After watching the Oscars this morning on live TV, and seeing the montage of dead persons in Hollywood, I got to say, I'm surprised.
I now know that Dennis Hopper and Pete Postlethwaite passed away. That's really something - when did they die? It wasn't like all over the front page of the news, or even the "entertainment" section.
Pete Postlethwaite is possibly the man with the most angular face shape I've ever seen. He was amazing in "Brassed Off" starring Ewan McGregor, and I read somewhere Steven Spielberg thinks highly of him, dubbing him the most versatile actor around.
Brassed Off premier
Dennis Hopper - at first I was like "Wait - wasn't he in one of the Gorillaz albums?" and then I did a quick search and found out that not only was he the guy who did "Fire coming out of the monkey's head" for Gorillaz album Demon Days.
He also performed and toured with the band during the promotion of Demon Days. I remember during my days where college work didn't bombard me with deadlines, words and essays, I used to watch the whole Gorillaz concerts online. Here's a particularly good performance featuring the one and only Dennis Hopper...
He is amazing. Simply amazing how an actor can work with Damon Albarn, the genius of creating music and combining people together, to create such a song. It plays great live too.
Dennis Hopper also features on Bananaz, Gorillaz's documentary film. He is hilarious... Damon's hilarious... Jamie's goofy. The clip below shows you the part he's in.
I think Damon just wants to use his American accent to show his gradual shift into the american music scene! Or to promote his album in the US ?
Dennis Hopper with Jamie and Damon at the Grammys
He will be missed... I'm now wondering how Damon took the news of his death. Damon and Dennis seemed pretty close and in good terms, at least on the business side of things.
It was a shock for me to learn he died, and only in the Oscars did I actually hear this news. It's sad.
Check this previously unreleased Gorillaz interview. The interview was conducted while they were in France during the tour late last year. Check out the interview on Youtube below.
I love Damon's hat and that Jamie Hewlett is just a laid back, silly cool ape.
First heard from mrbeats from the Blur Forums, Gorillaz's "Stylo" from Plastic Beach was nominated for an MTV-U Woodie Award 2011 for Best Video.
According to wikipedia:
"It was announced that Gorillaz would be performing on March 11, 2011 at the MTV Woodie awards. They have also been nominated for the Best Video Woodie for "Stylo" at the MTV woodie awards."
After doing a quick search, here's what I found out about the Woodie Award.
mtvU is a division of MTV Networks which produces a 24-hour television channel that is available on more than 750 college and university campuses across the United States. mtv U provides a more targeted alternative to MTV, and gives advertisers and music promotion companies access to college-age viewers, access that universities offer in an attempt to attract students to on-campus housing.
Basically it's MTV for University students, hence the "U". So what's the Woodie Awards?
mtvU has its own annual awards show, the Woodie Awards, which they say recognizes "the music voted best by college students." Previous winners have included Death Cab for Cutie, Motion City Soundtrack, 30 Seconds to Mars, Plain White T's, The Subways and Gnarls Barkley.
“Opposite Of Adults” Nominated For 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards
The Gorillaz "Stylo" is nominated for Best Video Woodie. The website features an epic picture of Damon performing at one of the gigs this year.
I hope Gorillaz wins Best Video this year. As I said before, it's awards season now and Gorillaz haven't won anything yet, even with all the nominations for NME, Grammys, Brits and Woodies....
So, keep checking Blurballs for the latest update on awards!
Hey all, it's the awards season! In my last post, we saw that Gorillaz and Blur didn't win anything at the Grammy Awards this year. So this morning, I was reminded by my dear friends on facebook that The Brit Awards are coming up!
The Brit Awards 2011 will take place at the O2 Arena in London on 15th February. This year Gorillaz were nominated for best British Group.
Best British Group:
Biffy Clyro Gorillaz Mumford & Sons Take That The xx
This is exciting! According to an online friend from the official website, Gorillaz is one of the favourites of this category this year. Predictions have also mentioned that Gorillaz might win!
