Tomorrow Comes Today (The Gorillaz Thread)

Bohnjaggs said:
I kind of forget about The Fall. I've probably only listened to it a couple of times close to when it first came out.
Click to expand...
I didn't really think much of it until I picked it up for RSD last year (or was that the year before?). I was hooked after the first spin. People tend to never even mention that album, but I think it's great. Underrated, at least!
 
Bloodlemons said:
Is it weird that I like The Fall almost as much as I like Plastic Beach?
Click to expand...
The Fall has grown on me a lot in the decade (I feel so old typing that 😭) since it came out, but I still kind of look at it as a bit of an outlier... it definitely has it's own weird atmosphere that sets it apart. I think it gets looked over because there aren't very many traditional Gorillaz-type songs, it's a lot of unconventional instrumental bits and formless experimental songs (I mean that in a good way btw). It is vastly underrated but its also kind of understandable why it is, it won't appeal to a wide array of people the same way a Demon Days or a Plastic Beach will
 
in all seriousness with Plastic Beach I remember it coming out, buying the CD and having a 3 or 4 hour drive that evening. I was hyped after 5 years of loving Demon Days, I put the CD into the car and let it spin the 3 or 4 times it went through during the journey. I just remember being more and more disappointed each time through. For all its merits or otherwise I don’t think I’ve ever quite got over how disappointed I was on that car journey.

The Fall is ace for what is essentially a demo album. I read a piece with Damon recently where he said it was the most underrated Gorillaz album and just imagine how good it would have been if he actually finished it rather than just releasing the song sketches he’d done on his iPad. Same interview he also said he still thought that Clint Eastwood was the best Gorillaz track.
 
Joe Mac said:
in all seriousness with Plastic Beach I remember it coming out, buying the CD and having a 3 or 4 hour drive that evening. I was hyped after 5 years of loving Demon Days, I put the CD into the car and let it spin the 3 or 4 times it went through during the journey. I just remember being more and more disappointed each time through. For all its merits or otherwise I don’t think I’ve ever quite got over how disappointed I was on that car journey.

The Fall is ace for what is essentially a demo album. I read a piece with Damon recently where he said it was the most underrated Gorillaz album and just imagine how good it would have been if he actually finished it rather than just releasing the song sketches he’d done on his iPad. Same interview he also said he still thought that Clint Eastwood was the best Gorillaz track.
Click to expand...
Your drive with Plastic Beach sounds like when I first went on a walk and listened to Humanz. So much excitement after really enjoying all the singles and I ended the walk feeling so disappointed. However, I've managed to get over the initial disappointment by now and can appreciate the album but I do still remember that the first initial listen was pretty rough. But Plastic Beach was the first album cycle I ever paid attention to and the first big Gorillaz release to happen when I was a fan, so it will always be special to me just for that alone. I connect to the first three albums in different but equally special ways and all three occupy a very big space in my heart. Song Machine has really managed to inject a lot of that early spark back into the project to the point where it's made me go back to Humanz and The Now Now and be able to look at them in an even more positive light.
 
In retrospect, Humanz does feel like a pretty natural progression from Plastic Beach to me. I think it just was such a complicated and overblown piece of work with so many different factors at play... it's an album I just find so fascinating because it's just such a beautiful mess to me, from the rollout to the massive guest list to the "super deluxe" set. It's an album I admire while still being very aware of its flaws.

I think seeing the Reject False Icons documentary in theaters was what really helped turn my whole idea of the album around. Seeing the making of it in the studio and how it translated live was really a treat and you can tell Damon was really excited about working with all these new artists and talents on the record. It just didn't translate the way he wanted it to, I suppose, but I think that he made the album that he wanted to make and I can respect that.

I also may be one of like 17 people who unabashedly love "Sex Murder Party." That song is a jam, I don't care what y'all say
 
gaporter said:
In retrospect, Humanz does feel like a pretty natural progression from Plastic Beach to me. I think it just was such a complicated and overblown piece of work with so many different factors at play... it's an album I just find so fascinating because it's just such a beautiful mess to me, from the rollout to the massive guest list to the "super deluxe" set. It's an album I admire while still being very aware of its flaws.

I think seeing the Reject False Icons documentary in theaters was what really helped turn my whole idea of the album around. Seeing the making of it in the studio and how it translated live was really a treat and you can tell Damon was really excited about working with all these new artists and talents on the record. It just didn't translate the way he wanted it to, I suppose, but I think that he made the album that he wanted to make and I can respect that.

