Gorillaz: Worst to Best

Hello all. I’m back for a quick little piece about my favorite music group of all time, Gorillaz. “Music group” may not be the best way to describe the project because musically speaking it’s really more of a Damon Albarn solo project. They’re more of a multimedia duo, the second member Jamie Hewlett being responsible for the creation of the characters, the evolving art style of the band, and the story behind the fictional band members. I do like to call them a musical group though, because when I close my eyes and listen to the Gorillaz, I can really picture 2-D, Murdoc, Noodle, and Russel playing their respective instruments. Not only does the band have a sound, but each fictional member seems to have a distinct style of playing their instrument. That is one of many examples of how detailed and in depth the Gorillaz universe really goes. Another example of this is their endless musical versatility. At the end of the day, this is why they’re my favorite music group of all time. Their sound often consists of hip-hop, rock, dance, electronica, funk, pop, world music, and pretty much everything in between. In short, they're one of the most versatile music groups I've ever heard to be honest. Anyways, I’m sure most of you readers are plenty familiar with Gorillaz already, so I won’t bore you with too much overarching discussion about them in the first paragraph.

As many of you may know, their newest album titled The Mountain dropped in February. Ever since this album dropped, I have been securely locked into a full on Gorillaz comatose. Ask Bella if you see her, my whole life has revolved around Gorillaz since the end of February. Another thing, I also recently upgraded my home listening system. I bought a new turntable, a new phono preamp, and a subwoofer for my speakers. It has been exhilarating to say the least. I decided that the first thing I would do when I got my new stuff is listen to all of the Gorillaz album in chronological order to commemorate both my new hi-fi system and my recent Gorillaz obsession. I figured it would take a while to get all of the albums (I had 3 I had to go buy) and find time to listen to them all between work and whatnot. Well, at the moment of writing this I can say it’s been less than a week with my new system and I just finished the last one. That may not be impressive to some of you nerds but it is to me. That listening marathon was supposed to be the end of this journey but I decided I didn’t wanna be done yet. I decided, as a major fan with major opinions and a blog that's collecting dust, to share my insights with the people. With this ranking, I’ll do my best to touch on the albums as well as their corresponding videos, phases, artwork, etc. because we all know how important those aspects are as well. Now, after hearing every album in hi-fi for the first time, I give to you my ultimate ranking of each Gorillaz studio album. Here it goes:

#9: Cracker Island (2023)

This may come as no surprise to you readers, especially those who know me and my Gorillaz fandom well. However, it may surprise you to know that this album doesn’t anger me anymore. In fact, I have discovered in this post-Mountain world that I quite like it! I think for a while there was part of me yearning for something more from Gorillaz. Unfortunately for them, they set the bar so damn high that a quality album like this can still be seen as below the mark. It wasn’t until after we received The Mountain that I was able to really go back to some of these lower ranking albums again and appreciate them for what they were. And you know what? That’s my issue. But I’m glad to say that this album is far more pleasant than I ever remember it being. Like I said, it’s a very straightforward album. The sound of it is very pop-centric. Lots of loud and punchy drums that you hear in lots of mainstream modern pop music. Really accessible melodies and clean production. Very immediate music. To me it initially felt too simple for what I’ve come to expect from Gorillaz, and in some ways it still is. I will say though that listening to the album on this new system allowed for me to notice more of the complexities of the production that I hadn’t appreciated in the past. Songs like “The Tired Influencer” and “Oil” had some really powerful moments that really snatched me up and swept me away, just like Gorillaz always does. And I really don’t know how, as a major Beck fan, I ever was able to possibly overlook “Possession Island.” Wowowow. Another thing to mention is the videos of this era. I love when Gorillaz go 3D animated, and it was done so well in this phase. I would definitely check those out. As you may have noticed, I picked me up the deluxe edition of the vinyl rather than the standard edition. I made sure to do this for a couple of reasons. One, the artwork is waaaay cooler. Artwork is a big aspect of the Gorillaz experience, and the standard Cracker Island artwork looks like fan art that was just thrown together. But more importantly, I love the bonus tracks. The inclusion of these tracks really strengthen the whole album experience in my opinion because they provide the album a bit more variety and more of a classic Gorillaz hip-hop influence. I would definitely recommend listening through the deluxe album when giving this album a shot. I’m glad that I have learned to appreciate this album. Even with such a positive reappraisal, though, Cracker Island still sits at the bottom of my list pretty securely.

