Album review: 'Plastic Beach' from the Gorillaz

Damon Albarn formed this heady cartoon-band side project to keep himself entertained while on hiatus from his seminal Britpop act, Blur. Stuffed as they were with electro-pop hooks and globe-tripping grooves, the first two Gorillaz albums never actually felt like side-project material -- especially in the U.S., where left-field hits such as "Clint Eastwood" and "Feel Good Inc" gained more traction on American radio than Blur ever did.

Last year Albarn re-teamed with Blur's original lineup for a series of rapturously received reunion shows, and though that was great news for Blur fans, you can hear the result of the frontman's divided attention throughout the third Gorillaz album, "Plastic Beach."

Too many of these 16 hazy, half-crazy tracks sound like undercooked studio goofs recorded in the wee hours by Albarn and his impressive circle of celebrity pals.

A handful of standouts crop up early on: "White Flag" pairs the clipped rhymes of U.K. rappers Bashy and Kano with hypnotic Middle Eastern strings, while "Stylo," the album's disco-fied lead single, makes great use of Bobby Womack's growly soul vocals.

But the second half of "Plastic Beach" plays like one long, jammy drone, with none of Albarn's melodic or lyrical gifts on display; not even Mick Jones and Paul Simonon of the Clash are able to rescue the title track from vintage-synth tedium.

-- Mikael Wood 

Gorillaz
"Plastic Beach"
Virgin
One and a half stars (Out of four)

Comments

[luke]

Thank you for reviewing this album objectively. I have been a devout Gorillaz/Damon Albarn fan since I first heard Clint Eastwood. I understand what they were trying to achieve, and the idea of taking things in a new direction. But honestly, I prefer Democrazy (a solo album of Albarn's that openly admits to being undercooked goofs recorded in hotel rooms while on tour with blur).

[Rich]

Wow can't wait to listen to it! Such innovative sounds from the last effort.

[Lars Kilevold]

This album is a masterpiece and you should obviously not be reviewing records.

[Vincent D]

Several years of collaborative effort only to be criticized by a reviewer who demonstrates little appreciation of musical depth. There is so little about this album to criticize beyond its lack of a hit single that to give such a negative score with such little feedback is unfair. This only thing that is undercooked and unfocused is this review. Perhaps you should listen to the album more than once if you wish to comprehend the direction and risks it exemplifies.

[Josh]

Ah yet another cynical critic. This is a wonderful album, as were most of the past albums by gorillaz. It seems great albums such as these which choose to take another direction and break the mold are labeled another back-alley album to be rediculed by uneducated (and apparently deaf) critics. Yet with the creativity and depth this band is putting out, the band deserves just the opposite.

As an added note, I believe Vincent D has hit the nail on the head

[JLM]

Wow... Are you serious? What valid criticism have you actually given here? That the tracks sound goofy? Well, the band is made up of cartoon characters, so I think it's perfectly natural for the album to be a little out there. Your only other complaint is that there doesn't seem to be a standout hit, yet then you go on to admit Feel Good Inc. and Clint Eastwood both became sort of unexpectedly popular in the US. This "review" is trash and couldn't help anyone make a decision about purchasing it, since the author spends half the time talking about things other than the music he is supposed to be reviewing...

[Mike Mineo]

I strongly agree with Vincent D.

This linear review is doing such a beautiful album injustice.

No prevalent melodic gifts? The latter half of the album lags? Try to listen again. Reviews are indeed opinions, but it's evident you were assigned this album and rushed through the assignment.

Trying to describe an album like this in the length you did is impossible, so if you had a word limit then I can understand. But it is fairly obvious by this review being an outlier of other press responses that the reviewer was rushing through it.

To describe several awe-inspiring melodic epics as "one long, jammy drone" is erroneous and insulting. How is the delicate "Cloud of Unknowing", Blur Brit-pop throwback "Pirate Jet", and illuminating "To Binge" even remotely classified as "jams"? You really need to get your facts straight. LA Times should pull this score. An absolute disgrace that will surely damage this publication's reputation for "covering" music.

[James]

This review reads like a long drone! I can completely understand why somebody might dislike Plastic Beach if they were taken with the style of previous Gorillaz work... but 1.5/4 is a ridiculous score, it's clearly a better album than that.

[James]

That score is WAY too low. I love every single song on this album.

