Gorillaz In Our Midst

Whatever else you say about Gorillaz, the animated four-piece sure were an innovative proposal on paper. The idea of a bona fide indie demi-god, Damon Albarn, and a hugely respected illustrator, Jamie Hewitt, retreating from the media glare of their respective professions and pouring all their creative energy into a brand new musical/visual enterprise – with all the freedom from the usual press/fan expectations that would entail – was certainly an intriguing one.

Okay, so the concept of musicians assuming a new identity to explore fresh artistic terrain has broadly been around since Sergeant Pepper, but the near limitless possibilites offered up by 21st technology ("near” limitless because of the necessary financial boundaries imposed by a group who exist purely in 2D form) made Albarn and Hewitt’s brainchild, multi-media urban-pop guerrillas, er, Gorillaz, an avenue well-worth exploring.
The videos were undeniably superb, the live-shows a dazzling exercise in cutting-edge audio/visual presentation, but what about the quality of the songs? Well, the Gorillaz' debut album, released in 2001, was undoubtedly a fascinating sonic concoction. But no matter which way you look at it, the best tunes on that record, such as the eerie 21st century hip-hop blues of ‘Tomorrow Comes Today’, were essentially Blur songs, albeit coated in a ridiculously trendy production finish, courtesy of Albarn’s motley crew of musical collaborators.
Gorillaz' new record, Demon Days, continues in much the same vein, although this time around there is a notably darker, more claustrophobic feel (hardly surprising, considering Damon’s frequently expressed feelings of regret about never having had the chance to be in Massive Attack) running through the group’s by-now familiarly eclectic mix of pop/hip-hop/funk/world music/whatever you’re having yourself.
So, begins hotpress, assuming its best tone of Paxman-like interrogatory pomp, what on earth have the quartet been up to for the past four years?
"Well, after the American tour which ended in March 2002, we came back to England to write some new songs, but frankly, we were knackered,” answers Murdoc. "We played our last date together as a band at the Isle of MTV show in Portugal around June of 2002. Then that was it. After that we just concentrated on trying to make this, er, turdy Gorillaz film.”
"We got so many offers to make a film in America, at the time it seemed like a waste not to take the opportunity,” adds 2D.
"So, we all moved over to LA for a while,” continues Murdoc, "and, er, hired this big house out in Hollywood, up in the hills, so that we could be right in the hub of where we were meant to be filming. But there were a lot of great distractions, know what I mean? (Laughs).”
"And the film negotiations were just endless,” groans Russel. "We got caught up in rehearsals, meetings, script approvals...”
"The script was unfinished,” explains Noodle. "The people writing it thought they were making a very insightful yet ironic comment on popular culture, a supposedly non-linear Charlie Kaufman-esque animation in which the four main protagonists, namely Gorillaz, fall randomly in and out of a number of surreal situations. But in fact the scriptwriters were just, like, making it up as they went along.”
Murdoc: "Wake us up when you’ve finished, would ya Noodle?”
"I guess they thought it would be like a modern, animated version of the Monkees movie Head,” muses Russel.
"Yeah, but the person they chose to play me looked like some old wrinkly geriatric!” exclaims an aggrieved Murdoc. "It was really insulting. And he smelt. I think it might have been Robert Downey Snr! I mean that guy must’ve been pushing 70.”
Russel (to Murdoc): "Have you looked in the mirror recently?”
When not providing raw material for Peter Biskind’s next Hollywood exposé, the group were getting themselves involved in all manner of nefarious activities. It even transpires that Murdoc – who by all accounts (mostly his band-mates’) makes Slash look like Pope Benedict in the roistering stakes – did a stint in a Mexican slammer.
"Well, when we realised we were just whistling in the wind after our tour ended, we decided to have a break from each other,” he explains, somewhat circumspectly. "I headed down south to try my luck in Mexico. But, you know, there was some mix-up with my, er, finances and I got, er, accused of, er…”
Russel (in a slightly condemnatory tone): "He was found using counterfeit cheques in a Mexican brothel.”
