Gorillaz - Gorillaz
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Free Music Notes for Gorillaz
Free Music Review: A milestone in music history
Hit: 5 Stars
This is a milestone, seriously. The predecessor of "Demon Days", it is often underrated compared to it. It is, what may be less important, the first full serious album by a cartoon band. But then it is the work of a musical genius named Damon Albarn, the best musician living on this earth (only John Lennon was a bit better, but he is dead as you might know). Him and and his roommate Jamie Hewlett, famous for "Tank Girl", having lived together for a few years, got bored by all the common MTV music and crap that went on there, so they decided to form a cartoon band. The rest is history.
This album has been entirely written by Damon and roughly produced by him and two mates, who then invited Dan The Automator to add a few hiphop beats. Dan also connected him to Del The Funky Homosapien, now heard on "Clint Eastwood" and "Rock The House".
The first track, "Re-Hash", is a chilled, funny (and a bit funky, too) starter with some weird, seemingly Irish, vocal harmonies toward the end.
5/4 is a damn rocking stomper that never fails to be genius. Guitar and Bass are written in 5/4 beat (thus the name), the drums however in 4/4. Rocks.
Tomorrow Comes Today is a real nice song with a now famous melodica part as well, a real funky bass.
New Genious (Brother). The ultra cool super monster chill. A very funky guitar sample with bass, drums, backing and main vocals that you just gotta love.
Clint Eastwood. The most famous song off the album. Niiice hip hop song with an incredibly genius piano/bass part at the start of the second rap verse, and a neverending outro that is just woooh.
Man Research (Clapper) is an a bit pointless dance track, but you gotta love the yeah yeah part as it is so funny^^
Punk - well, it would love to be :P Cool.
Sound Check (Gravity) - incredibly sad, and when the first verse stops, it is starting to blow off your mind totally.
Double Bass - ingenius!!!!! Very weird (which key could this be written in?), and totally freakin' (All of which makes me anxious - at times unbearabyl so does say a cigarette - must master backwards. :))
Rock The House: A bit boring.
19/2000: As well, but it's still real groovy :)
Latin Simone (Que Pasa Contigo) is a just amazing Latin track with Ibrahim Ferrer on it :) The original version with Damon's vocals (which appeared on their first CD, the Tomorrow Comes Today EP) is even more amazing, oooh how lovable Damon sings!
Starshine: Uber sad. Just wonderful.
Slow Country: OK as well.
M1 A1: The intro belongs to the start of the album. Nevertheless, just a rocking, stomping, amazing bumping track!!! Yay.
Clint Eastwood (Ed Case Refix): Worthless. It's the hidden track. It's boring. At least you gain the full version, as the version on the single is just an edit.
All in all, this must be the 5 points, and one of the 5 best albums that I've ever heard.
Free Music Review: gorillaz are simply the best ever ever ever ever ever!
Hit: 5 Stars
Okey, let me start off by saying this, if you love great music then you will positivly LOVE gorillaz.Gorillaz have made some of the best music in the world.It is unique, catchy, amazing, and fresh.All the songs on the album are great!Dan the Automater is possibly a better producer than the Neptunes AND Kanye West put together( because he is better than each one of them alone ).The band is also interesting because they aren't actually really alive.What I mean is this, the people behind the scenes are real but the characters they play are not.Another thing about this is that there are more than just four members of the band( as the fake cartoon versions would have you know ).There are acually many more including the likes of:Kid Koala, Dan the Automater, Damon Albarn, Del Tha Funky Homosapien, Miho Hatori, Jamie Hewlett, Phi Life Cypher, and Ibrahim Ferrer.There are more like Tina Weymouth and U Brown but the list would go on forever.Lots of DJs have worked with gorillaz including:Kid Koala, The Spacemonkeys, Soulchild, and The Wiseguys House Of Wisdom.The really cool thing about gorillaz is that no one else sounds exactly like them, there are a few that are close( Deltron 3030, and Dr. Octogon )but no one ever actually can ever copy exactly the kind of magical feeling you get from listoning the gorillaz.
Here is a list of the songs and my ratings on them:
1.Re-Hash-***** Great, but repetitive intro to a great album.
2.5/4-***** Old school ska mixed with new age DJing. Unusual mix but still flies very high, in fact, this song was the fifth hit off the album.
