Who'd have thought university would be so time-consuming!
Who'd have thought university would be so time-consuming!
Member since:19.06.2005
Reviews:131
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Gorillaz started as Damon Albarn's animated side-project, although nowadays they must be his primary concern. Made up of 2D, Noodle, Murdoch and Russel, I find the whole premise a bit gimmicky really, and when listening to the album you soon forget about these crazy characters and it begins to sound like Damon Albarn plus special guests.
Demon Days appealed to me as soon as I heard Feel Good Inc. and Dare, but then when the fantastic new single Dirty Harry was released, I felt the need to go out and borrow it (I'm too cheap to actually buy CDs). Plus it was named as the number 1 album in several end-of-year lists (not that that swayed my judgement - I'm reviewing it entirely on the music). The main criticisms levelled at this alum are that you have to like hip-hop and that it takes a while to grow on you. Neither of these are a problem for me, but I did find that these statements were indeed true. That doesn't make it a bad album though, on the contrary, it's great!
The Intro is pointless but atmospheric, Last Living Souls is a bit repetitive, and whilst Kids With Guns does feature
Neneh Cherry singing Salt'N'Pepper's Push It and a very good chorus, it isn't one of my favourite tracks. However, the best is about to come.
The next five songs are probably the best section of the album, and from now on the standard is generally quite high. O Green World is slightly slower than the average, as well as ludicrously catchy and inventive, and shows that Damon Albarn's best work isn't necessarily behind him.
Dirty Harry and Feel Good Inc. come next, and I'm sure you've heard these, whether you know it or not. I love the sort of squelchy beat on Dirty Harry, and it just makes you want to get up and start dancing! Although maybe that's just me. This also features the first bit of rapping on the album, and there's a lot more of that to come. And Feel Good Inc., despite being overplayed, is still probably the best pop song of 2005 and the song that defined the summer.
Whoever says there aren't enough slower songs on Demon Days doesn't know what they're talking about. El Mañana is fantastic and elegant, and provides the perfect response to the frenetic Feel Good Inc. The final track in this little section is called Every Planet We Reach Is Dead, and it has a very laid-back and catchy rhythm which reminds me of something but I can't put my finger on it. Excellent.
November Has Come is really disappointing, because it has a great, atmospheric chorus but it's spoiled by some dreadful rapping in the verses, which I think include the lyrics "don't split clownbum". What's that supposed to mean? Answers on a postcard, please. If you want an example of good rapping, then All Alone delivers, courtesy of Roots Manuva. The chorus is really bouncy and catchy, and the verses have great rhythm, plus there's a little slower interlude.
White Light is strange: it's kind of rocky but with whispered vocals, and for the most part it doesn't sound convincing. There's just something lacking to give it the sparkle of some of the other tracks. However, as in All Alone, there's a bizarre, slow interlude, which is fantastic. Dare comes up next (see what I did there?) and again this is one of the best songs of 2005. Featuring vocals from Shaun Ryder (Happy Mondays), it's really bizarre but somehow they pull it off, and it has one of the best intros on the album.
Fire Coming Out Of The Monkey's Head is a hotly contested track, since it's basically a silly little fable about "Happy Folk" and "Strange Folk" who arrive and cause the destruction of the town by their excessive greed, put to seemingly happy beats. It epitomises the whole album, which has a vaguely end-of-the-world / nihilistic vibe. You might not end up listening to this track as much as the others, but it's still interesting every now and again.
The final two tracks kind of go together, as they both have a spaced-out sound and feature the London Gospel Choir. Don't Get Lost In Heaven has a really nice chorus and some contemplative lyrics. This rolls into track 15, the title track of the album. It's quite pessimistic about the state of the world ("mother nature wants us to leave"), but it's beautiful, brave and brilliant, and the choir part is one of the highlights of the album. A fantastic note to end on.
It's true that this album does require you put time into it, but if you're willing to do that you're in for a treat. People often say that Demon Days is full of loads of different genres. I would disagree. I think it's just pop with elements of hip-hop. But if you don't mind listening to pop music, you'll find that in Demon Days, Damon Albarn has created one of the most original, innovative and downright catchy pop albums of recent years. This is just about as good as pop gets. I'm trying to be more critical since I seem to give every album I review 5 stars, so I think 4 and a half is fair.
Demon Days is available to buy online for £6.99 from www.4cheapcds.com, and it's easy to find in high-street record shops.
Pictures of Demon Days - Gorillaz
Demon Days
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Intro @@us/euwm2/614/6590614_1_01.asx?obj=v50527@@ Last Living Souls ... more
@@us/euwm2/614/6590614_1_02.asx?obj=v50527@@ Kids With Guns @@us/euwm2/614/6590614_1_03.asx?obj=v50527@@ O Green World @@us/euwm2/614/6590614_1_04.asx?obj=v50527@@ Dirty Harry @@...
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Advantages: Jenny Lewis; the musical guests and production; it's a good record Disadvantages: It's the weakest album she's made so far; Elvis Costello; slight lyrics
Seresecros 13.10.2008 (13.10.2008)
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