The Damon Albarn is awesome thread

[Echelon]

I don't know why it took my ass til 2023 to realize this, but Damon Albarn is a national treasure in the UK. This man is responsible for so much amazing music in the 90s til now! A majority of Blur and the first three Gorillaz albums (Plus Song Machine) are classics.

And now the ultimate question...why have the Gorillaz never worked with BOC? Treat Em Right proves they could do a really good job remixing the Gorillaz. I think somebody needs to put the idea in his head.

[Orbited insanitarium]

He is quite the maestro Ech, one of things I love about Damon is how diverse he is.
And even throughout his blur days, I realize there isn't really a dip in quality. That catalog is still fresh. I do have hope for another Blur album past Magic Whip, but Damon treats Gorillaz as his main project for now, his version excursions into pop and just about every genre!!
Afrobeat in Désolé, he's a man of the musical world.

A Gorillaz remix, even collaboration with BOC, the trip-hop stylings of their earlier work would definitely go with that. My main reason as for why I don't think it would entirely work (just from a marketing) is that both bands have very strong, passionate, watchful and large fanbase. Could it be a PR Tik-Tok BOC disaster? (Aquarius and Stylus choreography cover by ShantellGaddi69-er)

"Monkey: Journey to the West" is also worth anyone's time. This is his best collaboration with Hewlett for me. Maybe, the best is yet to come though, Cracker Island's phase 6 art has been gorgeous.


Hey man, thanks for creating this topic! It's nice to see your thoughts put into a music thread.

[Echelon]

My Gorillaz ranking as of late:

Gorillaz S/T
Plastic Beach
Demon Days
Song Machine
Cracker Island
Humanz/Now Now

And yeah, I fully get that BOC and Gorillaz wouldn't work from a marketing perspective. Especially nowadays. The Gorillaz might be too shiny pop for an IDM band that only remixes Anticon and Sexual Objects trax.

Though I could easily see them reminding/working on something from the first three albums.

Damon is reuniting with Blur so there is a slight chance they might do something. Hilariously, Magic Whip was as bleak as Tomorrow's Harvest. Good album, much like TH but man Damon and BOC sure weren't happy those days!

[Jango9]

Aye, Damon's definitely one of the most interesting musicians currently still actively making music! Whether with Blur, Gorillaz, or otherwise he's always putting together compelling music in one way or another (occasionally the mark is missed but i don't think anyone has a 100% hit rate lmao). Even his earliest pre-Blur stuff is pretty damn cool in its own scrappy lo-fi way, wish the rest of these sessions would come out already:

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[fujee]

Just got tickets to see Blur in a tiny venue. Very excited.

Damon is great. I grew up in the same town as him.

[portiss]

I still crank Everyday Robots once a month in it's entirety.

1 Of the best albums of the last 10 years for sure.
Oh and the Good, the Bad & The Queen's selftitled album was bloody amazing.

[fujee]

Everyday Robots is fantastic.

[Echelon]

Aye, Damon's definitely one of the most interesting musicians currently still actively making music! Whether with Blur, Gorillaz, or otherwise he's always putting together compelling music in one way or another (occasionally the mark is missed but i don't think anyone has a 100% hit rate lmao). Even his earliest pre-Blur stuff is pretty damn cool in its own scrappy lo-fi way, wish the rest of these sessions would come out already:

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I am shocked with how good he is. I think he's had a bigger success ratio than Thom Yorke and Radiohead IMO.

And I don't agree with Fantano on giving Everyday Robots a five and calling it boring. There's some great melodies on there and it's nowhere as bleak as The Magic Whip.

[Echelon]

New Blur album. I think I willed it into existance with my Blur binge!

[Orbited insanitarium]

New Blur album. I think I willed it into existance with my Blur binge!

Calling it fate. The Narcissist is one solid, but understated earworm. Liking the themes, sensing a concept album maybe?

I do have hope for another Blur album past Magic Whip, but Damon treats Gorillaz as his main project for now.

Being in the knowledge about the reunion concert upcoming, I actually now wonder how long they've been sitting on this little recording secret.

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Might go on a binge of my own. Glad to have Blur back!

[Echelon]

New Blur album. I think I willed it into existance with my Blur binge!

Calling it fate. The Narcissist is one solid, but understated earworm. Liking the themes, sensing a concept album maybe?

I do have hope for another Blur album past Magic Whip, but Damon treats Gorillaz as his main project for now.

Being in the knowledge about the reunion concert upcoming, I actually now wonder how long they've been sitting on this little recording secret.

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Might go on a binge of my own. Glad to have Blur back!

The magic of the Narcissist is that it starts out a bit mid, but has a nice emotional build up at the end that leaves you with the chorus stuck in your head. Oddly enough it has a better aftertaste than it sounds when playing it! Very mysterious.

Also Blur came back with the Magic Whip, an unbelievably dark record and they're following it up with something a bit lighter 8 years later. Wonder if this is gonna be the trajectory for our Scottish brothers too

[Sherbet Head]

Admittedly, I've never actively listened to Blur (or Gorillaz for that matter) but The Narcissist has been played on Radio 6 a lot lately, and I have to say I really like it. It's pretty low key but it ticks all the boxes for me!

[Mond]

As someone who looks back on Britpop with fondness, I have to say I'm not a fan of Damon Albarn's side projects. There was more to what was dubbed Britpop than Oasis or Blur.