Flag”, “The Cloud of Unknowing” and “The Shadowy Light”. Welcome additions to a long setlist and monumental gig. True to form, Gorillaz shaped the show their way. But the setlist choices still delivered every track the crowd wanted.
A Frenzic Encore
Thankfully fans were not left with 2 or 3 measly songs for an encore. Each patient attendee got value for money and Gorillaz graced with an 8-song encore. The major hits being back loaded to the end. The undeniable suave of “Plastic Beach” (with Johnny Marr and Paul Simonon) ran into the poignant notes of “Melancholy Hill” and “Orange County” (a song which I believe will be one of Gorillaz biggest hits here on). The slight hiatus in high energy allowed fans to dreamily reminisce of the plethora of emotions they have felt listening to these songs over the years, before hitting back with the Gorillaz peak trifecta of god-like musical force of “Dare”, “Clint Eastwood” and “Feel Good Inc“.
And let me tell you, the crowd went crazy for it. A frenetic energy captured the crowd, young and old alike, the crowd was jumping and the seated section was dancing. The whole statdium was buzzing with this loving energy. This paired with Damon Albarn seemingly being in the best mood I’ve ever seen made it even more special.
After years off the track, Sean Ryder missed the first “It’s Dare”. The crowd belting it regardless proved how badly everybody wanted to yell it. De La Soul offered a heartwarming preamble before hitting into “Feel Good Inc.” Damon played two notes on the melodica before the crowd stirred into action for “Clint Eastwood”. A perfect ending.
I came out of that gig so unbelievably fulfilled — they couldn’t have offered us more in a more authentic Gorillaz fashion. My back hurt, feet ached but I could unequivocally tell you that everybody in that stadium did “Feel Good”.