Standard edition artwork, which I think sucks.

Fav tracks: “Cracker Island” (feat. Thundercat), “Oil” (feat. Stevie Nicks), “The Tired Influencer,” “Tormenta” (feat. Bad Bunny), “Possession Island” (feat. Beck), “Crocadillaz” (feat. De La Soul and Dawn Penn)

#8: Song Machine (2020)

Full title: Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez. Yeah I like Song Machine better also, especially considering we are likely not gonna get a second season at this point. Song Machine is a distinct project in the Gorillaz universe in that the album is more or less a collection of singles. There’s no overarching story really. Lots of the songs have videos, and some of those have stories. But generally speaking the goal of Damon on this album was to make a collection of songs that were very individually strong rather than an album that was super interconnected and conceptually dense, like they normally do. The result? Exactly that. Tons of fun songs, really eclectic influences and sounds, and, like Cracker Island, rather straightforward. When this album dropped, I was so locked in. Nowadays, my opinion has changed a bit. Not a lot, but a bit. I appreciate the concept of a collection of singles, but I suppose that aspect of it makes the album feel more like a compilation or a mixtape rather than a studio album. Again, it kind of comes back to the high bar the band has set for themselves at this point. When they swing lower, it’s pretty noticeable. The album flows pretty well to be fair, but there are moments where certain songs don’t connect well. Another weird complaint, I really just don’t love some of the drum sounds on this album. It doesn’t ruin the songs or anything, but I feel like with stronger drum sounds certain songs would shine more. Songs that come to mind immediately are “Strange Timez,” “The Valley of the Pagans,” and “Désolé.” I’m pretty into those songs as a whole, but I feel like they all could be improved upon with better drums. Last complaint before I start listing things I like (I swear I do like this album): the album art once again is so incredibly lacking. At the end of the day, what really serves this album poorly is that it is considered a studio album rather than a compilation album. As a compilation of songs, it is a beautiful gift wrapped and bow tied from Damon to us. Tons of new songs with fun videos. Not always the most detailed and exciting videos, but always very vibrant and pleasing to watch. And at the end of the day, these songs are so dope. This may be my favorite guest list on any Gorillaz album. Elton John, Robert Smith, ScHoolboy Q, Beck, and St. Vincent, among many others. It’s seriously so stacked and everyone does really well with their parts. This album also has the absolutely most under-appreciated Gorillaz song ever on it. That song is “Chalk Tablet Towers” with St. Vincent. It’s pop perfection. The outro to that song is absolute peak Gorillaz. That song is a must listen. So yeah, I know I spent more time shitting on this album than singing its praises, but I do actually have a special place for it in my heart. It kind of made me sad to put it so low on this list, but I guess I’ve just grown up a bit. More on that later.

Fav songs: “The Valley of the Pagans” (feat. Beck), “The Lost Chord” (feat. Leee John), “Pac-Man” (feat. ScHoolboy Q), “Chalk Tablet Towers” (feat. St. Vincent), “Aries” (feat. Peter Hook & Georgia), “Friday 13th” (feat. Octavian)

#7: The Now Now (2018)