Murdoc (reminiscing): "Aahh...yes. ‘The Chicken Choker’. Wonderful place. Fantastic staff...happy days!”
Russel: "He got caught passing dud cheques off as payment to the girls and consequently Murdoc got taken to jail.”
"Yes, yes, alright Russel,” interjects Murdoc. "It’s probably best not to dig too deep with this one. So after 18 months in this Tijuana jail I thought enough is enough, and (adopts Mexican accent) ‘With a little help from me friends’, I got myself out and back home to Blighty, the good old U of the K. But I tell you, that’s enough South America for me for a while. Prison food is rubbish. I don’t think I could eat another burrito in my life.”
2D: "But you still like a bit of Mexican sausage don’t you, Muds, eh?”
Murdoc: "Shut it, you little ffff!.. Anyway, by the time I got back, Noodle had also returned from her trip to her Japanese homeland, and was already in the process of recording the new album. Or at least laying down a lot of the groundwork.”

Part of the groundwork for the new record included rounding up a typically wild bunch of collaborators, including one Dennis Hopper. How did the star of such classics as Easy Rider, Blue Velvet and Apocalypse Now come to make a guest appearance on Demon Days?
Murdoc: "Aaahh! Dennis Hopper. He’s had a such a big effect on me. And he’s got some killer bikes.”
Russel: "He’s been a spokesman for free creativity and ignoring the rules at the risk of holding your own sanity to ransom. Therefore a natural Gorillaz cohort.”
Murdoc: "Hopper’s highway has always been to take the ‘William Blake’ route of excess to reveal the palace of wisdom.”
"But his journey was fuelled by a desire to uncover the truth, or maybe something…just more truthful, with more value,” adds Russel. "The backdrop to his classic Easy Rider film was an America in a transitional period after the ravages of the Vietnam war, and it was filmed in an age when people were questioning the wisdom of their political system. He seemed an astute choice to feature on our record.”
2D (seriously): "Hmmm. And he was great in Speed as well.”
Also featured on the record are cult hip-hip hero Roots Manuva and former Happy Mondays singer-turned-professional rogue, Shaun Ryder. How did Gorillaz find the pair to collaborate with?
"Shaun Ryder’s a scallywag, isn’t he?” chuckles Murdoc.
2D (pure Meantime): "No. He’s from Manchester. ‘Scally’ wags are from Liverpool.”
"Yeah, alright, cheekychops,” shoots back Murdoc, "but he’s singing it like he’s from Liverpool. The lyrics go ‘It’s comin’ up, it’s comin up, it’s comin up… it’s there.’ But he’s going (Liverpool accent) ‘It’s Dare’. Hence why the title of the song got changed from ‘It’s There’ to ‘DARE’. As in ‘It’s Dare’. And that’s why he’s a scallywag, got it?”
2D: "Whatever. It’s all gravy, bruv.”
"Oi, seriously,” retorts Murdoc, exasperated, "don’t start with all that rubbish. Jesus.”
"Shaun Ryder was the singer of Happy Mondays, a huge influence on so many people,” says Russel, restoring some order to proceedings. "As a lyricist he was one of the only true voices and documenters of that late 80’s/early ‘90s period. You can tell he’s an original because he spawned so many imitators. Not just musically, but in his lifestyle and the way he spoke, right down to his sense of humour and taste in clothes.”
"Balls!” yells an increasingly bellicose Murdoc. "When he came to the studio he was all like (posh accent) ‘Oh I say! What time’s tea then? Do I have time to lay down some of my singing before we retire to the drawing room? Marvellous! Super!’ All that Manc street talk is just a big put on for the cameras. Shaun’s really a just a big posh kid.”
Russel: "I think emotionally where this song fits on the album is that despite all the lows, there are great highs. There’s a great sense of camaraderie on that track. It’s tough.”
Noodle: "This track went through many manifestations before finally settling itself in this form. A big shiny Gorillaz tune.”
