Gorillaz

[Enjoyed]

It's Sabrina Carpenter who doesn't knock my socks off

Have to agree with you there!

She's no Chloe Bennet or Alicia Vikander, that's for sure.

I personally attempted to confront him when he was defending his  obsessiveness over contemporary pop (mostly K/J-Pop), but before I could get a word off, he pointed at me and told me to "fuck off!" I'm not projecting the totality of the real conversation that was had at that moment, but I'm not sure the other people in the room knew how much I was laughing internally inside. It was hilarious, and I love him for that.

I stand by it! No such thing as a guilty pleasure. I don't feel any guilt for enjoying a delicious slab of pristinely produced pop music.

[shakermaker]

based on the Oakland show artist presale it looks like standard tickets range from $100 - $370, with GA floor being around $200, and tickets not exactly flying off the virtual shelves

this hobby got so expensive

[Enjoyed]

based on the Oakland show artist presale it looks like standard tickets range from $100 - $370, with GA floor being around $200, and tickets not exactly flying off the virtual shelves

this hobby got so expensive

Yup.

170 was the total for me for GA floor. Nosebleeds were 82.50.

[Csar]

The song!?

Oooh, I smell autotune. I hate autotune!

[ThePumisher]

I hate autotune!

If it's used for fixing some parts here and there then i'm fine with it. If it used for Cher-stuff or keep people singing who clearly can't sing then i hate it too

[Bosco]

After some non-stop play of The Mountain over the past week, I have been doing the re-visit thing with their discography and I gotta say... The Now Now is pretty darn good. I regret not holding in high regard before.

The obvious hits like Humility, Tranz, and Hollywood (The best Snoop collab). Then there's the 2nd half, which is just packed with some great sounding tracks like: Idaho, Magic City, Fire Flies, and Souk Eye. It's a delightful little album.

[Bosco]

Has anyone heard any of the bonus tracks? These are another space I think Gorillaz have always excelled. Hong Kong, Opium, and The Apprentice are some of my favourite songs of theirs.

Anyone want to collectively go over the B-sides, remixes, and all the odd knickknacks? I value your guys opinions, and there really is a lot...  I haven't payed much attention to this stuff past G-Sides and D-Sides, but I can confirm there is some definite gems in those!

[Enjoyed]

I haven't payed much attention to this stuff past G-Sides and D-Sides, but I can confirm there is some definite gems in those!

You're not wrong!

As I mentioned before, Hong Kong remains one of my all time favourite Gorillaz tracks:

Shout out as well to Dracula and Bill Murray (featuring The Bees - low key one of my favourite bands of all time).

For newer tracks. Opium is for sure a highlight for me - one they've played live a few times (26 minutes in).

Humanz has a bunch of extra tracks. Two highlights for me are The Apprentice:

and Garage Palace (feat Little Simz - meaning hope for it to be played this year!)

And then there's the 13 minute collab with James Murphy and Andre3000, which is just crazy timez.

Crocadillaz from Cracker Island also a treat:

And then lastly, the sneaky release of Meanwhile:

[Enjoyed]

Also, for anyone who doesn't appreciate Humanz (and I get it, there are some incredibly skippable and, honestly downright bad songs on that album) - I recommend giving the Reject False Icons documentary a watch:

I was lucky enough to score free tickets to the cinema screening back in 2019 and it definitely gave new life to an album I had all but passed over. Some really great behind the scenes stuff all round really - both of the recording and the live show.

[shakermaker]

Anyone want to collectively go over the B-sides, remixes, and all the odd knickknacks?

count me in.

I've also been revisiting a lot. I made a playlist of everything on Spotify and put it on shuffle for the week prior to the recent LA concerts. amongst the joyful moments that brought me was a (re) discovery of this, which I had no recollection of.

[shakermaker]

I recommend giving the Reject False Icons documentary a watch

agree this was good, I should rewatch.

I recall Bananaz being worth a watch too, though it's been a while. it covers more of their earlier times.

[Bosco]

Here's a fun combination

I don't believe anyone on the Gorillaz team was involved with this collab beyond licensing of the track. I think it's just simply Redman editing it a little and rapping on top of 19-2000.

Btw, I know this has come up before on this forum, the whole Blade 2 soundtrack is worth owning. Absolutely dated, but a whole bunch of interesting combinations, including an all time great Massive Attack track featuring Mos Def "I Against I"

[shakermaker]

SNL performances were solid! not sure how the general public will receive a 25 year old hit and a jungle book mashup but I thought they nailed it

[Bosco]

First, that was one slog of a SNL. For a Ryan Gosling hosted episode that was pretty forgettable...

