De La Soul And The Anonymous Nobody album review

Regular collaborators in Gorillaz, De La Soul’s ninth album, And The Anonymous Nobody, has the feel of an album by Damon Albarn’s animated supergroup, drawing as it does on an eclectic palette of hip-hop, rock, pop and funk.

Furthermore, many of the guest personnel on the record are familiar from the world of Gorillaz, including Snoop Dogg, Little Dragon, and Albarn himself.

One of the early highlights is the irresistible funk workout ‘Royalty Cape’, while Snoop contributes a typically attitudinal cameo to danceable hip hop number ‘Pain’. Elsewhere, the group delve into spiky punk on ‘CBGBs’, a tribute to the legendary NYC venue; Little Dragon surface on the ethereal ballad ‘Drawn’; and ex-Talking Heads frontman David Byrne delivers a stellar vocal performance on the standout track, the wonderful electro-funk tune ‘Snoopies’.

Maceo and the boys round out the album with the Arcade Fire-style rocker ‘Here In After’, which boasts a soulful vocal from Albarn. Overall, the Long Island crew have crafted another superb album and an ideal late summer soundtrack.

And The Anonymous Nobody is out August 26