Russel: "Roots Manuva has been dropping by Kong Studios off and on since we started. I thought his Run Come Save album was incredible, and Gorillaz have talked about a collaboration with him for a long time.”
Murdoc: "Yeah. He’s told me loads of times that I’m his best mate.”
Russel: "It would be a limitation to say that Roots Manuva is at the forefront of just UK hip-hop as a rapper. He is at the forefront of hip-hop, full stop. His vocal qualities and lyrical imagery create a universal sound, and he’s set to become a dominant force in music worldwide. He’s a British Dr. Seuss.”
Such hi-jinks are all very well, but Damon Albarn has always prided himself (a little too much, some of his critics would undoubtedly contend) on being an astute observer of social trends. As such, Gorillaz have some percipient points to make about the vacuity of celebrity culture, even going as far as to bill the first phase of their career as Celebrity Takedown.
"The society we live in holds up a lot of people to be respected or valued for their opinions, who really don’t have a great deal to say or offer,” comments Russel. "They’re false icons.”
"We live in a society that pays respect to the most inane of characters,” elaborates Noodle. "We are lead to believe that what they have to say has importance or meaning, but largely it’s just a photo opportunity. The cult of celebrity means that people with the most limited of insight or talent become the privileged members of our society.”
Murdoc: "Well…it’s not all bad is it, eh? Without a little celebrity we wouldn’t have people like Britney Spears, and that really would take the sunshine out of your day.”
Ouch! Clearly someone still has a little grudge about ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time’ keeping ‘Tender’ off the number one spot. Moving swiftly on, presumably Gorillaz aren’t all that pleased with Tony and his cronies winning a third term in office, bearing in mind "New” Labour’s crass exploitation of Blur and Oasis during the Britpop era.
"Look,” sighs Murdoc, "what you’re talking about is basic show business. Government parties are like pantomime baddies. They take it in turns to play the villain. Whoever’s in power get the eggs thrown at them by the people attempting to gain power and the privileges of being in Government. But ultimately Labour and the Conservatives are two sides of the same coin. It’s a façade. The real pillars of power come from the businesses that back them; pharmaceuticals, oil companies etc. Ultimately, as long as people are voting then the game’s still on. Nothing ever changes whoever’s in power.”
"There’s an old saying: ‘It doesn’t matter who you vote for; the Government always gets in’. The real power is with the people. But they want you to be distracted enough just to keep on voting the same way. But it’s got as much relevance as watching a soap opera. Y’know, like Eastenders. It’s a farce.”
Russel: "I think that’s just an excuse so you don’t have to vote.”
Murdoc: "I think after the election you’d probably have more luck holding Mystic Meg to her horoscopes than you would holding an MP to his policies.”
Shrewd words indeed. Finally, will the group be touring this album? And if so, what can we expect from the live show?
Russel: "We would love to tour this album, but visually it would need to match the ambition and tone of the album. We wouldn’t tour again in the same format that we did for the last album.”
Murdoc (excited): "Oh yeah! Gorillaz on the road! Hey, you ain’t a real band until you’ve earnt your stripes. Gorillaz live is like a full-on juggernaut. And I need servicing every 200 miles, baby.”
2D (whispering): "That’s ‘cos your clapped out.”
Murdoc: "Touring can be great fun, but if you don’t watch yourself it can kind of take you over. Gorillaz always draws a great crowd, and after the show there’s always so many...interesting…people to meet. There’s a lot of fun to be had. Even with the nutters and stalkers that turn up.”
Russel: "Er, yeah. Y’know, everyone gets a little excited when something special rolls into town. And I guess a 50ft cartoon freakshow is no exception.”
Murdoc: "It would be great to tour again. Also I must mention that as a live drummer, Russel is without a doubt the absolute best in the world. Ever.”
Noodle: "Yes that’s true. Russel is the greatest live drummer possibly in the history of drums.”
2D: "That’s totally true. Yup! There’s no-one as good as him as a drummer when it comes to playing live. He’s the best.”
Russel: "Thanks. (Genuinely moved) That means a lot guys.”

Demon Days is released on Parlophone on May 23.