Reviews (page 4 of 6)
I love most everything Damon Albarn touches past the year 1999 but this is a bit of a vanity project and vanity pick imo. The entirety of this album sits in one register. It’s all laid back slices of life over a dub bass. That’s it, that’s the entire thing front to back. “Herculean” actually escalates its instrumental a bit towards the end of its runtime, but only so much. I appreciate that this project only runs just over 40 minutes because anything longer than that would get on my nerves. Nothing here is bad, but it sure is all the same. My highlight is the slowing/beat switch on the last third of “Three Changes”. Soft 3/5 the ending pushed it just over the edge
6/10 The bass is great, in that"Guns of Brixton" way and I like the atmosphere generated by the songs, but the songs don't really go anywhere. The seem more like a sketch for a verse rather than a completed thing.
Look. Damon Albarn is a talented guy. I happen to really love both Blur and Gorillaz. Both projects are wonderful and are absolutely iconic enough to have at least 1 album each on this list. But did you know Damon Albarn had another project that wasn't Blur or Gorillaz? Yep. It's this supergroup here with the most British-sounding band name of all time. With him are the Clash's bassist, the Verve's guitarist, and Fela Kuti's drummer. That's definitely a collection of musicians alright. They all have talent, but when they're all on the list multiple times already, this inclusion just feels unnecessary, especially because the music of this album is firmly in the realm of "good and nothing more." This isn't a bad album at all, but it's not an exciting. The instrumentation is certainly nice, but a little underwhelming compared to the works of each of these other artists on other projects. Damon's singing is as Albarn-y as usual, but it's definitely more subdued here. It's not bad. The writing is okay. Nothing bad but nothing mind-blowing. The songs are alright. Everything about this album is around a 6/10 in quality (that's slightly above-average to me), and the album itself is in that range as a result. 3/5.
Kinda weird, liked it. Ultimately not memorable
Pop Rock, Indie Rock. Interesting and entertaining side project.
On the whole this was just fairly middle of the road stuff, with the proviso that I enjoyed Damon Albarn’s elements more than some of his earlier stuff. Reading that he got stuck into this project just after Demon Days makes a lot of sense - while it’s profoundly different you can pick up notes of it. All told, I didn’t think too much of this until the last few tracks and then it blew open into a pretty enjoyable blast of britpoppy rock. Overall not bad but not great.
Typical Blur / British style with a little doom added on top. It only took 2 songs to make me realise I was listening to some form of blur (as despite a broad mix of individuals Damon's touch shines through). Its a little sad chorus for me like "Hurculean" - Its like the sob story never ends rather than being a feature. Ultimately not a bad album but very average.
The opening track had some modern post-punk type vibes, not dissimilar to Sleaford Mods. It was during the second track that I realised how much the vocals sound like Blur or Gorillaz and couldn't resist a Google. I am surprised that I have never heard of this band or album, but they somehow passed me by. It sits as an interesting halfway house between Blur and Gorillaz, I prefer it to the former and probably not the latter. A mix of brit-pop with a slightly eclectic, electronic twist. Ultimately still too close to other sounds to be revolutionary.
Dunno why this album was on the list, but it was a pretty decent listen.
Decent, relaxing to listen to, but I'm going to be brutally honest: nothing stuck with me.
Nice, if dour. Quite good background music. Not sure you HAVE to listen to it before you die though. I don't really think it's memorable enough.
Pleasant to listen to, but sort of bland for my taste. There are some really nice sounds on the album, and Tony Allen's drumming is sublime. However, I'm not sure it achieves the same vitality that any of the members' main projects have. A little forgettable, like most supergroup outings.
Not sure how this one made the list. It's just fine
Meh
Always liked this album but the second half is better than the first. Three Changes is my favorite song on it.
Never heard of this supergroup before - unsurprisingly, Danger Mouse’s production is the highlight. Found Damon’s vocals and writing both hit or miss. Feels more like a collection of singles as opposed to a true album, which is interesting considering where Gorillaz would end up 15 years down the line. Listened to: walking around Holy Cross cemetery. Favorite tracks: History Song, Herculean, Three Changes
Chill background music, but there’s nothing compelling. No reason it needs to be on the list
I was unaware of this collaboration and who was behind Gorillaz. As for this, it didn't grab me. It could be worth another listen someday.
PRETTY COOL, WILL RPOLLY NEVER LISTEN AGAIN THOUGH
Pretty good, but it slipped by quickly. Not sure if I'd ever recognize a song...maybe I should give this another listen.
Oh, hi Damon Albarn. I didn’t expect to find you here. Gorillaz is one of my favorite bands, and I’m largely unfamiliar with Blur outside of “Song 2”, so to roll this album first before any of those is kind of funny since I wasn’t expecting it. Your enjoyment of this album is going to be LARGELY dependent on how much you like Damon’s singing. Even though this is a Super Group, I still only hear one solid Gorillaz album that I didn’t know existed. It’s got some bangers, I think “Herculean”, “Northern Whale” and the titular “The Good, The Bad And The Queen” are my favorites of the bunch. I do wish it had some more personality to it though. I like it, but I’m not really going to go back to it very often in my usual rotation. The entire album kind of blends together into one song, which is both a positive and a negative. Positive since I can get lost in it so easily, negative since I’m not really able to distinguish the songs from each other easily. I wish they did more with the other band members, I was kind of expecting a different vibe from Albarn than I’m used to. That being said, he very rarely misses, so I’m still going to give it a high 3, because I’m always going to love him as a singer and the vibes are still immaculate, as is typical of anything featuring him.
Slow acoustic rock. Nothing special.
Has all the marks of alt-rock that came before and 2010s left-field indie rock to come. I wonder how influential this actually was. I’m between being into it and dismissing it altogether. I’ll have to revisit, which isn’t a bad thing. It just went right through me. Man, Alborn is all over this list.