Now this one is interesting. A bit of a mind fuck really. Let me explain. This album came out in 2018, only a year after Humanz. Back in the day I remember being quite the protestor of Humanz, largely because there were very few tracks with vocals from 2-D compared to other albums. I think it’s safe to say I wasn’t the only one that felt that way. I think that may be why we got The Now Now so soon after Humanz. Seems to me like a response from Damon to the criticism of Humanz (it did well, but maybe not as well as past albums). I say this because this album is almost entirely sung by 2-D. In fact, this album is considered by many to be a 2-D solo record due to the fact that Murdoc was in prison at the time, leaving 2-D free to express himself truthfully for the first time really. There are almost no guest vocalists featured here. So at the time, this album was like God hearing my prayers for more 2-D. I remember at the time I was pretty into this album, but my interest in it kind of faded with time. It felt like it was missing something for me, something I couldn’t really pin point. Meanwhile, my interest in Humanz has grown significantly. So now the album that didn’t feel like Gorillaz to me feels more like Gorillaz than the album Gorillaz gave to us because that first album didn’t feel like a Gorillaz album at the time. That’s where it’s a mind fuck. To surmise, up until this deep dive I was kind of indifferent about The Now Now. I think out of all the albums, this one really benefited from the hi-fi system. It sounded so excellent and it made me realize that I’ve been under-appreciating this album for a long time. It’s so bright and cheerful, poppy but dense with really cool instrumentation. I love the concept of a 2-D solo project in the wake of newfound freedom from Murdoc. I’m not really sure if that was the intention from Damon and Jamie, but if it was they really nailed the execution. The album also marks the beginning of 2-D having white eyes (before this they were typically black). This kind of supports the idea that the album does revolve around the healing and growth of 2-D. Also worth mentioning, with Murdoc in jail we get a sub on the bass, that sub being a character from The Power Puff Girls named Ace. Aside from these key details, the art kind of takes the backseat on this album. We get two videos that are fun, the “Tranz” video being particularly cool. But hey, the album art is sick at least. Overall this project rules. It seems to be a fan favorite among the Gorillaz fanbase. I never quite understood why but now I totally see it. Definitely gonna be listening to this one more often.

Fav songs: “Humility” (feat. George Benson), “Tranz,” “Kansas,” “Sorcererz,” “Lake Zurich,” “Magic City,” “Souk Eye”

#6: The Fall (2010)

Justice for The Fall people. From this day forward I pledge my life to demanding justice for The Fall. I will hear no scrutiny. It’s time for change people. This album is sick. A little background for those who are unfamiliar, because it’s likely people are, this album came out in 2010 and was recorded by Damon while on the Plastic Beach Tour in the US. More specifically, it was all recorded on an iPad using digital synthesizer and recording apps. Sounds shitty right? WRONG. This album rules. It’s kind of funny, but I feel like the synth sounds on this are some of the best in the Gorillaz catalog. This album feels to me like the closest thing the band has to pure electronica. It’s kind of like Gorillaz’ version of an IDM album. Some of these songs sound like they could be straight from Brainfeeder or Warp Records (“Shy-Town,” “The Joplin Spider,” and “The Snake in Dallas” to name a few). That being said, there are still plenty of songs where 2-D has a prominent presence and the songs follow a more traditional pop structure. What the songs all have in common is a peculiarly dark and melancholic tone that ties it all together, provoking feelings of isolation and desolation. To me it feels like a homesick record, like maybe Damon was kind of yearning to get out of America. He has said that the album was essentially a tour diary of his time in America, and if that’s the case I take it he really doesn’t like it here much. Anyways, I love this album. A lot. But for some reason this album is commonly overlooked. I understand that it is less conceptual and over the top than some of their most beloved albums, but so are all the albums I listed before! I guess it’s also because the songwriting is generally much less conventional on The Fall. But considering I’ve been so into electronica in recent years, this album really works for me. I think I also really love when Gorillaz music is kinda melancholy and gritty. Their music always used to have an edge to it. Some of that edge seems to have dissipated in future releases, so an album that’s so full of it like The Fall will inevitably be something I gravitate to a lot. I hope one day the album gets the credit it deserves. I overlooked it for a long time because people didn’t seem to have anything nice to say about it. But I do declare this is a classic Gorillaz jawn that’s excellence calls for reappraisal. Time for fools to get with it.

