Gorillaz [Explicit Lyrics] [Bonus Tracks]

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Gorillaz claim to have found their motley crew of cartoon characters sleeping in Leicester Square but Blur's Damon Albarn (aka 2-D) and cult cartoonist Jamie Hewlett (Murdoc) are not fooling anyone. As the ultimate experiment in manufactured image, the Gorillaz are a virtual, cartoon-character-based hip-hop band which bring together some of the wittiest, silliest lyrics and the most seriously talented musicians. Infectious old school hip-hop rhythms, rhymes and effects courtesy of Deltron 3030's Kid Koala and Del Tha Funkee Homosapien (Russel) are combined with Albarn's passion for chugging lo-fi and edgy melodies to create a seemingly raw but ultimately slick blend of styles which is all their own. This is nowhere more evident than on hit single "Clint Eastwood", which is carried along by the sound of 2-D's slurred voice and a bluesy harmonica melody interrupted by Russel's punching rhymes. But the surprises do not stop there: Ibrahim Ferrer's appearance on "Latin Simone" could have come straight from Buena Vista Social Club but for the obvious Blur-influenced piano style, while the spooky intro to "M1 A1" wouldn't sound out of place on Michael Jackson's Thriller. Backed up by Jamie Hewlett's death-wish character on bass, Cibo Matto's Miho Hatori (Noodle) on guitar and occasional hyperactive vocals and produced by Dan "The Automator" Nakamura, it's hardly surprising that Gorillaz is marked both by a sense of playfulness and a passion for experimentation. --Caroline Butler

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2006-07-27 rating:
Fantastic debut album
Being new to the scene a lot were expected of cartoon band Gorillaz and they delivered in a way which was unbelievable with this fantastic debut album.

They came into the market having not a lot of success but were able to deliver in the form of their first single `Clint Eastwood' which reached number 4 in the UK charts but probably deserved higher with its cool style and interesting choice of lyrics.

The songs are very different from your average rock band. Because their mode of address is very unusual it struck a cord with a wide range of people. The video for Clint Eastwood showed the band dancing and the drummer being turned into a monster. The funny elements and amazing graphics were great but the whole music concepts are enough to win the hearts of any audience.

Using guitars, pianos, mixing sounds and great singing the band are able to deliver a new and different style of music. The music can and should be listened to at any time of the day, whether you wish to dance or chill out it is highly useful and beneficial

With singles such as `New Genious' and `double bass' it shows a varied and complex style of music. The songs are all different. From the fast paced `Clint Eastwood' to the slow based `Tomorrow comes today' emphasises the fact that Gorillaz are able to explore different styles and give the viewers different ideas as to what music should be about.

A personal favourite of mine is `Sound Check' the slowness combines beautifully with an upbeat rhythm. The pace and slow style of singing is enough to gain the audience's vote. The DJ's backing scratches are superb to. The different singers also combine to create an atmospheric style of music.

Both albums produced by Gorillaz(self titled and Demon days) are absolutely fantastic. With using different components such as piano, drums, violins etc and using these in ways to create such songs as Sound Check, Man Research and Clint Eastwood its no surprise that Gorillaz are my favourite band - to explore difference with emphasis into beautifully composed music I recommend this album or Demon Days above any other

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review by: iancb5 date: 2006-04-01 rating:
Original & Best
This is deffinitely the best album from Gorillaz. Blur frontman Damon Albarn initially created the ficticious band to emphasise the amount of manufactured bands and the lack of actual talent in todays 'pop scene'. And you really cant get more manufactured than cartoon characters as an actual band. Albarns' plan may have technically back-fired on him as the Gorillaz became an instant hit. Taking a mix of punk, R n B, and slow rock to create classics such as clint eastwood, 19-2000, and rock the house. Even a collection of Gorillaz b-sides, formed a quite good album with "G-Sides". This is probably the most original/ diverse kind of music you are likeley to hear today. Boy/ girl bands, commercial hip-hop 'stars' and general pop artists should feel pretty bad that they are being out-done by a ficticious band led by mainly 2 people. (Albarn and cult cartoonist Jamie Hewlett) And they have the numerous awards to prove it. Whilst Demon Days is good and still maintains its originality, the self titled debut album will always be a firm favourite for those of us who like something else asside from the drone of girls aloud, the campness of every boy band around, and the vanity of those commercial hip-hop stars. (50 cent actually admitted that the first 3 of his 5 favourite songs of all time were 3 of his own songs) Thats hip-hop modesty at its finest.

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review by: The King Of The UK date: 2006-03-21 rating:
a lot better than demon days
This Gorrilaz album is good, the beats and instrumentals sound very much like they were done more recently instead of the actual time of the album, 2000. It opens with Re-hash which is a good song and memorable with good vocals and good instrumentals. 54 is also pretty good but is not that memorable and it takes a few listens for you to appreciate this piece. Tomorrow comes today is a good track with a nice chorus and good vocals all the way through. New genious is a good song with more good vocals from albarn. Clint Eastwood is for me the highlight. Amazing beats and an excellent rap from del Tha Funkee homosapien and a very good chorus. Man research is good but is nothing special following from the previous track. Punk is a rocky tune, as the name suggests, and is less hip hop. Sound check is good, but nothing special. Double bass is good and would have been good as a single i think. Rock the house is very good with an infectious chorus that you can't help but sing a long to. 19-2000 has another amazing chorus and nice verses. The instrumentals are good, especially the use of the trumpet in the chorus.
Latin Simone is a more spanish song with good vocals and guitar work. Star shine is a good, but forgettable song but, like most of the album, has good vocals.
Slow country and M1 A1 are both skippable, but next comes the Clint Eastwood remix, which is the perfect way to finish the album, a new version of a classic song.

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review by: vincesum date: 2006-01-06 rating:
Pretty dull album
This really is very dull compared to Demon Days - I am glad I didn't pay full price for it!


review by: date: 2005-06-23 rating:
Classic
This album is the one that made the Gorillaz huge, almost every song has catchy lyrics bass, drums and everything else. Escpecially my favourites- Rock the house, Clint eastwood, tommorow comes today and 19-2000. A brilliant mix of rap, hip hop, rock, indie and more. Anyone who even likes music remotely should buy this album and will be sure to enjoy it.

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