I also may be one of like 17 people who unabashedly love "Sex Murder Party." That song is a jam, I don't care what y'all say
Click to expand...
Which is probably why I don’t like either. I feel both lose some kinda essence by having too many collaborations. That said I love song machine and it’s all collaborations so who knows, I’ll just sit here with my opinions 😂😂
 
Joe Mac said:
Also song machine is ace.
Click to expand...
Admittedly my initial impression of the album was this is nothing more than a collection of standalone singles because of the way it was rolled out but when listened to from front to back, some of the songs I didn't care for as much initially, I now have a different appreciation for and no longer feel the need to skip over. By nature, the album feels like a cohesive whole and is a great depiction of these strange timez. Very solid 👌
 
Joe Mac said:
in all seriousness with Plastic Beach I remember it coming out, buying the CD and having a 3 or 4 hour drive that evening. I was hyped after 5 years of loving Demon Days, I put the CD into the car and let it spin the 3 or 4 times it went through during the journey. I just remember being more and more disappointed each time through. For all its merits or otherwise I don’t think I’ve ever quite got over how disappointed I was on that car journey.

The Fall is ace for what is essentially a demo album. I read a piece with Damon recently where he said it was the most underrated Gorillaz album and just imagine how good it would have been if he actually finished it rather than just releasing the song sketches he’d done on his iPad. Same interview he also said he still thought that Clint Eastwood was the best Gorillaz track.
Click to expand...
I remember the first time I listened to Plastic Beach it didn't even feel like a Gorillaz album because of all the guest spots. It didn't feel like a cohesive album like Demon Days did. Demon Days was, and still is, one of my favorite 2000's albums so it was going to be hard to follow up.
 
gaporter said:
In retrospect, Humanz does feel like a pretty natural progression from Plastic Beach to me. I think it just was such a complicated and overblown piece of work with so many different factors at play... it's an album I just find so fascinating because it's just such a beautiful mess to me, from the rollout to the massive guest list to the "super deluxe" set. It's an album I admire while still being very aware of its flaws.

I think seeing the Reject False Icons documentary in theaters was what really helped turn my whole idea of the album around. Seeing the making of it in the studio and how it translated live was really a treat and you can tell Damon was really excited about working with all these new artists and talents on the record. It just didn't translate the way he wanted it to, I suppose, but I think that he made the album that he wanted to make and I can respect that.
Click to expand...
My wife and I had a similar experience in seeing Gorillaz live on the Humanz tour. We thought the album was ok, but that show was AMAZING. The whole crowd was just vibing, hard. That show really upped the ante for me as a fan, even if Humanz is still my least-favorite of their albums.
 
Last edited:
Bloodlemons said:
My wife and I had a similar experience in seeing Gorillaz live on the Humanz tour. We thought the album as ok, but that show was AMAZING. The whole crowd was just vibing, hard. That show really upped the ante for me as a fan, even if Humanz is still my least-favorite of their albums.
Click to expand...
The Humanz tour was a lot of fun.
 
I am loving Song Machine, and I'm really hoping they can make this magic happen again with at least a Season 2. I was hesitant because Humanz and The Now Now both were disappointing for me. Granted, I still own them, and listen to them, but I do think they are the lowest ranking in my perspective, tied for last. The Now Now just felt too bubbly for me, kind of off brand I guess. It seemed to lack the grime and darkness the Gorillaz always bring to the table. I think Humanz had potential, but it was just SO bloated. Even when you removed the deluxe tracks it felt bloated. That album could have been trimmed down to a tight 30 minutes with no extras and I think it would have had a better impact.

As for The Fall, I enjoy where it was going, but I don't consider it a true album. It feels to me more like an Albarn demo solo project more than a Gorillaz project. But I wouldn't mind if they did something like Car Seat Headrest did with Twin Fantasy. Make a full studio production album called The Fall Out or something like that. Let it really reach it's full potential.

We'll see how Song Machine holds up over time, but Plastic Beach has been a long term favorite for me. I've always enjoyed the Gorillaz, but I didn't really dive deeper into full albums and their whole catalog until maybe 5 or 6 years ago. It was fun because I'd heard everything, but it also felt like everything outside of the radio hits was new again to an extent. And with that semi fresh take Plastic Beach went from an album I really didn't think about to a strong #1 for me. Other singles take the nostalgia factor, but as an album it stand above the rest to me. I would love to hear a sequel.
 
I wouldn't be mad if this had been included on the main album


The rest of the deluxe tracks are just okay to me so far tho. I haven't listened to them as much as the standard so they will probably grow on me with time. I still love "How Far?" as much as I did when it came out, but having heard the full album now, I can see why it was left as a bonus track, it doesn't really fit the vibe of the main album imo
 
gaporter said:
I wouldn't be mad if this had been included on the main album


The rest of the deluxe tracks are just okay to me so far tho. I haven't listened to them as much as the standard so they will probably grow on me with time. I still love "How Far?" as much as I did when it came out, but having heard the full album now, I can see why it was left as a bonus track, it doesn't really fit the vibe of the main album imo
Click to expand...

I don't really care for the extra tracks so I'm glad I went with the standard album.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top