Fav songs: “Phoner to Arizona,” “Revolving Doors,” “Hillbilly Man,” “Houston,” “Shy-Town,” “The Joplin Spider,” “The Parish of Space Dust,” “The Snake in Dallas,” “Amarillo,” “Bobby in Phoenix” (feat. Bobby Womack)

Real quick, before we continue. We are kinda at a turning point on this list. Lots of love for all the aforementioned albums, but the rest of the albums on this list are kind of on a different hierarchical level than the rest. Of course that’s my opinion, but I think that it’s generally pretty agreed upon. The scope of these albums are much grander. The music, the art, the stories, the collaborations. When I mentioned how high the bar was they set. These next albums are the bar. All of em. We are now operating at the highest level imaginable. Only the best of the best from here on out. Okay let’s continue.

#5: Gorillaz (2001)

At #5 we have arrived at the first of the holy trinity. The beginning of it all. Where the journey began for all our lovely characters. The debut. I don’t even really know where to begin. This album has been in my life for years and years. I remember once my secret Santa at school didn’t get me anything, but my friend Kai had her so he gave me her gift, and that gift was this CD. Core memory. This album is mostly known for the hit “Clint Eastwood,” which is still a timeless classic to this day. But this album has a hell of a lot more to offer than what you hear on “Clint Eastwood.” The sound is somewhat hard to pinpoint, but it kind of incorporates a lot of hip-hop and trip hop instrumentation into alternative rock and pop songs. In that sense, it sometimes feels like the Gorillaz album that most resembles a Blur album. It also definitely feels like Damon singing more than 2-D, if that makes sense. I guess it just seems like the world is still being developed. On top of that, so is the sound of the band. On LP1, Damon seems like he’s kinda throwing a little bit of everything at the wall and seeing what sticks. It feels more like an exercise of eclecticism and idiosyncrasies than a conceptual album. But don’t get me wrong, I consider this a good thing. The best way they could have begun this journey and introduce the concept of this virtual band to the world was by showing how extremely multifaceted the music alone can be. And in terms of an overarching story, well, there is no story yet. Not really. First thing first, we gotta learn what these cats are all about, and this album is the perfect introduction to the band in that sense. Musically and artistically. Some of the band’s most iconic art comes from Phase 1 (this phase). The jeep, baby Noodle, the blue ghost of Russel’s friend portrayed by Del the Funky Homosapien. It’s all iconic as shit now. In terms of the character designs, the music videos, the whole multimedia aspect of the band, this phase of the band is definitely among my favorites. Like I mentioned with The Fall, I like when this band shows its grit. And this album is gritty. It’s also poppy and upbeat, but still gritty. I believe it has a lot to do with the contributions of producer Dan the Automator across the album. He helped produce the whole thing, which I think is what gives the album its 90’s hip-hop feel. There’s lots I could say about this project, but I’ll wrap it up by saying that listening to this on the hi-fi system was game changing. I haven’t listened to it all in a while, and I almost forgot how awesome it was for a while. But it’s really consistent, playful, and colorful, and though it’s not a majorly conceptual album compared to what they would do in the future, it is majorly cohesive. It’s a must hear album.

Fav tracks: “Re-Hash,” “5/4,” “Tomorrow Comes Today,” “Clint Eastwood,” “Sound Check (Gravity),” "Double Bass,” “Rock the House,” “19-2000,” “Latin Simone (Que Pasa Contigo),” “Slow Country”

#4: Humanz (2017)