Didn't expect much. Unexpectedly good start: [The History Song] ends with a discordant which sounded nice against everything else in the song. Very calming. I like the sentiments behind [80s Life]. Enjoyed [Northern Whale]'s instrumentals. Huge fan of synth use. Favourite(s): Northern Whale, Kingdom of Doom, Herculean. Three Changes would be good in an animatic. Whilst rated 3/5, it'd easily be a 3.8–4/5 if I'm in the mood for something slower.
ei kummosempi
I was not previously familiar with the artist or the album. It was pretty good, nothing particularly objectionable. Nothing really stood out after one listen but I would listen again.
36/1089 The plucky guitar and campfire vibes at the end of a soldier’s tale is very sweet i enjoyed that part This is a good listen, it’s technically decent and pleasant to have on but i feel like i’d appreciate it more if it wasn’t in this list (that said i probably wouldn’t have listened to it that way to be fair) quite enjoyed the extended and increasingly chaotic outro to the album, it feels like the project was slowly building to this release and they succeeded in capturing that feeling not sure how to feel about this one, it wasn’t incredible, it also wasn’t bad, there were a few standouts but the rest were completely forgettable to me faves: Green Fields, Herculean and A Soldier’s Tale, TGTBATQ least faves: none that stood out 3 stars or 64/100
Pretty alright, sounds like chilled out Gorillaz, no stand out songs though
Good enough! lol
Not sure about this one.
Not much to say on this one. Pleasant to listen to, but didn't keep me engaged.
I was really hoping for more here. The line-up made me think it was going to be this wild, afro-punk driven thing (particularly with the drummer for Fela Kuti in it). But then Danger Mouse took it and made it very British. Albarn really wanted it to be a single but voice, but sometimes it was hard to follow what he was saying. I have listened to it a couple of times and still am not sure what it's about. I know it's supposed to be a concept album about London, but the vocals are too hard to follow. The jam at the end was pretty cool; I would have liked more of that, please. Top tracks: Title track, "Behind The Sun," "The Bunting Song"
I don't recall these guys getting together or this album, but then maybe I paid less attention to Damon Albarn projects after being only mildly amused by his second Gorillaz album two years prior to this. I didn't hate it, I didn't love it. But it was at least worth a second listen.
While I liked this album, I feel like nothing on it is sticking with me. I enjoyed listening to it, but I suspect I will forget about it as soon as I move on to the next album. Rightly removed from the 1001. Favorite tracks: Herculean, Green Fields, title track.
6.5/10 As a big Blur/Gorillaz fan Albarns voice feels comfortably familiar. The arrangement are very nice. However, the songs are not particularly memorable unfortunately. Still enjoyed listening, but hard to see myself putting this on in the future cause theres nothing particular drawing me to it. Highlights: Kingdom of Doom History Song Nature Springs Herculean The Good, the Bad and the Queen Northern Whale
Another one of those Albarn projects that falls short on the quality of the songs.
So-so.
not bad!
I dig this album, it's fun and catchy. Danger Mouse's production is really great. It just still doesn't feel essential enough for this list though. I don't really see much long-term influence from it.
This either doesn't really match my music taste, or I need to listen to it a lot more for it to open up for me. It's not that it was bad by any measure. But I also didn't really feel like it was that good Standouts 80s Life The Good, The Bad And The Queen 3/5
2007. Sounds a lot like the Gorillaz but generally pretty cool sounding with good production.
Very chill sounds like Blur or Gorillaz or some combination of both? I remember playing this back when it came out with Herculean being a standout, it's still really good! This is a rare album where you can listen to The Good the Bad and The Queen off the album the Good the Bad and The Queen by the band The Good the Bad and The Queen!
It was decent enough while listening. Still sounds very much like a typical Damon Albarn album though. 2.5
This is an interesting inclusion. I typically enjoy folk rock, and this was a perfectly fine album of folk rock. But... it wasn't particularly inspiring. There are some truly amazing folk rock albums out there, and this was... merely ok.
This was fine. Almost good. But I’ll never even remember who it was in a few weeks. Just kind of forgettable.
Primera sorpresa. No conocía este proyecto de Damon Albarn, y teniendo en cuenta lo poco que me gustan Blur y Gorillaz no tenía muchas expectativas con este disco. Sin embargo, me ha encantado. Bastante sólido. 3'5/5
6.5/10
Overall: 6/10 This one wasn't really necessary to include on the list at all....even though I liked it, I'm more upset this is here than some of the albums I've hated (Joshua Tree, for example. At least that one is culturally significant for some reason). I love Damon Albarn, but it's not essential for us to listen to every single thing he does. With that being said, this is a decent little sidetrack of an album. Very mellow. Just lacking in anything super interesting. Fav Song: 80s Life Least Fav Song: The Bunting Song
Nothing really stood out, okay for background music.
Irgendwie schön aber auch bisschen langweilig
Tästä tykkäsin! Vähän oli joo tasalaatuista, mutta hyvä dynamiikka.
2.8 - This list is getting a bit Damon Albarn obsessed. If you're a super fan, im sure you love this. I don't think it should be in this list
Albarn is very... uninteresting, vocally.
Shocking that a group consisting of musicians from Blur/Gorillaz, Fela Kuti, and The Clash could make such a dull record. 3/5
Listenable.
Damon Albarn knows how to write a song - and then to embellish it. This time, though, it’s a rather understated affair, with a close look into the rear-view mirror and a nostalgic touch. You would be forgiven for not realising that it’s Tony Allen behind the kit (but then again there are songs like Nature Springs and Three Changes. These ornate, folky dub-pop marvels take their fair share of time to blossom. There is much to disassemble while listening: for example, in Kingdom of Doom, a soaring guitar cuts through the feeling of yonder times. Or the amazing drum work. Everything sounds analogue, warm, and a bit dusty - in the most positive sense (my favorite of said sounding bunch would be Green Fields).
