{"id":39663,"date":"2006-02-27T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2006-02-27T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/reviews\/demon-days\/"},"modified":"2006-02-27T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2006-02-27T00:00:00","slug":"demon-days","status":"publish","type":"review","link":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/reviews\/demon-days\/","title":{"rendered":"Demon Days"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

When marketing Demon Days<\/i>, Gorillaz should
\nhave hired the same firm that marketed 1999s black comedy
\nAmerican Beauty<\/i>. For that movie’s poster, the tagline “look
\ncloser” pulled audiences into the alluring shot of a teenager’s
\nnavel. With Demon Days<\/i>, the tagline could be altered to read
\n“listen closer.” Because the first listen sure as hell won’t grab
\nyou. In fact, it may repulse you.<\/p>\n

Those who thought Damon Albarn officially rode Blur
\noff the deep end of the music world with 2003’s Think Tank<\/i>
\nwill have their beliefs confirmed with the plodding third track,
\n“Kids With Guns.” Gorillaz follows that song up with “O Green
\nWorld,” a song that sounds as if Albarn was singing the track from
\na dentist’s chair.<\/p>\n

The album continues to go in seemingly insane,
\nself-indulgent directions. We have Dennis Hopper doing a seemingly
\npointless spoken-word track (“Fire Coming Out Of A Monkey’s Head”)
\nand the king of control freaks, Ike Turner, dropping in to
\ncontribute a piano solo on “Every Planet We Reach Is Dead.”<\/p>\n

The fine vocal talents of Neneh Cherry and Martina
\nTopley Bird are utterly wasted, as they are primarily background
\nvocals on their respective tracks. At the end of the first listen,
\nmost people would totally accept why Dan “The Automator” Nakamura
\njumped ship after the Gorillaz’ self-titled debut.<\/p>\n

Still, the album throws you enough bones to lure you
\nback in for a second listen. For starters, the band offers “Dare,”
\na song Prince should be kicking himself for not writing. And the
\nalbum closes with a gorgeous chorus from the London Community
\nGospel Choir.<\/p>\n

As for the rest of the album, call it the “Feel Good,
\nInc.” effect. At first listen, you question who had the balls to
\nrelease this as a summer single. The song starts off with a killer
\nbass line, but the chorus could be a ’60s protest anthem — and
\nsuddenly, De La Soul comes in and crashes the party. Still — God
\nknows how — producer Danger Mouse makes it work enough for you to
\nwant to listen to it again\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6and again\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6and again.<\/p>\n

Adding to the overall weirdness of Demon Days<\/i>,
\nEMI (Gorillaz’s record label) notoriously served Danger Mouse a
\ncease and desist order for his Jay-Z\/Beatles mash-up, The Grey
\nAlbum<\/i>. EMI wisely chose not to let this legal issue interfere
\nwith the opportunity of having a white-hot producer man the boards
\nfor a band that could have easily been a one-hit wonder with “Clint
\nEastwood.”<\/p>\n

Danger Mouse was rightly nominated for a Grammy for
\nproducer on Demon Days<\/i>. What at first listen was a
\ncareer-ending album slowly begins to unveil its layers. Neneh
\nCherry’s barely-recognizable background vocals become a sultry
\nhomage to Salt-N-Pepa’s “Push It.” The out-of-place cocaine beats
\nof “White Light” make its middle all the more soothing and
\nrewarding. Even without reading the reviews about the album being a
\nsort of concept album about the deterioration of the planet, you
\nbegin to notice an overall flow that makes you feel guilty for
\nskipping a track.<\/p>\n

The placement of obscure musical personalities, an
\n‘it’ producer and \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 let’s face it, cartoon characters as
\nband members smacks of novelty. However, on Demon Days<\/i>,
\nGorillaz reveal a band that deserves to be taken seriously,
\ntwo-dimensional or not.<\/p>\n

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