yourGigs Round Table - Gorillaz - Plastic Beach

Each week the yourGigs staff review recent release albums. In this instalment is Plastic Beach, the new album from Gorillaz.

Aimee: ****1/2

I keep trying to choose a favourite track on this album but each individual song stands out in its own right; in fact Plastic Beach is less a "record" and more like a collection of swirling electronic pop numbers, 11 neat little units of awesomeness. Opening track 'Stylo' features the extreme grooves of Bobby Womack and Mos Def, and immediately following this we have De La Soul being characteristically cheeky on the ditzy 'Superfast Jellyfish'. A hilarious Lou Reed number precedes the cute 'Melancholy Hill' before Gorillaz hook up with Mick Jones and Paul Simonon for the pulsating delight that is the title-track, which kinda makes me think of little cartoon fish swimming through an ocean of bubbles and colour. 'To Binge' offers a relaxing Hawaiian vibe and then the album closes with the sound of rolling waves and chirping gulls on the beautiful Bobby Womack-featured track, 'Cloud of Unknowing'. Yes, I want to come back to Plastic Beach again and again.

Mike: ****

While the whole concept behind Gorillaz is arguably tired some 10-odd years since their inception, the tracks on Plastic Beach still manage to traverse exciting new ground by dabbling mostly in music of the past yet coming out sounding oddly future-bound. At times fusing '80s hip-hop grooves (that would sit comfortably alongside old-school electro greats such as Mantronix) with grandiose orchestral flourishes, oriental twinklings and club-friendly beats, Plastic Beach makes no bones about its intentions; that is, to be a feel-good party record. Continuing the collaboration trend they're known for, Gorillaz has nabbed a bunch of impressive guests including Snoop Dogg, Lou Reed and Mick Jones amongst many others. There's no doubting Damon Albarn's talent on Plastic Beach - just straight up fun.

Alex: ****

Plastic Beach is the third offering from Murdoc Niccals and his "band" of cartoon misfits Gorillaz. Now, in my mind you'd be a right twat not to think that this fusion of hip hop, pop, electronic and soul doesn't work in its disjointed splendour. And that's exactly what this album is, a serious of disjointed sounds that form to make a splendid roundness of musicality not demonstrated in any other hip-hop/electronica album that I can think of anyway. The plethora of guest artists on Plastic Beach is impressive to say the least, but these appearances don't overshadow the album, they nurture it. The overall sound isn't what you would call "conventional" and that's exactly what I love about it.

Andy: ***1/2

Gorillaz made waves for being one of the first 'virtual' bands, boasting animated characters as members, each with their own history and nuances. The characters have returned five years on from Demon Days a bit worse for wear and are seeking refuge in a faraway place - Plastic Beach. By framing the album behind this premise Damon Albarn is set free to explore numerous dark facets of his this world, and no doubt, his mind, and roam across whatever genre takes his fancy like an explorer across unchartered lands. Some collaborators - of the stature of Lou Reed, Mark E. Smith, Bobby Womack and Clash Comrades Mick Jones and Paul Simonon no less - similarly lose themselves in this fantasy malaise and really push themselves to create something wondrous. Albarn, too, woozily narrates the whole pulsing journey in his nicely maturing voice, that is filling by the year with more depth and character than the geezer cheek of is bygone band.

Bella: ***

The virtual superstars of Gorillaz - Russel, Noodle, 2D and Murdoc - are two-dimensional representations of a three-dimensional cast of contributors. This time around, Damon Albarn has been joined by a whole constellation of stars including Snoop Dogg, Mos Def, De La Soul, Lou Reed and Mick Jones just to name a few. Plastic Beach is instantly likeable with a bunch of tracks to make you dance and others that are a bit more sentimental. But to be honest, there is so much going on in Plastic Beach that it's going to take at least a hundred listens before I can justifiably write a record review. Although you can pick out singles - 'Stylo', 'Superfast Jellyfish', 'On Melancholy Hill' - each track is just part of a much bigger picture and needs to be heard in sequence in order to get the full effect. With Plastic Beach, Gorillaz have created an entire world. And that is pretty damn impressive.

11 Mar 2010