Gorillaz at the 2006 Brit Awards
Graham knocking it back after Blur win 4 awards at the 1995 Brit Awards
Blur's "No Distance Left to Run" was nominated for the same category but lost out to The Door's film "When You're Strange".
As much as I love The Doors, it's a pity indeed that they robbed Blur of its nomination.
60s Rock Band The Doors
I've included links in the post to the winners' work. Feel free to leave a comment on what you think of the pieces. Personally I really think Jeff Beck's instrumental is nothing compared to Gorillaz's. It does not have flair, and sounds like an orchestral piece rather than a "pop" performance.
Gorillaz screams "Pop" in their sound, artwork and just everything!
I'm watching the Grammy Awards Clive Davis Party live online. Still a day before the real awards. Both Blur and Gorillaz were nominated this year, and it's the FIRST TIME Blur's ever received a Grammy Award. Ironic isn't it, how it's been years since they made any album and it's still the first time ever that they got nominated.
Blur's documentary No Distance Left To Run was nominated for Best Long Form Music Video.
Best Long Form Music Video
1. NO DISTANCE LEFT TO RUN - Blur
2. WHEN YOU'RE STRANGE - The Doors
3. THE GREATEST EARS IN TOWN: THE ARIF MARDIN STORY - Arif Mardin
4. RUSH: BEYOND THE LIGHTED STAGE - Rush
5. UNDER GREAT WHITE NORTHERN LIGHTS - The White Stripes
Gorillaz's were nominated for 2 awards:
Best Pop Instrumental Performance
"Flow" -- Laurie Anderson
"Nessun Dorma" -- Jeff Beck
"No Mystery" -- Stanley Clarke
"Orchestral Intro" -- Gorillaz
"Sleepwalk" -- The Brian Setzer Orchestra
Best Short Form Music Video
Johnny Cash – "Ain't No Grave / The Johnny Cash Project"
Eminem and Rihanna – "Love the Way You Lie"
Gorillaz, Mos Def and Bobby Womack– "Stylo"
Cee Lo Green – "Fuck You!"
Lady Gaga – "Bad Romance"
Bruce Willis in Stylo
Lets see if Gorillaz or Blur notches up an award! Keep checking this site for updates!
Dear readers, I'm extremely tired after a long Saturday in college. Had class from 10:00am in the morning till 6:00pm at night. Fun eh?
Just before I head off to bed, I thought I'd fulfill my promise of reviewing some more of Gorillaz's The Fall ("...the first ipad album in the world!"). To read Part 1 of the review, click here.
4 - Detriot
I feel more awake after listening to this tune. It's fresh, clear and catchy, although very raw. Sorta techno, steady beat and rhythm all through out. It's more like an experiment in the beats and pop of the 80s... those disco hits. Highlights are the tune in the middle - love it. Short but sweet.
***
I'm thinking an empty disco. Perhaps it's the hours before a big party at the club, and the DJ's testing out his new tune. He's head-bobbing and wearing dark sunglasses. Disco's empty, yet the lights and everything are fully blasted. Air-conditioning makes the room chilled, ice cold.
Ice-cold room, empty only with the sound of Detriot
5 - Shy-Town
Damon is high pitch here. Very. The keyboards play a huge part in the song, with long notes played on and on. Shy-town has a strange atmosphere to it, sort of ghostly and reserved. There are also alien-radar sounds at the beginning of the song. Damon speaks in his monotone - Friday, Chicago and then starts singing. We hear waves and sounds of water. A beautiful song indeed, and one that could've made it to Plastic Beach with a little more refining.
***
Underwater. Submarines. Damon and Paul Simonon in their pirate hats and striped outfits, sailing to sea in a tiny wooden boat.