The third band on this list (..so far) that has a self-titled album WITH a friggin' song with the same title. Like, in my 43 years spinning around the sun, I just can't fathom thinking that one of the three is just so cool I'd have to name the other two exactly the same. ESPECIALLY a band named after their own song. That said, it wasn't terrible. Spins: 2 Playlist Additions: - History Song - Kingdom Of Doom
niin tota. tämä albumiin tähän onm monta yhteyttä eri kuuluisiin muusikkiartisteihin lisätäänmpäs lizstalle..Olla tai olla olematta: se on kysymys: onko jalompaa mielessä kärsiä järjettömän onnen silmukat ja nuolet, vai tarttua aseisiin vaikeuksien merta vastaan, ja vastustamalla lopettaa ne? Kuolla: nukkua; Ei enempää; ja unen kautta sanoa, että lopetamme Sydänsärky ja tuhannet luonnolliset shokit Tuo liha on perillinen, 'tämä on hartaasti toivottava täyttymys'. Kuolla, nukkua; Nukkumaan: ehkä nähdä unta: ai, siellä on hankausta; Sillä tuossa kuoleman unessa mitä unelmia voi tulla Kun olemme sekoittuneet pois tästä kuolevaisesta kierteestä, meidän täytyy pysähtyä: siellä on kunnioitus, joka tekee niin pitkän elämän onnettomuudesta; Sillä kuka kestäisi ajan ruoskat ja pilkkaa, sortajan väärää, ylpeän miehen häpeää, halveksitun rakkauden tuskia, lain viivytystä... viisauksia hullujen huoneelta vaan heh behind the sun
I haven't heard of this band / album but whilst listening to this I was thinking this sounds very Brit popy, sounds like blur. After finishing it I looked it up, and of course it sounds like that it's Damon Albarn signing. How many side projects has this guy had?? Enjoyed it. Favorite tracks were kingdom of doom and northern whale
This was pretty good but then again I'd rather just have Gorillaz?
I have a theory about supergroups, that they never add up to the sum of their parts. And I feel this is a bit of a ‘less than’ moment. I love the artists and the concept. I also really dug the last song. But I can’t remember all those leading up to it.
I like anything with Damon Alburn involved in it. I like this a bit more than a three but not quite a four.
Blur? Sure! Gorillaz? I'm in, for the most part. TGTB&TQ? Meh.
I enjoyed immensely. 3.75!
Listened Before? N I don't know who most of these dudes are even though this is a British "supergroup". The record was fine, but I think the clout of the musicians adds something to it that I missed. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: History Song
Ok
Didn’t do much for me tbh. A little too overly Brit for my taste. I really enjoyed a few tracks like “history song”, “nature springs”, and the title track. Others felt like little oddities that didn’t make it to gorillaz albums. Not a very dynamic album as a whole.
This had its moments but by god I can’t remember them
113/1089 - Well I liked London Calling and the first two Gorillaz albums but I wasn't a fan of this. Kind of all over the place; middle part seemed better than the beginning and end.
Damon Albarn verkar ha hur många hobbygrupper som helst. Denna funkar väl.
Слушать можно, но песни слишком однообразные. 5,5 из 10.
Didn't mind it, but it does have all the hallmarks of a vanity project/supergroup. Lots of ideas without a lot of coherence, and a few stinkers. History Song and Three Changes were solid. Damon's voice is boring.
I don't think I've ever heard of this one of Albarns projects..... If I had,I had completely forgotten it.... Which is probably telling because even though I did think this was pretty good, it's pretty bland too Nothing really stuck out and nothing offended. That's a 3
This was decent. 3/5
The sum is somehow less than the parts. I like everyone involved with this album, but it feels like a bunch of b-sides. Not bad, just not memorable.
I was maybe a little too excited about this one. It was good, but I expected a little more from a supergroup of this caliber. That may be my fault for not tempering expectations. I still enjoyed it.
The last song was fun, but overall meh. 2.8.
I remember being excited for this album to be released and then disappointed how mid it sounds Personal enjoyment: 3/5 Relevance to this list: 2/5
I don't think I'm a fan of Damon Albarn. I liked what I heard here a lot more than any Blur record I've heard, and Gorillaz remains to be explored, but I haven't yet discovered what qualities make Albarn so adored.
damon albarn!? was expect this to another boring non-gorillaz damon albarn off-shoot band but its actually cool.
ok, não vejo como pode ter sido influente
dear mr dimery you should totally add plastic beach instead of this. that would be really mega awesomely-sauce. yours in spirit, me
Glad I gave this one a 2nd listen, first impression was it was bland and boring. 2nd listen found plenty of interesting things to latch on to, mostly thanks to Paul Simonon and the drummer. Still overall kind of a disappointment from what could have been with this group. 3 - will probably listen again
Fav: The Good, The Bad & The Queen Least Fav: History Song Gets the worst of it out the way and locks in towards the end. Outside of a few near production choices I felt it was kinda bland and not nearly as interesting as a supergroup of such high quality musicians should realistically be expected to do
Ugh I’m trying but I just do not care about this for some reason
The Good: Duh, an album named after the band… The Bad: That the band stole my concept… The Ugly: Do I have to spell it out? What can I say about this album? I had never ever heard of these guys before, and when I clicked the “Wikipedia” button and started seeing the bands Blur and Gorrilazzzz show up, my heart sank, as I am fan of neither. So color me happily surprised with this mellow album, that is easy on the ears, and a great filler of space when you are just doing some work. Sonically, I guess, just fine… just nothing special either. 3*
Perfectly fine but after a while it got a bit samey
Truly, the best thing about this album is the cover-art. So many great musicians in a band, such a forgettable experience. I've known this album since its release, and I really did give it a good couple of listens over the last day, but nothing sticks or stands out.
Pretty vanilla, meanders pleasantly until the last track which is awful.
Good not great seems like these dudes are just trying to cash in on damon albarns genius and ride his silky smooth voice to the bank.
