You’ve watched the rise of Gorillaz, now hear The Fall. Luckily, the album that may be the coda to the group’s career is more Mark E. Smith than Reginald Perrin in the musical stakes. Recorded on the fly during last year’s US tour, Damon Albarn essentially used whatever was to hand (namely, vocals, the odd acoustic and Bobby Womack) and captured the recordings on his brand new iPad.
Essentially an Albarn solo work, it may be tempting to tie it to his previous Democrazy release but this is far more accomplished material. The production is crisp and commendable, the songs more fully fleshed out and the moody instrumentals flow together deftly to create an atmosphere as evocative as the open road. If anything, its wistful, melancholic nature will put you in mind of The Good, The Bad & The Queen (no bad thing).
As for Mr. Albarn, he once again proves himself to be one of the most interesting and prolific songwriters of his generation, plucking bittersweet melodies from the breeze. The forced minimalism and recording tool restrictions actually work to his advantage – everything boils down to his sad, weary voice, a dash of synth and eastern strings, and the squelching hip hop beats that have become Gorillaz’ trademark. Suddenly, he’s Jack White in the age of Apple. The record only really suffers when compared with what has gone before, which is understandable given its genesis.
The runt of the Gorillaz litter (to mix animal metaphors) it may be, but it is nevertheless a fine addition to the catalogue, its forlorn, understated electronica improving with each listen. And to think, Kraftwerk once had to build computers the size of bungalows to play this stuff.