5 - Little Pink Plastic Bags
The tune's funky. Dark. Damon utters - "Little Pink Plastic Bags...blowing on a highway...they don't know where they'll go...they'll just float there" and then his voice goes off into echos. Long periods of whirling follows, sounds like some kind of fan or machine's backdrop. I think this song's the most unique song on The Fall. The tune's really wacky and it grows on you as you listen.
It's another lonely Friday night and I'm in my college dorm. Piles of assignments glare at me from the tops of my shelves. Since I'm in full procrastination mode, and I only have Gorillaz to keep me company, I'm going to present to you my track by track review of Gorillaz's "ipad album" The Fall (Released December 2010). I'll start off by introducing the album and then reviewing the first couple of tunes.
Messy desk, overdue coursework, college dorm
From Montreal to Vancouver via Seattle, Texas and Toronto, over 32 days on their North American Tour this autumn, Gorillaz recorded a musical diary. Recorded on tour, on an iPad, this low-key album (click here to listen to stream for free on the band's website) is the sound of Damon Albarn blowing trees and tweaking apps on his ipad as the American mountains rolls by his tour bus window.
The result is a collection of 15 tracks, some with vocals, some without, some combined performances and some solo.
The music was recorded during spare time while on the road. "I did it because there's a lot of time that you just spend staring at walls essentially. And it was a fantastic way of doing it" says Damon Albarn. "I found working in the day, whether it's in the hotel or in the venue, it was a brilliant way of keeping myself well." Adding that the collection is "..like a diary, I literally wrote everything on the day in each place and there's a strange sort of sound of America and its musical traditions that comes through. It feels like a journey through America."
A physical release is planned for later in 2011. The full track listing is:
Phoner To Arizona
Revolving Doors
HillBilly Man
Detroit
Shy-town
Little Pink Plastic Bags
The Joplin Spider
The Parish of Space Dust
The Snake In Dallas
Amarillo
The Speak It Mountains
Aspen Forest
Bobby In Phoenix
California And The Slipping Of The Sun
Seattle Yodel
Lets go through what you get with this album, shall we? I will review the first 3 tracks.
Oh, and I've included pictures of how I picture the song when I listen to it. Maybe it'll help you visualize and set the mood...
1 - Phoner to Arizona
Slightly techno. Reminds me of Stylo, especially the 80s bass beat that runs all the way through the song. No vocals, quite repetitive. It seems like a perfect B-side to any Plastic Beach song, it's pretty much Damon's style. Fades away at the end. Nothing special or spectacular, just a plain old tune that could have been polished.
***
When I listen to Phoner to Arizona, I'm imagining a night out. It's late and everyone's leaving the party, bar, club. You're walking home alone in the cold dark street. Yellow lights from the lamp-post streams down and casts a shadow.
Feel the mood...
2 - Revolving Doors
One of my favourite tracks on The Fall. Damon sings in his drowning croon and repeats "Revolving Doors" over and over again. The song describes him sitting in an American diner and watching the "foggy days" outside his window. He reflects on his life and just sings. The tune is a repeating little tune, quite catchy. Reminds me of Damon's Opera (Monkey Journey to the West) and also the song Hong Kong on Gorillaz's b-sides album D-Sides.
***
I'm just thinking revolving doors, revolving around and around. Spinning. It's a blur of people in and out. Beatles music on cue.
3- Hillbilly Man
The song begins with Damon singing about free lanes with a gentle guitar sound in the background. He's talking about driving away and the song's really mellow. Then halfway around 1:25, beats come in. The whole song changes mood. I'm not sure whether it's on purpose or not, but Damon's voice seems to be getting raspier. Rasp is then followed by the chorus, which chants Hillibilly repeatedly. Don't really like the rasp. Didn't Damon quit smoking?
***
I didn't know what "Hillibilly" was so I did a Google search. Can't stop laughing at the results:
Hillibilly - "Unsophisticated person" - Google Dictionary
That's the end of tonight's The Fall review. I'll continue on next time, please subscribe to the blog or bookmark it! You can always follow the RSS Feed on the sidebar on the right.