Another lost album from the early years. My elder siblings must've told me about this album, since it brought forth distant memories of listening to it long ago. Quite a special experience. The harmony and production on this album reminds me of Demon Days which is an album that also holds a special place in my heart
3/5
Das Album ist ein faszinierendes Projekt, das mit seiner melancholischen Atmosphäre und britischer Nostalgie überzeugt. Die Band um Damon Albarn liefert ein Album, das musikalisch vielschichtig ist, aber auch bewusst Grenzen überschreitet. Songs wie "History Song" und "Herculean" mit ihrer düsteren Eleganz beeindrucken, fehlt es einigen Tracks an Dynamik und Wiedererkennungswert Die Mischung aus Dub, Rock und britischem Songwriting ist einzigartig, doch das Album bleibt insgesamt eher zurückhaltend und könnte mehr Höhepunkte vertragen. Wer sich auf die ruhige, nachdenkliche Stimmung einlassen kann, findet hier jedoch einige musikalische Perlen und Vorsicht der Schluss-Song im Ska Stil verlangt dem Hörer seh viel ab
Just ok.
Never heard of this but it was OK.
Kinda cool, but also kinda meh
Some more average British music.
It was average, so being generous with a 3. Just nothing too exciting on this album.
It lacked something. I’m not sure if it was vibes but there was something not present
Meh. I was really expecting more. I don't really get why this was on the list, it's just another meh brit album that was totally mid and I will forget I ever listened to in about 20 minutes.
so apart from Albarn being the frontman for Massive Attack, Gorillaz, & Blur......there's not really anything interesting or memorable about this album. ok background music in a hipster coffee shop or something but that's about it. why is it on the list??
sounds like late era radiohead
Ovaj album mi je bio dosadan po izlasku i dosadan mi je i sad iako je lipo produciran
3.5
Fine as background music but not particularly compelling.
#517. Sounds exactly like what you'd expect Albarn's even further to the side side project would sound like. 3/5: fine
laid-back, Blur-lite
This album had some highs and lows for me. It mostly didn't do much for me, but there was the occasional track that really caught my attention, so overall it's one I'd like to revisit later. I didn't realize it was a bit of a British super group until after listening either; makes sense why I kept thinking the singer sounded like the guy from Blur, lol. 3.2/5
Damon Albarn seems to be a musician of endless versatility. Whether it's the superior Brit Pop of Blur, the dance floor infectiousness of Gorillaz or this project which melds all kinds of stylings, British music hall, Jamaican music hall, rock steady groove electro pop of this quiet little project. It surely helps to have sidemen the likes of Paul Simonon, Simon Tong and Tony Allen. As well as Danger Mouse's knob turning talents though here I do think the mastering is a little bit hot. But the songs are all very well constructed and held my interest throughout the entire 42 minutes. 3.5 stars
This is very weird. It's quite lazy but the style really reminds me of gorrilaz and I love them. I dunno where I sit with this as I think there were quite a few good tracks but also some that just felt unfinished....
Oh man, this can't help but feel like a missed opportunity. Tony Allen, RIP, remains the greatest drummer across time and genre. (If you can't see this, you are to be pitied). But he's not even on all the songs. Like benching dumb Tom Brady (not the best analogy - Bo Jackson? Joe Montana?) at the Super Bowl. When he is its tasteful yet pretty busy drumming. Damon is starting to experiment in his late blur boring soft shit phase. The bass and guitar are nice, the bass kinda feels like the Clash guy is reusing the same tricks though. Now and again it comes together and its real cool, but man if Albarn had been in rocking blur or grooving gorillaz mode this could have been incredible.
This was cute.
liked this when it came out, but never thought to play it since and sounds a bit more like a side note in the blur-i-verse now
meh
Had this on whilst I got my head down for some no interruption work. It was good background music but nothing stood out for me
Good when I listened but it just didn't hold my attention, I kept drifting off.
On paper, it has the makings of a fantastic album, but I'm having a second listen now, as I completely failed to have any kind of opinion after the first listen. It isn't very interesting is it?
Just another ex-1001 album!™ http://1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie.wikidot.com/album-artists-a-z-ex I like the idea of supergroups doing interesting things. While this was interesting in places, I found it overall boring.
ganska svårbedömt men det får landa i en trea. det är tilltalande men det finns ingenting som tar det över gränsen till en fyra.
Dan - never knew Damon Albarn was in yet another group. Nice enough listen, requiring another play through.
3/5
Very interesting, never heard of this before, but listened to it twice
I think as a concept it's quite good but the songs (all Albarns) are a bit dull. It is after all a solo project essentially...
prima relaxed
Enjoyed this
A nice brot pop sound by some legends of the genre. Sounded like the recaptured the magic of the 90s Brit pop in this one
This album is a peak 3. Meaning it is perfectly average, pleasant background music. There are no songs that stood out to me as better or worse than all the rest, and there were no songs that made me feeling much of anything at all. My review was going to be something along the lines of "boring version of the Gorillaz", until I finally figured out that it's actually the same singer. The fact that it's a "super group" also exains their relative obscurity. Super groups are pretty much always much less than the sum of their parts, and this album is no exception. TGTBATQ will follow the KG nets, the KD nets, the Malone Lakers, the Westbrook rockets, the Shaq suns, and many other super groups into distant history (unremembered).
Huh. I liked the sound of this immediately, and thought it was strange I’d never heard of the band or album. Wait a minute…is that Damon Albarn? Ohhhhhh ok. It’s another Albarn side project with Danger Mouse on the boards. Everything makes sense now. Perfectly catchy, sounds great on my stereo. Unfortunately not a lot to distinguish it from the million other rock star-DM collabs but I’ll keep listening and see if it pops.