3.Tomorrow Comes Today-***** It's a hit and you can tell! It's got kind of a trip-hop feel but Damon Albarn's lo-fi singing makes it something else.
4.New Genious(brother)-***** Sounds like Bruce Lee movie opening mixed with Dr. Frankenstein's lab. One of my favorites.
5.Clint Eastwood-***** Del's rap is great, Damon's chorus is great. Overall a great song( a bit over played on MTV and the radio though ).
6.Man Research(clapper)-***** It's dub reggae at its best!
7.Punk-***** It's old school punk at its best!
8.Sound Check(gravity)-***** Kid Koala really shines on this song, it has amazing DJ work on it as well as kick-@$$ voice samples. One of my favorites.
9.Double Bass-*** A miner flaw on the album but not TOO bad.
10.Rock the House-***** Del raps again with flying colours. Superb.
11.19-2000-**** Great song with awesome vocals but it kinda gets annoying after a few listons.
12.Latin Simone-*** Great music but I don't like Ibrahim Ferrer's vocals. The English version on the gorillaz album "G-Sides"is much better.
13.Starshine-***** Great, but repetetive.
14.Slow Country-***** I just love the piano part on this song and the lyrics are funny. Damon"s vocals again make this song perfect even apointless chorus is brought to life by him.
15.M1-A1-**** This song could possibly have the worst intro ever made. but once you get by it( if you can bear it )the song is good.
Free Music Review: Interesting Hybrid
Hit: 5 Stars
Gorillaz takes the Monkeys to the next level. Basically, a record company takes 4 talented artists ("talented" being the most important distinction), have them collaborate on an album and give them cartoon characters with a made-up history to hide behind. You can find the "histories" of these characters on their web-site and elsewhere, designed with the help of Jamie Hewlett of "Tank Girl" fame. Of course this whole gimmick wouldn't work if the music wasn't any good (look at the pathetic Canadian band, Prozzac, who did this first), but this is not a problem. THIS MUSIC IS AWESOME!The only member of the band I am familiar with is Damon Alburn from Blur, and with his distinctive vocals dominating most of the songs it is impossible to fail to note his influence. As with most Blur singles, you will have difficulty trying to determine if Damon is trying to sound happy (see "Clint Eastwood"), or if he is purposefully being sarcastic. Because of his influence, I can't help but compare the album to Blur's "13" which is equally ecclectic. The song "Punk", for example, reminds me of a toned-down "B.L.U.R.E.M.I." However, there is a funky beat to most of the songs that easily blow Blur's pathetic "Trailerpark" out of the water, so the influence of the other artists should not be underestimated.
Most of the songs are an interesting hybrid of trip hop, hip hop, the blues (especially the pieces with strong harmonica parts like "Tomorrow Comes Today") and British guitar pop, and range from the dreary but funky to the bright, poppy and funky. Because of its eclecticism and the fact that no particular song stands out as the strongest, different listeners will have their own favourite songs as well as maybe one or two they hate (I personally hate the minimalist dub of "Double Bass"). But at the same time, I'm not a fan of hip hop but I find myself enjoying it on this album because of the many levels to each song. I am amazed at how much of the album works well with its many clashing influences. No lesser talent could have pulled it off.
This album is also great for both lying around by yourself or partying. While the heavy bass beats straight out of Massive Attack on most songs are great for tapping your feet, the songs also work on multiple levels and can be enjoyed while you are just relaxing. And while most of the songs are cheerful on one level, there is enough sarcasm to keep it from becoming annoying. And, yes, the whole cartoon gimmick is cleverly done and you will enjoy exploring their web-sites.
I would still recommend giving it a bit of a try before you buy it. This hybrid sound takes many people a bit of time to get used to. But I've owned this cd for a month now (it was released earlier in Canada) and I've not grown tired of it yet, which means that it is not just its novelty that makes it great. This one's destined to become a classic.
Free Music Review: Go Ape
Hit: 5 Stars
I tried sending a review for this yesterday, but my internet connection got ..., so hopefully this isn't redundant:Gorillaz is the Monkees taken to the next level. Instead of creating a fake band out of four unknowns without any musical talent, the record company has brought together four people of great talent with diverse musical backgrounds and fused them into something unique. Hiding behind the names of four cartoon characters whose histories, designed with the help of Jamie Hewlett of "Tank Girl" fame, can be found on their website and elsewhere, are such people as Blur's Damon Alburn. This cartoon character gimmick is not unique and is no substitute for good music..., but in this case you do get great music, and it is fun to explore the various websites and learn about the characters.
