Plastic Beach, the third album by the virtual band Gorillaz, is well regarded by many and is considered a masterpiece. Created by Blur multi-instrumentalist Damon Albarn and Tank Girl cartoonist Jamie Hewlett, Gorillaz entered the music scene with an exciting mix of alternative rock, hip hop, and lo-fi on their debut self-titled album of 2001. Given that the band has four unique characters as members, I will introduce them. There’s 2D, the lead singer and keyboardist of the group known for his hollow eyes and blue hair. Then there’s Russell Hobbs, the drummer who gets possessed by the ghosts of dead musicians. After that, there’s Noodle, the lone girl of the group who is the guitarist and hails from Japan. Finally there’s Murdoc Niccals, the bassist, who Hewlett described as “the unpleasant villain” of the band. While these band members are virtual, (Albarn sings and provides the instrumentation, along with featured artists), they provide a unique backstory to the music, and while I’d love to continue discussing the band’s backstory, that would take up the whole review, and the book Rise of the Ogre covers more of the band’s lore, so I would recommend reading that. On to the review!
We begin our musical journey to the sound of waves and seagulls. Then the swelling orchestra of Sinfonia Viva introduces us to the new and unfamiliar world. The next track “Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach” begins with a horn ensemble introduction and slides into a funky bass riff. Long Beach native Snoop Dogg’s chill humorous rhymes combined with the synth horns and auto tuned background vocals of 2D, follows the name of the title and welcomes us to the world of the plastic beach. The next track “White Flag”, features a beautiful orchestral intro with flutes, drums and strings done by the National Orchestra for Arab Music. As the violins intensify and build to a climax, British rapper Bashy comes in with a verse about washing up on the shore and name checks some island based shows, sounding frustrated about his predicament, as I imagine anyone who washes up on a beach would feel. Fellow British rapper Kano provides an aggressive verse as a follow up to Bashy’s, my favorite line being “skip on the beat like Ali in the gym.” I also like the growly synth bass riff that builds up as Kano continues his rapping. Hearing two British rappers rap over this varied beat is truly an engaging listen and proves that Gorillaz is not just one band but a collaborative effort. The next track, Rhinestone Eyes has this funky synth pop sound with some gentle acoustic guitar strumming from Noodle during 2D’s first verse. I especially like how visual 2D’s verse is: “Your rhinestone eyes are like factories far away” The chorus has this synth breakdown that you just can’t help but tap your foot to, at least that’s how it is for me. 2D’s verses paint this plastic dystopian world with detail that isn’t often heard in most mainstream pop music. The female vocal sample of “that’s electric-tric-tric-tric” is a nice touch as well.
After “Rhinestone Eyes”, we get “Stylo”, a track with a funky synth bass riff, and a vocoded refrain from rapper Mos Def. The “overload” is a metaphor for what our world has become. Overpopulated, overcrowded and just chaotic. The late Bobby Womack’s soulful vocals remind us of how everything is electric in our current Earth. It reminds me of the line in “Science” by System of a Down, “Science has failed our Mother Earth.” Both illustrate how mankind’s achievements in the fields of science and technology have come at the cost of our planet’s health. You can tell that by the lyrics that the singers also yearn for a kind of love beyond electric and artificial sources. While it has a upbeat and funky melody, the lyrics are a lot less upbeat. And that’s what makes it such an engaging track.
We’re followed by “Superfast Jellyfish” featuring De La Soul and Gruff Rhys, a track that satirizes the music industry’s quantity over quality approach. Basically, the idea that music needs to be put out at rapid speed, comparing it to fast and processed food. The King Neptune refrain is super catchy. When Gorillaz and De La Soul collaborate they make bangers, and this track is a great example of that. The transition from “Superfast Jellyfish” to the next track is very well done which I think doesn’t get talked about enough. The next track, “Empire Ants” featuring Little Dragon is a beautiful track with glistening piano patterns and soothing vocals from 2D. The song compares man’s actions to a group of ants. While the song sounds incredibly peaceful, the lyrics are incredibly bleak. An example, “The polyphonic prayer is here it’s all around you,” refers to having an individual melody but in a group harmonizing. Basically, as the individual ants march as an empire, they wish that they can live their dreams and live in peace, rather than live in monotony. I love the instrumental change to a more fast paced sound with Little Dragon’s Yukumi Nagano singing about workers on an assembly line like a machine. Basically the ant colony is a reflection of modern human society.