Never heard of these guys but the singer sounds very familiar. I didn't think this was bad, but I felt like it was building to something that never came until the last song, some energy and an upbeat sound. Having said that, the last song was my favorite off the album. This isn't something I would seek out again, but I listened a few times and thought it was decent. The singers voice, I know it from some where. I'm sure Luke will let me know if he reads my review. I'll start the year with a positive and score this a 3
3 Never heard of this band, but apparently it's a supergroup made up of various British rock icons, including Damon Albarn of Blur/Gorillaz, Paul Simonon of The Clash, and Simon Tong of The Verve. The drummer, Tony Allen, is also apparently pretty famous within the context of the Afrobeat, but I can’t say I’m familiar with the name or any of his work. So, knowing that, I went into this album with some pretty high expectations, but it ultimately just boils down to a second-rate Gorillaz album - this isn’t so much a culmination of musical greats as it is a Damon Albarn side project with some buddies. Like, why go out of your way to recruit someone like Paul Simonon when half of these tracks don’t even sound like they feature bass on them? That to say, this isn’t bad. I thought this provided a decent listen overall, but there wasn’t much that stood out to me. The highlights are the opening and closing tracks, History Song and The Good, The Bad and the Queen, respectively, but most everything in between ran together. The biggest standout beyond those was probably 80s Life, but that’s mostly just because I’m pretty sure it borrows the chord progression of Can’t Help Falling in Love - it’s all I could hear when I was listening to the song. If you’re a bigger Gorillaz fan than myself, I can see how you would like this. If you find them mostly okay like I do, you’ll probably find this mostly okay as well. Either way, while it’s a fun project on paper, this is far from the best any of these guys have to offer.
Considering the lineup, it's a little disappointing, just sounds like an ok Gorillaz album. There are worse things to be though Will I listen to again: 10%
I'm split on this one. It has good songs, but there's always something that's stopping me from fully enjoying them
I didn't dislike this, the songs were interesting, but nothing particularly grabbed me and it was kind of depressing. Not something I'd return to again.
Il y a un mot qui, dans le monde du rock, me fait à la fois saliver d'envie et trembler de peur : "supergroupe". Sur le papier, c'est la promesse d'un fantasme. Imaginez un peu l'affiche en 2007 : au chant et aux claviers, Damon Albarn, le parrain de la Britpop avec Blur, fraîchement réinventé en génie mondial avec Gorillaz. À la basse, le flegme et la dégaine incarnés, la légende punk Paul Simonon de The Clash. À la guitare, l'architecte des cathédrales soniques de The Verve, Simon Tong. Et à la batterie, excusez du peu, le coeur battant de l'Afrobeat, le maestro Tony Allen, batteur du grand Fela Kuti. Rien qu'avec ce line-up, on était en droit d'attendre l'album du siècle. Un truc qui allait redéfinir les frontières de la musique. Et puis le disque est arrivé. Et le résultat est... compliqué. Ce premier album de The Good, The Bad & The Queen n'est pas le monstre de rock hybride qu'on aurait pu imaginer. Au contraire, c'est un disque sur la pointe des pieds, une collection de chansons profondément mélancoliques, une déambulation fantomatique dans un Londres gris et pluvieux. On nous l'avait vendu comme un "Parklife 2" centré sur l'Ouest londonien, mais on est à des années-lumière de l'énergie et de la satire de l'album de Blur. Ici, c'est la gueule de bois après la fête, la nostalgie d'un monde qui s'efface. Une ambiance feutrée, presque ouatée. Il faut reconnaître une chose : le son est une pure merveille. Le producteur Danger Mouse, alors au sommet de son art, a fait un travail d'orfèvre. Il a su créer un écrin sonore aéré, inventif, subtilement teinté de dub et de soul. Et surtout, il a compris que le véritable trésor de ce groupe, c'était sa section rythmique. L'alchimie entre la basse reggae/dub de Simonon et le groove hypnotique et complexe de Tony Allen est un miracle. Écouter ces deux-là jouer ensemble est un plaisir en soi, c'est souple, c'est élégant, c'est d'une musicalité folle. Mais… sur cette rythmique de rêve, il se passe finalement assez peu de choses. Le disque tourne un peu en rond et ne décolle jamais vraiment. On a l'impression d'assister à une jam session de luxe, où des musiciens de génie installent un groove sublime sur lequel Damon Albarn vient poser de jolies mélodies tristes qui, malheureusement, peinent à se transformer en grandes chansons. L'ambiance est là, indéniablement, mais les morceaux, pris un par un, donnent l'impression de se ressembler un peu tous. Ils partagent la même langueur, la même dynamique contenue. C'est un album qui ne crie jamais, qui ne s'énerve jamais, il reste dans une sorte de flottement permanent. C'est un disque d'atmosphère, un parfait compagnon pour un dimanche après-midi pluvieux. Il est plaisant à réécouter, oui, parce que le son est riche et que le groove est imparable. Mais il manque les pics, les moments de fureur ou d'extase qui transforment un bon disque en un classique inoubliable. On attend l'explosion, l'étincelle qui va mettre le feu aux poudres, mais elle ne vient jamais. C'est pour cela que la note de 3 sur 5 me semble juste. C'est la note d'un album plus réussi en tant que "projet" ou "concept" qu'en tant que collection de titres forts. C'est la réunion de quatre immenses talents qui ont produit un disque agréable. C'est un peu décevant, mais c'est déjà pas si mal. Il faut l'écouter, ne serait-ce que pour le plaisir d'entendre Simonon et Allen jouer ensemble. Mais il faut se faire à l'idée : ce n'est pas le chef-d'oeuvre qu'on était en droit d'espérer.
Bluresque vibe, but the attempt at writing about London doesn’t have the same grunt and power that Blur had in the 90s. Still enjoyable.
not too bad not really what im into though
I find it a pretty solid album, easy to listen to, with some enjoyable moments, but it's very much forgettable.
Not so special although the first song became quite catchy after I've listed to it for the 4th time
I barely remember this even if I listened to it less than 24h ago...
Day 2 and another British band. I found the album to be mellow, melancholy, monotone, chill, good as background music while working, reading, studying, driving or sleeping.
Good, Bad and so so.
This album just kinda played in the background, and I never really thought about it. I barely noticed it was over. Pleasant overall, but like a lot of material from so-called super groups, it just didn't hit the sweet spot for me. 3/5
Well....yeah. It's Damon Albarn, so the critics love it. To me, there's a whiff o Emperor New Clothes about this. I'm nit saying I dislike it, but it does fill me with inertia.