Personally, Alburn is the only member I was already familiar with, and his distinctive vocals, which often sound like he MAY be happy or MAY just be sarcastic (especially on "Clint Eastwood"), dominate many of the songs. As a result, comparisons to Blur are unavoidable. For example, the song "Punk Rock" is like a toned down "B.L.U.R.E.M.I.", and the eclecticism of this album is reminiscent of Blur's 13. However, the other members have made obviously important contributions to the album as well given how successful this album is at being funky in contrast to Blur's pathetic "Trailerpark".
The music itself is a unique blend of hip hop, trip hop (with bass drones straight out of Massive Attack), the blues (especially in songs like "Tomorrow Comes Today" with its strong use of harmonica), and British guitar pop (Blur), and it amazingly manages to work quite well. With any lesser talent, this album would be a complete mess. However, it all manages to somehow work, creating a unique hybrid of music that should appeal to people of diverse tastes. For example, although I normally dislike hip hop, I find myself enjoying it as part of the mix on this album.
Because of the album's eclecticism, no one song really stands out as the best, and everyone will probably have their own favourites as well as one or two songs they dislike (I personally hate the minimalist dub of "Double Bass"). But does the novelty of this new sound wear off? No. I have also been listening to this album for a month (it was released earlier ...) and I haven't grown tired of it. This album is destined to be a classic. However, I would still recommend that people try to listen to some of it before buying. It does take some getting used to and won't be for everyone.
With its funky beats the music, even when it is being melancholy instead of bright and cheerful, is great for partying, but at the same time it works well for just laying back and relaxing. It is extremely versatile.
Free Music Review: Gorillaz=Good , All the music on the radio=bad
Hit: 5 Stars
Gorillaz is truly an innovative and original idea.Of course,there were two animated bands before them (daft punk and prozzak).Every song on this album is creepy and eery in it's own way.The first track "Re-hash" is not the best on the album.it's just a mix of hip-hop drums and some scratchy acoustic guitar."5/4" is a very good song.It has some nice electric guitar and bassy 80's drums,It also has the funniest gorillaz line "she turned my dad on."."Tomorrow Comes Today" is one of the tracks i haven't really paid much attention too.It's just your basic hip hop song."New Genious" is pretty cool.It's got a creepy groove that sounds like an old horror film."Clint Eastwood" is awesome.In the good days,when the gorillaz were on MTV (before kelly clarkson and ashlee simpson and crap),I saw the animated video for clint eastwood.The song and the video just plain rock."Man Research" is also a very "interesting" song (to say the least).You gotta love the part where 2-D yells "yeah" ten times with murdoc saying "you're a hero" in the background."Punk" is the worst song on the album.The drums and guitar are very scratchy and get under your skin fast."Sound Check" is another creepy song,but is very good.The strange intro may make you think it's stupid but just listen a little bit longer."Double Bass" is okay but nothing special.In the middle of the song,murdoc says "All of which makes me anxious at times unbearably so" Which makes no sense."Rock The House" is a typical rap song with russel on vocals."19-2000" is not a very good song,but it was made popular in the old icebreakers commercial."Latin simone" Is A Mexican hip hop song with a hint of classical guitar."Starshine" is a very slow crappy song which is so crappy that it's crappier than the crappiest crap that was ever crapped."Slow Country" is okay but no big deal."M1 A1"'s Intro is good but the song is crappy.The first two minutes is just a guy saying "hello? is anyone there".It's creepy but cool."Dracula" is a reggae song basically with a special gorillaz vibe."Left hand Suzuki Method" is a hip hop song with noodle on vocals.If you get the edited version,you get two extra mixes.here's my basic ratings:
Track 01: 7/10
Track 02: 10/10
Track 03: 8/10
Track 04: 9/10
Track 05: 10/10
Track 06: 9/10
Track 07: 4/10
Track 08: 9/10
Track 09: 7/10
Track 10: 8/10
Track 11: 7/10
Track 12: 9/10
Track 13: 3/10
Track 14: 7/10
Track 15: 8/10
Track 16: 9/10
Track 17: 10/10
The Remixes Are Crap.