Gorillaz – aka 2-D, Murdoc Niccals, Noodle and Russel Hobbs are back with their fourth album, Humanz and, once again, it’s another genre-bending adventure through their cartoon world, with guest appearances from (deep breath) Vince Staples, Popcaan, D.R.A.M., Grace Jones, Anthony Hamilton, De La Soul, Danny Brown, Kelela, Mavis Staples, Pusha T and Benjamin Clementine. Oh, and this guy called Damon Albarn keeps popping up on it. Weird.
Anyway, to celebrate the release of the record (which is out right this second), we caught up with lead vocalist and keyboard player 2-D to discover the tunes that really make him tick.
Read on to discover his Ultimate Playlist; WARNING – contains some serious tunes.
Favourite Sad Song
“‘Sometimes It Snows In April’ by Prince. ‘Sometimes I feel so bad, so bad.’ Those lyrics really speak to me, especially when I’m running away from Murdoc’s hounds. Prince helps me to be strong. And fast.”
Favourite Movie Soundtrack Song
“The main theme from Death Wish, by Herbie Hancock. Brilliant ‘70s score. It sounds like the TV of olden times, before I joined a band and life got complicated and full of pain. I miss those times.”
Favourite Song From Your Childhood
“’Boys Don’t Cry’ by The Cure. I cried like a baby the first time I heard it. And not just because I was a baby at the time. I cried to it lots as a boy, too. And as a man. It’s better to let it all out I think.”
Favourite Song That No-one Else Has Heard Of
“The one I’m humming in my head right now. It kind of goes dee doo dee doo dee dee dee doo and there’s some fast drums. Either that or ‘Taking Me Higher’ by Barclay James Harvest.”
Favourite Club Anthem
“’Little Fluffy Clouds’ by The Orb. It lifts me up into the sky, floats me around a bit with the birds and the planes, then deposits me in a field somewhere near Essex with lots of ravers.”
Favourite Song To Hear At A Wedding
“’Annie I’m Not Your Daddy’ by Kid Creole & the Coconuts. Always a good song, just not when the father of the bride does his speech.”
Favourite One-Hit Wonder
“’Somebody’s Watching Me’, by Rockwell. The chorus goes “I always feel like someone’s watching me”. I can really relate to that because of all the CCTV and things in modern society. And the surveillance camera Murdoc installed above my bed.”
Favourite Lyric From A Song
“’The Humpty Dance’ by Digital Underground. The lyric goes ‘I once got busy in a Burger King bathroom.’ I think we can all relate to that, right? Especially people who work at Burger King and have to clean the bathrooms.”
Favourite Current Song
“’Location’ by Khalid. Very chilled. In fact, after this I’m going to make a peppermint tea, put it on loop and get into my hammock.”
Favourite Song From Your Own Music
“’Andromeda’. It takes you far away from the madness of Earth. It’s also the name of our nearest galaxy. Andromeda is actually going to crash into us in four billion years. I’m just saying, ‘cos it pays to be prepared.”