I’ve been excited to talk about this one. As I said while discussing The Now Now, I was not a fan of this album when it dropped. I had expectations that were majorly subverted at the time and it was hard to accept the album for what it was. What didn’t I like? Not enough 2-D parts, and the parts that were there felt kinda uninspired. Some of the guests didn’t feel particularly inspired either. Something else that I realized later as a fan of Humanz is that this album features a lot of modern rappers as opposed to classic 90’s and 2000’s rappers, and in 2017 I was really not very open to lots of modern rap for some reason. All of this led the project to feeling really different from the Gorillaz I had come to love in recent years. What I have come to learn, though, is that those differences are what makes this album so special. If Demon Days sounded like self-titled, it wouldn’t be as special. If Plastic Beach sounded like Demon Days, we’d probably end up being disappointed in the long run. As much as I wanted something that sounded more like prior Gorillaz albums in 2017, that wouldn’t be an album that pushes the band forward. We needed Humanz, and thank God we have it. It is one of the most unique albums in their catalog, in fact I may say THE most unique. The production is nuts. It’s the most futuristic sounding Gorillaz album that they’ve made. The tone is set perfectly by the intro track “Ascension” featuring Vince Staples. Damon described the sound of the album as a dance party at the end of the world, all of which you can hear in “Ascension.” It’s aggressively upbeat and intense, fun but angry. As you may have gathered, this is kind of the most aggressive Gorillaz have ever been before, but in a really cool unconventional way. The aggression on this album was inspired by the nightmarish 2016 United States Presidential Election. It’s kind of why this album feels so fucked up and weird a lot of the time. It was like a mirror of American culture at the time. Much of this album comes across similarly to the intro track, sometimes leaning into the party vibes more and sometimes leaning more into the aggression. It’s honestly so cool when the two vibes blend, because as much as they should work opposite of each other, they just accentuate each other in such a unique way. It’s a very eclectic album that offers tons of variety while still building a strong cohesive picture of our beloved characters entering our own tumultuous world. The emotions of this album feel more relevant than ever, and sonically it’s aged like fine wine. The art side of things is a bit more mixed. We have two music videos from Humanz, as well as some official visualizers. Nothing too memorable, but honestly the album art more than makes up for it. The characters have never looked as good as they do on the Humanz artwork, and I’ll die on that hill. Overall, Humanz has stood the test of time and only gotten better and better upon every relisten for me. There really isn’t any other album in the Gorillaz catalog like Humanz. It’s a must hear album.

Digital album artwork, which I think is my favoritie piece of Gorillaz album art.

Fav songs: “Ascension” (feat. Vince Staples), “Strobelite” (feat. Peven Everett), “Saturnz Barz” (feat. Popcaan), “Momentz” (feat. De La Soul), “Submission” (feat. Danny Brown & Kelela), “Charger” (feat. Grace Jones), “Andromeda” (feat. DRAM), “Busted and Blue,” “She’s My Collar” (feat. Kali Uchis), “Hallelujah Money” (feat. Benjamin Clementine)

#3: The Mountain (2026)

There was a time not very long ago where I thought we may never get another album like this from Gorillaz. I appreciate all of those lower ranking albums plenty. However, I feel like some of them were harder for me to appreciate pre-Mountain. There was a part of me that mourned the Gorillaz that I once knew, like they would never operate at the Plastic Beach level again. It brings me so much pleasure to say to you in this post-Mountain world that Gorillaz are once again at the top of their game. This album simultaneously feels like both classic territory for the band as well as completely uncharted territory. How could that be? Well let’s start with the differences. The overall sound. It’s so largely and entirely inspired by Indian music. In fact, it was largely made by Indian musicians while Damon and Jamie were in India. That’s definitely uncharted territory for the band, but exploring music from other cultures is kind of the band's MO. So in that sense, it's also kind of the most characteristicly accurate thing the band could do. Also very of Gorillaz character is an overarching theme to pair with the sonic direction the band chose, the theme in this case being the experience of death, grief, and healing. It is the most beautiful collection of songs the band has, in a very spiritual way as well as in a more straightforward sonic way. On top of all this, the production is more detailed, crisp, and flat out perfect than we’ve heard from the band since Humanz. The synths, the drums, the live instruments. Everything feels absolutely perfectly in the mix. That’s pretty much what made me fall in love with Gorillaz in the first place, that and the eclecticism. Fortunately, this album has plenty of that too. Everything has pretty strong Indian influences present, but there’s tons of other influences on this project as well. Lots of tonal ups and downs that make the album a very effective and cohesive emotional journey. All these things together put this album above most others from the band, which is absolutely shocking considering it came out 25 years after the band’s debut. Real quick, I also gotta give a big shoutout to Black Thought. His verses on this album were major. A big appeal of Gorillaz for me from the start was the hip-hop influence, and it feels like they really brought that back on this album, particularly with Black Thought’s contributions. There’s been plenty of hip-hop in Gorillaz albums post-2010, but Black Thought showed up in a way that I feel like no rapper has for Gorillaz since that golden era. His verse on “The Empty Dream Machine” is one of the best rap verses on any Gorillaz song ever. I worship that song the same way I worship “Feel Good Inc.” Don’t even get me started. The art from this phase has been excellent as well. Lots of cool visualizers for the singles as well as a beautiful hand drawn short film. While I wish they would make more videos, I’m happy there’s at least a lot of cool promotional art of the characters, and that the one official video we got was a fucking masterpiece. Overall, it’s thrilling to be this excited about a Gorillaz album after so much time. They’ve once again truly outdone themselves on both ends of the multimedia spectrum and proved to the world that there is still so much story to tell with the Gorillaz. Thank God for The Mountain. It’s a must hear album.