I like damon albarn, but this whole album is pretty forgettable. I cant put my finger on any tracks that stand out, and the whole thing just kind of sounded the same. Still, not bad to listen to I guess. 3/5
Mostly subdued and melodic; recognizably Albarn in voice and in style. Your mileage may vary but it's immediately listenable, which comes across as faint praise for sure.... It's nice but my critique is that at times (most times?) this is sounding like a very well-crafted demo. Occasionally giving me hints of Pete Townshend's Scoop projects in terms of only being somewhere between 50-75% there. i.e. not finished. Maybe some of that is related to the distinct lack of harmonies or bg vocals in most songs. If I had to sum it up, it almost feels reserved, like it wants (needs?) to really explode at some point or points and rarely if ever does. That's not necessarily a bad thing in itself but also prevents it from reaching any memorable bar you look for in classic or favorite albums. In the end it's not bad, just....not fully cooked? A few more minutes in the oven could have been a lovely and memorable cake. 6/10 3 stars
Alright album, nothing stand out for me tbh.
Good odd. Coming back for seconds
This was quite nice and chilled rock / Indy 6/10
Wasn't aware of this group, but liked this.
Jammy rock music, quite forgettable. Stand-out: Behind the Sun
Of all the Damon Albarn projects I’ve listened to, this is the most middling.
Kingdom of Doom on top. Ganske bra.. litt gorillaz??
I get that this dude does some cool shit, with Gorillaz mostly, but not everything he does is list-worthy. This album is not bad by any means, but I wouldn't include it on the list.
You can hear the influence from Gorillaz on this track, but less from Blur and the Clash, which both have members in this rock group. I was not expecting anything of the sort when I first saw the album having never heard of the band. I was pleasantly surprised by tracks such as "Northern Whale" and "Behind the Sun"
3.5 deserves a second listen.
As a Blur fan, this is pretty familiar to me but I gave it a few goes through anyway. And to be honest, I feel the same way I do about it now as I did when it first came out nearly 20 years ago. Yes, it's interesting and packed with some good ideas, fun instrumentation and experiments with layers and tempos. And it's all well executed and high quality, musically. But I just don't find myself particularly grabbed or excited by it. Sorry, Damon.
Pleasant background music. 5/10
Politiken Plus
Ehhh It's not the sum of it's parts.
About half of this record is really good and showcases Albarn‘a talent. The other part becomes a bit repetitive and (I hate to say) boring.
Fine. Maybe if I was a bigger fan of any part of this super group.
Some fine Moments
Nothing great. Nothing bad.
I liked it a lot, not particularly original but good
Imagine if Gorillaz was a mid-2000s alt rock band (think Arcade Fire, Modest Mouse) but take the dancing out of it. It's working overly hard at profundity, I think. It's okay... I mean, what do you do when you've reached that level of success? It's cool to take musical risks like this as the alternative is either more of the same or quitting altogether. At some points this album feels like it's going too hard for a contemporary sound, for example, shades of Radiohead on The Bunting Song. Hearing Simonon is the highlight for me, though, but it's altogether too laid bake and a little monotonous.
Just so underwhelming. Albarn's vocals are such an acquired taste, and the backing felt way too light really, there was no heft to it at all. There were some decent moments, and it's by no means bad, but considering it's something of a super group, it didn't do it for me.
3.5/5
The Enjoyable, The Tolerable & The Listenable.
Yeah pretty decent, no NY. Took me a couple minutes to realised it was Damon Alburn!
Nice album, different but not a bad listen.
Lol! I listened to the first track and thought "they're copying the Gorillaz!" Then I realised it IS the Gorillaz (in a way). Pleasant Damon-like tracks......
I never really got around to listening to this one despite liking most of Damon Albarns output. What put me off is I saw him on George Strombolompolus’ show and Damon was so pretentious I just had no interest in this. This was fine. It was so low energy though.
I guess I liked it? It was occasionally interesting, mostly just fine. Not exactly one of Albarn's bigger achievements.
A big shrug
It just sounds like Damon. Not bad but not great.
I spotted the singer’s voice right away; I had to read about the other members. Not bad, but not mind-blowing either.
Pretty good sound
Not bad for some mellow alt
Listened to it high and liked it more than when I did earlier so tbd
So you’re telling me this wasn’t the same song 12 times in a row? There being a founding member of the Clash in this group is probably the only thing keeping me from being even more critical about it. Ultimately, there are a couple catchy tunes, but I have a feeling the band had more fun making this record than I had listening to it. 3/5 Highlights: 80’s Life Three Changes Green Fields
Not bad, just a bit boring and atmospheric. Not really something I'd expect from a supergroup like this. Half the songs felt like they were crying out for a drum track but were drowning in reverb, echo, and atmosphere instead.
Lidt specielt 00’er rock, damon albarn, produceret af Danger Mouse
Worth a relisten
It was neat. It could use some repeated listens to really figure this one out. I liked Green Fields.
Unmemorable, bland, and only the last two or three tracks save it from being a two-star album for me, so I'll grudgingly give it a three.
It's fine. Not essential listening at all. Demon Days or Plastic Beach should be here if they really felt that another Albarn project had to make the list.
It’s ok. Not enough to push me to 4 today.
A sort of concept album about London in some vague time - the concept itself is fairly vague. It has flashes of brilliance seeing as Damon Albarn is writing it but again, it feels like an album that I didn't have to hear before I died - there isn't anything particularly interesting or spectacular about it. Best Tracks: History Song; Herculean; The Good, The Bad and The Queen
Britpop with real musicians
Forgetful.
Blur goes Radiohead, ends up sounding like generic landfill indie. Interesting concept, lots of very talented people involved, but I don't think it meshes together all that well, and absolutely doesn't deserve a spot on this list. Still, enjoyable enough.
Without knowing that much about Damon Albarn, besides Blur, or the band, The Good, The Bad...I was pleasantly surprised I enjoyed it. It wasn't an earth-shattering experience or something I'll heavily-rotate on my streaming playlists, but it was something I took notice and listened to it a couple of times, so that means something, right?
3.5
was ok. some nice tunes but nothing to bring me back to it
I can't fully get into this. Not sure why.