“Where’s north from here,” begins the track “Glitter Freeze” featuring Mark E Smith. It’s definitely not my favorite track on the album, but it serves as a nice interlude with a spoken word sequence. The beat is very groovy and uptempo. After that is “Some Kind of Nature” featuring the late Lou Reed. The piano paired with that great drum rhythm and it’s dark nature makes it a fantastic track. The line, “Some kind of plastic I could wrap around you,” according to Genius, is referencing the plastic littered in the ocean that wraps around animals and kills them. 2D and Lou Reed are dreaming of “some kind of nature” that’s beyond the plastic and manufactured pollution of our world. “On Melancholy Hill” has an upbeat sound with the laidback guitar strumming and chill bass riff. “Up on Melancholy Hill there’s a plastic tree,” paints a picture of how polluted our world is that the only nature left will be made of plastic. The music video for this album is a trip too, with the band members in a shark submarine. The upbeat sound is a nice trick because if you listen to the words it’s incredibly bleak. “Broken” sounds a lot more depressing instrumentally with that siren sound throughout. “There’s nothing you can do for them”, 2D says as he describes a destroyed relationship. The synth patterns are a nice touch, and really add a layer of sadness to the track. Mos Def returns on the track “Sweepstakes” which has a unique drum pattern and marimba loop. I don’t really know the meaning behind this track, but it serves as more of a second interlude, though a lot is going on on the track. The Hypnotic Brass Interlude adds a cool horn ensemble in the background, but it’s definitely not my favorite song on the record.
The title track, “Plastic Beach” opens up with a guitar intro that sounds like something straight out of a Western film. Then that beautiful synth keyboard pattern comes in and then 2D comes in, it’s just perfect. There’s features on the track (Mick Jones and Paul Simonon), but it’s mainly 2D’s time to shine. There’s a backstory of the album, besides the themes of environmentalism, but I haven’t read the lore, so for the purpose of this review, I’m just going to analyze the lyrics that have an overall theme. “To Binge” featuring Little Dragon, is another track that sounds upbeat, with its Hawaiian reverb soaked sound, and bluesy organs, but it’s about alcoholism. Yukumi Nagano mentions wanting to “cut the chains in half” which refer to the trapped feeling that those battling addictions feel. “Cloud of Unknowing” featuring Bobby Womack and Sinfonia Viva, returns to the familiar opening where we heard the waves and seagulls. Bobby’s soulful vocals illustrate religious themes from the medieval times, based on a document called “The Cloud of Unknowing”. Womack combined with the beautiful orchestra of Sinfonia Viva paints a beautiful and sad picture of being ok with the unknown, no matter how scary it might seem. Finally, we make it to the last track, “Pirate Jet,” with a funky synth pattern and vocoded refrain repeating the song’s title. The environmental themes of the album are tied in to the final track, basically saying we’ll be eating and drinking plastic thanks to our destruction of our planet. The album has come full circle.
Putting my bias as a Gorillaz fan aside, this album is a masterpiece. There are only two tracks that I’m not the biggest fan of, and those are “Glitter Freeze” and “Sweepstakes.” The whole album tells this fascinating and bleak story of a future world where everything is plastic and all nature and wildlife seem to only exist in our imaginations. Everything we eat is plastic, everything we breathe is plastic, everything we drink is plastic. This album has a powerful message, which is that we need to do everything in our power to protect our planet and preserve it for future generations. The album’s environmental themes have aged scarily well, as things in the past 14 years have only gotten worse and not better. The orchestration and production of this album is incredibly emotive and beautiful as well, with beautiful synths, two orchestras, and funky bass riffs. I highly recommend this album to all.
Overall Score: 9/10
Favorite Tracks: “Rhinestone Eyes”, “Empire Ants”, “Stylo”, “On Melancholy Hill,” “Some Kind of Nature”
Least Favorite Tracks: “Glitter Freeze”, “Sweepstakes”
Listen to Plastic Beach: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GdsftXc0yU
Genres: Pop/Hip-Hop/Alternative