Fav songs: “The Mountain,” “The Moon Cave,” “The Happy Dictator,” “The Empty Dream Machine,” “The Manifesto,” “The Plastic Guru,” “Delirium,” “Damascus,” “The Shadowy Light,” “The Sad God”

#2: Plastic Beach (2010)

We are at #2 now with an album that would be any other band’s best album. Hell, maybe it is their best album. It very well could be, and if you ask many other fans they’ll probably tell you it is. For me, it’s just personal preference at this point, cuz this is definitely a 10/10 album. No question. It’s so seminal I don't even really know what to say about it. I could start by saying it’s kind of the first time the band fully immersed itself in a specific sound and theme, I guess. Demon Days kind of did it (we’ll obvs discuss this soon), but not the same way Plastic Beach did. In order to explore themes of pollution and the impending environmental crisis, they made the album intensely nautical. This doesn’t limit the songwriting at all though. They found a way to make the whole album feel nautical without it becoming too repetitive or one dimensional. Then again, there are plenty of songs without those influences, or at least a lot less (“Rhinestone Eyes,” "Stylo,” “Empire Ants,” to name a few). These songs nevertheless add to the album’s flow and story with no issues. In fact, they probably strengthen the album by adding some more variety. In terms of the production on this album, it’s flawless. Some of the best produced music of all time in my opinion, by far. The songwriting is stunning as well. It’s really unbelievable. It’s hard to even unpack this album because it’s so dense and impressive with detail and inspiration. I guess another favorite aspect of this album are some of the dancier tracks. The album has some of the funkiest and grooviest synth parts that I ever heard, songs that kind of changed my whole outlook on music once I heard them. For an album that is about the perils of climate change, they sure as hell made it sound fun and cheery. That’s a good place to transition into the art from this phase, because this juxtaposition is really on full display in the video for “On Melancholy Hill.” This bright joyous pop tune begins with Noodle on a boat shooting at fighter jets with a machine gun. It’s sooooo cool. This is probably the best phase in terms of Jamie’s contributions to the band. The art is so pivotal to everything on the album. “Stylo” is their first live action video, with 3D animated characters that look PHENOMENAL. Also Bruce Willis, who is perfect in the video. This is probably my favorite Gorillaz music video honestly, it looks so good for being from 2010. There was supposed to be an overarching story arch told through the videos, following the events of “Stylo.” We get the second part of the story in the “On Melancholy Hill” video, but unfortunately nothing else materialized because the band wasn’t making enough money. Shameful record companies. That being said, the ambition Jamie had in this phase of the band was unreal, and had he been able to finish what he started, this album may have been at the top of my list. Speaking of Jamie, the album art! That island on the cover isn’t a drawing, it’s a sculpture he made. Ughhh. I can’t get enough of the Plastic Beach era. It’s so entirely phenomenal on all ends of the spectrum. It’s, without a question, a must hear album.