[richard]

I'm sorry but did the reviewer actually listen to Plastic Beach? I'm under the impression here that they had it on in the car while they were driving drunk or something. Absolutely nothing in the review indicates that they dissected the work critically to even the slightest degree, to say nothing of the poor taste the score alone implies. Even through the rose-tinted glasses that made me favor Demon Days over the (arguably) sonically superior Demon Days, I can recognize Plastic Beach as the real deal. Literally every song on the album is perfectly crafted, beautifully produced, fresh and most importantly, has high repeat value. The themes are cohesive, the beats are tight, every celebrity is well utilized, and man, even if you don't like Gorillaz you should be able to find something here that fits your sensibilities. I would like to humbly request a new review.

[ratiofarm]

Mikael, I would like to suggest that you give Plastic Beach a few more listens. It far outshines the previous Gorillaz albums and is probably the best work Alburn has done since 13.

[Nightcrawler]

Too many of these 16 hazy, half-crazy tracks sound like undercooked studio goofs recorded in the wee hours by Albarn and his impressive circle of celebrity pals.
First off Damon has been long overdue he been needed to produce a album.Gorillaz have never had the same sound if you go to Wikipedia you will see that they appear under many genres.Also they even created their own genre name Zombie hip-hop and Dark pop in 2000.Its obvious this guy just wanted to turn in his review to get paid did he listen to the lyrics?
And Jamie that guy is talented they must think lowly of these guys WTF?

[marc]

this review of plastic beach is ridiculous, get out of the US once in a while..

[Tim Wilson]

REVIEW: FAIL

[Jose]

I desagree . This album is amazing I love Gorillaz.

[B. Tolkov ~ randomh3ro1~]

I truthfully dont think this guy even listened to Plastic Beach. I usually don't criticize peoples opinions but this guys a moron. Oh and its funny, because he gave Puddle of Mud and Mudvayne a higher score then the Gorillaz, ARE YOU INSANE DUDE? moron.

http://www.spin.com/writers/mikael-wood?page=1

[Mike]

Thanks to this half-*ssed review, this album's Metacritic score just dropped from 82 to 81. Ouch.

[A2]

The Gorillaz do it again! This is an album that must be listened to. Buy it and add it to your collection because it is one of the few examples of real musical creativity and collaboration today. Favorite track: Empire Ants.

[so what...]

I agree , your review is pale !
The collaborations on this album are incredible. Hypnotic Brass Ensemble who are incredible on their own . De la Soul who is old school. A dash of Lou Reed . C'mon ! These are musician /artists making music/art. A rarity these days. Sit and listen with some headphones on , you may appreciate it .

[Dale Watson]

Yikes - looks like someone has made a goof in his review. There's always one, right? Can't figure out whether the reviewer is trying to be adversarial or just doesn't get it.

I recommend you pop this disc in for another listen and see what you clearly missed...

[Troels S.]

It's a shame that this review has to drag down the overall great grades and reviews of "Platic Beach". The review really doesn't say a lot, and if the reviewer had not been a grump, indirectly stating that it's a bad album because it's not radiofriendly as previous albums, this album would be the most appreciated in general of the 3 Gorillaz records. It simply is the greatest Gorillaz album and so far also the greatest of 2010.
Frankly, I think another reviewer might have been more well suited. LA times ust be ashamed by such a ridiculous review from their hand.

[Tanner Remy]

I've read some poor articles from th Times before, but this one tops it all. How are you being published with nonsence like this being what you write? The Gorillaz have never dissapointed their fans, and you are obviously not one of them! Like my friend Lars Kilevold said in an earlier post, this album is a masterpiece. You and your bias for whatever genre you happen to drool over should take a step back to realize what really constitutes musical creativity. Plastic Beach is the best album of 2010 thus far. Now go read some other reviews on this album, and you will notice why establishments such as Pitchfork and Rolling Stone have more skills in this field than you do. You are the type of person who causes half of the Times reviews to be terrible. I pity the future of the Times reviews if it rests in the hands of people like you.

[Dankbank]

Weakest review of an album I have ever read. Put some more effort into your job.

[Taylor James]

You're a twit.
That's all I have to say about your review.

Cheers!

[Writeathome]

Reviews are mostly junk but can be misleading.

Do we have some personal issue here, can't speak highly of work you can't get done yourself.