Gorillaz : Plastic Beach :: Review
It has been almost ten years and there seems to be no abating of the Gorillaz phenomenon. You might have thought they would have gone the way of the Hannah-Barbera created Banana Splits but the brains behind this operation, the ever ingenious Damon Albarn shows no way of slowing any time soon. Rather than continue with any further Blur reunion plans after last year’s triumphant return at the Glastonbury Festival, Albarn has focused his efforts on compiling a who’s who of 70’s rock stalwarts on his latest Gorillaz effort. The aging musicians included on “Plastic Beach” are Bobby Womack, Mark E. Smith and Lou Reed along with The Clash’s Mick Jones and Paul Simonon who all opted out of their comfort zones for the opportunity to work with Albarn. Albarn’s pied piping also called out to Mos Def, Snoop Dogg and De La Soul who bought into the tale of 14th Century prayer referenced on this opus. Any similarities to the “Monkey” album should end here, as “Plastic Beach” is more focused on cosmic funk.
Overwhelmed yet? There’s also the cartoon band’s current convoluted back-story as illustrated by partner Jamie Hewlett. Apparently the band has fallen on hard times and a robot replaced one member while another is drug addled. In someone else’s hands this would turn into a pile of slop if not managed correctly but for some odd reason it gels here courtesy of the deft touch of Albarn.
While “Plastic Beach” isn’t the poppiest of the Gorillaz albums, it fits somewhere between the mellower moments of the self-titled debut and the rap-heavy vibe of “Demon Days.” Opener, “Welcome To The World Of The Plastic Beach” features a flowing rhyme by Snoop Dogg before delving into the Greg Lake inspired “White Flag” which sounds a little too close to his “I Believe in Father Christmas.” After the rap-prog finishes, there’s the first release “Stylo” which features an overworked Bobby Womack breaking into the 2-minute mark with his trademark wailing. Rumor has it that Womack was so over the top during his performance that he passed out in the studio after his performance. Thankfully, Mr. Womack wasn’t knocked completely out of commission as he also sings on the soulful, “Cloud of Unknowing.”
Not everything works on “Plastic Beach” and the Gruff Rhys and De La Soul number is the first sign of trouble. “Superfast Jellyfish” stalls and the faux commercial interlude fails possibly because it isn’t amusing. Mark E. Smith’s “Glitter Freeze” feels out of place and halts the flow of the album with its pulsing electro influenced wankery. “Plastic Beach” picks up again with Lou Reed’s “Some Kind of Nature” which adds a dose of gritty New York City cabaret before Mos Def sabotages things with “Sweepstakes” which carries the weight of a dollar scratch off. For all of its misgivings, “Plastic Beach” is still a fairly consistent and revelatory listen proving that there’s still some life left in an aging cartoon band yet.
Rating: 