Fav tracks: “Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach” (feat. Snoop Dogg), “White Flag” (feat. Bashy, Kano, & the National Orchestra for Arabic Music), “Rhinestone Eyes,” “Stylo” (feat. Mos Def & Bobby Womack), “Superfast Jellyfish” (feat. Gruff Rhys & De La Soul), “Empire Ants” (feat. Little Dragon), “Glitter Freeze” (feat. Mark E. Smith), “Some Kind of Nature” (feat. Lou Reed), “On Melancholy Hill,” “Plastic Beach” (feat. Mick Jones & Paul Simonon), “To Binge” (feat. Little Dragon)

#1: Demon Days (2005)

This is my favorite album of all time. Definitively. This is my bible. It’s nice to have a moment to discuss it on my blog, cuz I don’t think any other piece of art has inspired and influenced me as much as Demon Days has. I probably wouldn’t care about music as much as I do today if it weren’t for this album right here. It’s absolute perfection, from the first moment to the last. It’s Gorillaz at its most innovative. They seamlessly blend alternative rock and hip-hop in a way that's never been done before. It’s also the perfect sound for these characters to embody. We have an old school punk rock bassist, a modern rock singer, a hip-hop drummer, and a little Asian girl on guitar (usually translates to lead synths in my mind because there aren’t too many guitars on the album). All of their influences really make their way into the sound of this album, in spades. It’s almost as if I can hear each individual member’s musicianship on the record. It’s like they’re a real band and each one of them has their own style with their respective instruments. To an extent I feel this way about a lot of Gorillaz music outside of Demon Days, but it’s really present on this album to a different level of expertise. This album really lets your imagination run wild. It’s a very dark and grim sounding album, far more serious than the band’s only other album at the time, the self-titled debut. It was made in a very tumultuous time, where the aftermath of 9/11 was still creating conflicts between nations and generating Islamophobia in Western civilization. This album explores fear and uncertainty in a crumbling world that seems to be a prediction of our own. It’s subtly angry, loudly desolate, unsettling, and all the while exhilarating and bombastic. It’s got everything I need in an album. It’s also kind of where the band began its tradition of collaborating with so many people on their albums. They had collaborators on self-titled, but not like this. Neneh Cherry, Bootie Brown, De La Soul, Ike Turner, MF DOOM, Roots Manuva, Martina Topley-Bird, Shaun Ryder, and Dennis Hopper, among others, are interspersed throughout this album in such beautiful ways. It’s like they’re folded into the world of Gorillaz, like actors in a film. Such an eclectic roster of guests that helps the band explore sonic palettes of all kinds throughout the album. The production is absolutely stunning as well. Big shout out to Danger Mouse, who is largely responsible for the way this album sounds. It’s absolute perfection. The art is also among the best of the band’s career. The characters look really rigid and sharp in this phase. Very gritty and low-key intimidating. The album artwork is absolutely iconic at this point, as is the video for “Feel Good Inc.” The rest of the videos are absolutely sick too. This era of the band will always be my favorite, likely because I took two tabs of acid and listened to Demon Days once and it was the greatest experience of my life. But even if that never happened, I’d still say this album operates at the highest level an album possibly could. It is the perfect example of the utmost potential of an album as an art form. I’d die for this album if I had to. It is, more than any album in the world, a must hear album.

Fav tracks: all of em.

It’s been a pleasure going through the Gorillaz catalog with you readers, all two of you. I know lots of people are already familiar with the band, but if you aren’t then there really aren’t any artists I’d implore you to explore more than Gorillaz. It’s endless amounts of fun, beautiful art, phenomenal stories, and pristine and profoundly out of the box music. One of the greatest musical projects ever conceived by anyone. Ok enough reading, go listen!