I thought The Gorillaz were just okay. I was a bit alarmed that they played Clint Eastwood first. Is there a meaning behind doing that? Obviously, their original BIG hit and I'm happy Del got his moment. But Damon didn't sound all that great or even look too keen on playing it. Damon also has been interviewed frequently lately, and has made it a point to say he's anti-nostalgic, so turning to Clint Eastwood as your opener for SNL doesn't seem to add up in my mind.

Could it be that ticket presales were not as great as expected, and they turned to the earworm of "Clint Eastwood" to try an ignite additional interest when tickets officially go on sale? They did run the US tour advert before return from commercial break/ performance.

By the time the 2nd song selection came round, I was already fearing that they were gonna go ultra-safe and play Feel Good Inc.. Thankfully, they came through with something off the new album (The Moon Cave). This time the performance was more spirited, but still lacking a bit of a punch (in my opinion). Black Thought killed it, though.

Glad they played SNL, even though I didn't think it was the best. On to bigger things! It feels like this album gonna linger as ALBUM OF THE YEAR for the foreseeable future, so should be interesting what falls from that.

[Enjoyed]

I think the timing for the tour announcement and tickets going on sale was for sure purposely built around the SNL schedule. Whether they pivoted to a different track for any reason is hard to say - though I doubt they just happened to call in Del in an emergency case. The fact that he'll be touring with them makes me think it was always the plan.

My understanding of SNL performances is that they are almost 100% of the time underwhelming, often with fans questioning how a band they love could possibly sound so bad. Anecdotes from other bands suggest the schedule is quite grueling and that the performance is always quite difficult to pull off within the week, even with a bunch of practice.

I agree Damon wasn't sounding his best - but I put that down to the above difficulties. And I think you can claim not to be interested in nostalgia all you like, but you're not inviting Deltron to tour with you without diving head first into Clint Eastwood every night (and I hope Rock The House too!).

Black Thought killed it, though.

Completely! No idea how likely it is that many of the new guests show up on tour, but I would be VERY happy to hear that in person.

[shakermaker]

I was also a little surprised at the throwback. I can imagine ways the thinking may have gone. It's your first and possibly only time playing SNL, do you really pass up the chance to play one of your funnest and most recognizable songs,.and give Del his time in the spotlight while you are at it? I can sympathize with that temptation.

I would have liked to see Damascus instead, I think that could have hit hard, but am happy for them.

[Bosco]

I think nostalgia is an unwritten understanding by Damon (and majority of bands) when it comes to concerts even if he claims to be anti-nostalgic. Paying customers, more time than not, come to hear the hits. Nothing wrong with that. Playing SNL is a showcase of what the artist wants you to see, and Clint Eastwood - first in the set - was a strange choice in my mind. If it was 2nd song choice, I wouldn't have put any emphasis on it. Remember, most people turn off SNL after the first musical performance or "Weekend Update".

"Rock the House" probably will be featured in the Deltron 3030 set.

[Bosco]

My understanding of SNL performances is that they are almost 100% of the time underwhelming, often with fans questioning how a band they love could possibly sound so bad. Anecdotes from other bands suggest the schedule is quite grueling and that the performance is always quite difficult to pull off within the week, even with a bunch of practice.

I know you love to be the hush to my Beck love. But nearly 30 years ago Beck played Devils Haircut on SNL and basically compelled me to purchase my first CD. SNL sets are largely an impression/influence based performance.

[Enjoyed]

I am a fan of Beck! Honest!

I'm probably the only person you know who loves The Information!

I just don't love the lyrics in Skipping Like A Stone (which I think is more on Tom than Mr B), and unfortunately also think Possession Island is kinda weak.

Wide Open is brilliant, and, more on topic, The Valley of the Pagans is also fantastic.

That said... I just watched that Devil's Haircut performance and... I think it's all mimed

I'm not by any means trying to say performing on SNL means automatic suckyness - I just know that there is at least a regular sentiment out there that things don't always translate as well as it feels like they should.

The Moon Cave sounded mostly pretty great!

[Bosco]

That said... I just watched that Devil's Haircut performance and... I think it's all mimed

He is right

Spoiler

I've actually never went back to re-watch, and you're totally right! Clearly as a 10 year old, that was not something I was looking out for. Singing about a Devils Haircut certainly did though. That concept seemed unbelievably edgy for me at that time!

And to the Gorillaz credit, they absolutely looked like they performed live! I love that they chose to play The Moon Cave. Damascus would've been interesting too, and with that they could've double down with a subtle statement. But who knows, maybe they were warned to not go down that direction.

That being said,  someone on reddit noticed there is a little subliminal imagery in The Moon Cave portion of the animated music video...

from r/gorillaz

also, just received this
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