Not good. Not bad. Not Queen.
london bridge is falling down
I thought I would have heard about this, but it apparently completely passed me by. It's quite subdued in general, and there's no real hooky elements to it, but it has a nice enough vibe. I quite like some of the quirkier elements of the production. It's not bad. It's ok. I won't be revisiting any of the songs or the album as a whole though.
Tälläset supergroupit on vähän outoja, mutta kai tää menee positiivisen puolelle. 3/5
Ihan okei homma, vähän pettymys kokoonpanon ajatellen.
It'sjust OK. Damon Albarn irks me and I'm not sure wht. Either it's bis whiney vocal style or his superclious facial expressions - either way, I'm not a fan. This album is just average.
I liked it. But already forgotten most of it.
Damon’s voice sucks you into the atmosphere of this album but sometimes the songs only provide that and nothing else. Still some good songs on this.
Worse than Blur, better than Gorillaz. It's a bit of a low effort album but a pretty good ride.
Interesting variety of musical styles
A good but somewhat boring listen. No particular track really stood out.
Unsurprisingly, it sounds very like Blur - leaning more towards the gentler, whimsical, mildly psychedelic end of Blur, heavily indebted to The Kinks for the melodic sense.
Decent little album
Ganz schön. Konzeptuell und atmosphärisch.
I gave 3 stars because it was better of the one before but worthed 2 stars. The voice is the same of blur
Northern Whale - very silly instrumentals, but didn't sound bad. Whale sounds on the guitar were pretty neat. Distinctly Gorillaz D-Sides energy. Enjoyed the vocals on this too. Herculean - liked the instrumentals in the one Title track is a good jam. None of the other songs are worth writing home about, nor are they terrible. It's pretty cool that Damon Albarn worked on this album after his masterpiece Demon Days, got all the mediocre songs out of his system, and followed that up with another brilliant album in the form of Plastic Beach.
to preface this i fucking love albarn's vocals on gorillaz. i think he has great energy and can even do melancholy well but holy fuck his mumbly ass needs to speak up on this album. its crazy how much contempt this review process has made me have for vocalists ruining otherwise good projects. if there was an instrumental version of this album it would be an easy 4 for me, because goddamn if they don't have the fucking supergroup of supergroups here. some of the coolest, jazziest, smoothest instrumentals i've heard in a long time. i'd never heard of this project before and it seems like something right up my alley between the whiney leftist anti-war political leanings, the smooth, experimental jazziness and the gorillaz involvement. but honestly i'm somewhat glad i hadn't because i ultimately left feeling dissapointed. albarn isnt even the wrong vocalist for this project, he's just approaching it poorly. i get this release is meant to feel/embody the depression and hopelessness of it's themes but that doesn't mean you need to mumble like a 14 year old boy who just found out women get periods and doesn't understand why they have to go through so much
Half these tracks are one MF DOOM feature away from being on demon days. When I saw this is a Damon Albarn side project I immediately assumed it would be forty minutes of the sounds of an Englishman wanking into his own mouth, however, I quite enjoyed this album. It really just feels like titular album/demon days era Gorillaz b sides that sneak into the slow part at the end of the album after the jaunty hits are out of the way. Vocals are pretty good and the instrumental work was pretty great. Overall this is a bit of a homebrand gorillaz but I enjoyed it. It’s another puzzler of “Why is this album on this list?” Because while it’s a good listen I’ve never heard of it before and I don’t really know anyone else who probably would have. This is a high 3 for me. Nearly scraped into 4 by a hair but I don’t know that I’d really go back to many of these tracks.
It's miraculous to me that someone like Damon Albarn whose the vast majority of his work is criticised in sounding like Gorillaz B-cuts even with 4 other known artists collaborating on the project still achieves this. I do love his voice but c'mon all this shit sounds like the Fall just a bit better. Albarn doesn't know when to quit or atleast take his time, he has so many projects beneath his belt and countless albums but only a handful of great ones. I actually liked the vast majority of songs, the opening and closing tracks are definitely the highlights but it took me a couple listens to really get into the album. 7/10 Fav tracks - History Song, Northern Whale, Herculean, Behind the Sun, The Bunting Song, Nature Springs, Three Changes, The Good the Bad and the Queen Least Fav - 80s life, Soldier Tale
Better than expected. A little top heavy. High 3.
I read that this is supposed to be a "supergroup", but the only member I know is Paul Simonon of the Clash. Nothing particularly super about this album to me. Can't even remember anything specific.
I don’t understand why Damon Albarn needs a side project to write about England. Blur already does this. It’s cool that this was a supergroup though and the last track was my favorite.
Never heard of these guys or the backstory! Pretty interesting to see how the groups influences/backgrounds mesh. I hear a lot of the verve and gorillaz. After all is said and done, the album isnt super memorable after 2 listens. Maybe it takes some more reps So far, I really liked Herculean
Enjoyed it and think I’d like it more with more listens. No real weak spots (but no major highs either)
It's definitely interesting though I'm not sure if I like it. Probably deserves a second or third listen
Paul Simonon's bass playing makes this album.
Boring, but inoffensive. It was nice. All the songs blend together in my mind, so the lack of range is a bit of a detriment, though none of the songs are bad. Just no spark. 3/5
3.5
Was never aware of this other project of Damon and friends. Enjoyed. 3.5 stars.
It’s ok
The good is good, the bad is bad. Pure definition of a 3.
-Pretty cool omg. Damon Albarn and Fela Kuti drummer guy together was not something I knew existed but I’m glad does. Some songs def very reminiscent of Gorillaz which I actually prefer to Blur -Favorites are History Song, Herculean, and The Bunting Song
Back to back Albarns. This was pretty cool. I remember my mom listening to this when it came out. Overall pretty neat but it didn't grab me like The Coral did. I'll give it another listen eventually though, as I was stuck in traffic while listening and was on full brain auto pilot. Album cover: C+. The background image is cool, but the typography is pretty lackluster.
Great name. Not as good music but not awful.