What do you think of The Fall and the songs above? Disagree ?
Snoop Dogg's official site confirms that Gorillaz will feature on his new album "Doggumentary", due to be released on March 29th. The album art was unveiled a few days ago to fans.
Guests on the album include Kanye, E-40, Gorillaz, R.Kelly, Wiz Khalifa, Jeezy, T-Pain and more. Below is the tracklist for Doggumentary.
01. Toys In The Hood (feat. Bootsy Collins) /Produced by Jake One
02. My Own Way /Produced by Denaun Porter
03. Eyes Closed (feat. Kanye West & John Legend) /Produced by Kanye West
04. Something Like This (feat. Gorillaz) /Produced by Gorillaz
05. Take You Home (feat. Too Short, Kokane & Daz Dillinger) /Produced by Meech Wells
06. El Jay (feat. Marty James) /Produced by Scoop Deville
07. Cold Game (feat. LaToya Williams) /Produced by Rick Rude
08. Don't It Feel Good (feat. Ne-Yo) /Produced by David Banner
09. Dirty Dancer (feat. Trey Songz) /Produced by Trylogy
10. Superman (feat. Willie Nelson) /Produced by Willie Nelson's Band
11. Raised In The Hood /Produced by Warren Campbell
12. Choose /Produced by Black Mob
13. This Weed Is Mine (feat. Wiz Khalifa) /Produced by Scoop Deville
14. Gangbang Rookie (feat. Pilot) /Produced by J-Kwon
15. New Year's Eve (feat. Marty James) /Produced by Scoop Deville
16. Wet /Produced by The Cataracs
Click here to check out Snoop Dogg's official website with the good news.
I'm glad - this means we will get to hear Damon sing again. One more of his fantastic collaborations with different bands can be added to our Blur collection!
Seeing as Snoop Dogg sang in Plastic Beach (Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach, watch below), I wonder if Damon will even tour with him in 2011 ?
Guys, 2011 seems very promising so far. Damon's back on track, Gorillaz is not splitting up (yet), Graham, Dave and Alex seems optimistic and open about Blur doing some more tracks and jamming together and don't forget Damon's new opera and Graham's film soundtrack!
Oh, and don't forget, Alex James is hosting a music festival and Dave's running for politics again.
Now if only Jamie and Damon can just get along.... then we might even get to hear those Gorillaz B-sides that they never released.
The on-again, off-again rumors can officially be put to a rest: Gorillaz are not breaking up, a publicist for the group says.
The rumors of a Gorillaz split go back to last year when the band was on tour. At that point, Damon Albarn told the Toronto Sun that the group may call it quits at the end of their tour.
That rumor was “confirmed” last week in an article in People Magazine that said the group had “sensationally split.” Hold your horses, a band representative said. That’s not the case at all. When asked to confirm or deny the rumors of a breakup, the band’s rep said:
So, breathe easy everybody!
During a performance in New Zealand back in December, vocalist Damon Albarn gave a lengthy speech about how the show might end up being the band's last ever live performance.
Well, the relationship between band members Jamie Hewlett and Damon is still on the rocks. Hewlett is said to be pissed at Damon over "how much time Albarn was giving to his many other projects."
On the flipside, Albarn has been "less than impressed with Jamie's party lifestyle" lately.
And the two were the best of friends!
Jamie Hewlett's son Denholm has spoken up about the shaky friendship on Gorillaz-Unofficial. Denholm posted, "I just spoke to my dad... he said its rubbish, they have kinda fallen out... they're just taking time apart from each other to work on other projects. gorillaz are not gunna split up, its fine."
I sure hope Denholm's not messing around. However, if it all turns out to be true and Jamie and Damon are really ready to call it quits, there better be some pretty damn good Blur projects in the works.
Look what I found...
Either way, it's looking good for us fans. Gorillaz aren't splitting up (yet) and Blur seems to be tethering along in their studio.
Lets see what happens. Subscribe for more news and updates!