After about thirty minutes of thinking that all the refrains sounded like the Gorillaz, I googled this album and learned that it is yet another Damon Albarn project. It was OK, I didn't have any negative feelings but I was a little bored. None of the songs truly gripped me. If I had to pick one then I'd say the first song, History Song, was the best one. Herculean sounded the most like a Gorillaz song. 6/10
Never heard this before. I like the variety of influences and styles, but ultimately doesn't resonate with me. Part of the issue is Alburn's voice. Sometimes he sounds like he's searching for the note. I think this might be a stylistic choice as opposed to just being a bad singer, but it generally doesn't work for me. The music and the arrangements are solid. "And the country didn't look the same that day"
Low key album with subtle hints of coolness and nice melodies, but you have to work hard to get to that through the monotony of blah. Nature Springs, History Song and Herculean are fine. The last song, The Good, The Bad and the Queen finally had some spunk and unexpected timing changes. The rest of the album felt like I was sleep walking though the rainy streets of London. 2.5 stars rounded up.
Interesting...had never heard of them but would listen to it again.
I was quite into this album when it was released. Can’t remember why or how I was introduced to it as Blur and Gorillaz stuff is not my cup of tea. Think I might even had the CD which I later sold to Music Magpie when I went temporarily went CD free. My favourite track and the one I suspect convinced me to buy the CD was the very last track with the same name of the band. Listening today that still remains my fave. As for the rest it’s a bit meh. Nice to be reminded of it but nothing special. 2.5/5 28/7/24
Damon Albarn jam sesh #37: 1001 authors: Straight on the list!
Hmmm... never really heard of them. This band kinda lacks an oomph. And energy about them. I'm not really blown away by any of the songs.
Brings back some memories
Never heard of this Damon Albarn album. Good pick
I enjoyed it. 3.5
Liked it
Some strong songs.
I kind of like History Song, I almost like Northern Whale, Nature Springs, A Soldier’s Tale
не думала что у Деймона ещё группа найдётся а вот она! ну с одного раза как-то слишком меланхолично (и даже не сказать что слишком концептуально, просто не за что зацепиться)
Se trata de uno de los proyectos de Damon Albarn, vocalista de Blur y Gorillaz. En este se hace acompañar por el exmiembros de The Clash y The Verve. La música va de lo folk al brit pop y es como una versión simplificada pero experimental de Blur. A menudo los sonidos de los sintetizadores y otros efectos, se integran con la batería, bajo y guitarra que tienen un sonido más orgánico y menos procesado, lo que crea una extraña atmósfera. Creo que los tracks que más me han gustado son aquellos donde la guitarra acústica sobresale y se acompaña con la percusión y el contrabajo. Recomiendo tracks 1, 8 y 10.
Very difficult to assess and rate this album. It is truly different sounding from anything else, musically, lyrically and thematically (London connection). Notable songs are 'Herculean" and "Kingdom of Doom".
Man, I'm mixed on this. I don't like it, but I think it's good. Opera is like that for me. Sounds impressive, and I don't like it. Not equating this to opera, just meandering.
the good, the bad & the queen the good, the bad & the queen 2007 1. history song: 8/10 2. 80s life: 6.5/10 3. northern whale: 7.5/10 4. kingdom of doom: 6/10 5. herculean: 5.5/10 6. behind the sun: 6/10 7. the bunting song: 6.5/10 8. nature springs: 7/10 9. a soldier’s tale: 7.5/10 10. three changes: 8/10 11. green fields: 7/10 12. the good, the bad & the queen: 7/10 overall rating: 6.7/10
A good album, quite pretty! I hadn’t come across it before! Damon Albarn has a ton of projects, and a lot of them are hit or miss I feel like.. but I enjoyed this and like to hear him doing something a little dreamier and more straightforward. Last couple tracks are especially good!
I enjoyed this but it felt like a very minor work? Not really sure why it’s on this list but fun! Damon Albarn’s music always feels, at best, mildly interesting and pleasant.
I sorta have nothing to say about this one other than it is some perfectly serviceable indie rock music, not a huge Albarn fan - but of course my fav drummer Tony Allen shines on this thing and it was pretty fun overall!
3.25
Not sure how i missed this group as I am generally a fan of most things Damon Albarn does. I really enjoyed it. But it does land in my category of really enjoyed but not sure a top 1000.
Quand j'ai appris que Damon Albarn et Paul Simonon étais sur cette album, la hype a montée vite. Malheureusement, c'est plutôt oubliable et surprenamment mou pour le calibre des deux artistes
This is one of those albums I am going to forget I listened to in a month. It is fine, but very one note and not much stands out. low 3
Liked it, thought it sounded a lot better first and second listen but eventually lost me a bit High 3?
My second time listening to this album. It's something I should like as it features Damon Albarn and is produced by Danger Mouse. This album is just too boring, especially compared to Gorillaz. It's alright while listening to it but is overall forgettable.
Which Damon Albarn will we find on TGTB&TQ? The Blur one? Or the Gorillaz one? Encouraged by the inclusion of the Clash’s Paul Simonon, a bit worried by the inclusion of the Verve’s Simon Tong, and puzzled by Tony Allen (Fela Kuti’s Africa ‘70). Most of all though, intrigued by producer Danger Mouse, who’s work in Gnarls Barkley, Danger Doom, and Broken Bells, and stroke of genius with “The Grey Album” all made for a pretty impressive 00’s for him. But somehow I had never heard of TGTB&TQ. He also produced the second Gorillaz album, so I had hopes that this would be more on the Gorillaz end of the Albarn spectrum. And it turned out to be somewhere squarely in between Blur and Gorillaz. Not quite as good as the latter, but much preferred to the former. There are some Gorillaz-y elements on TGTB&TQ, but they don’t develop the way they would on a Gorillaz album. If I had heard this before Gorillaz, I wonder if I would have felt differently about it? Back to Danger Mouse, though. I think he deserves more credit than just a couple of production credits on the list. The wide range of artists he has worked with, and his impact on guiding and sometimes reshaping their sound, is matched by few others. And his “St. Elsewhere” and “Broken Bells” albums with Cee-Lo Green and James Mercer, respectively, are deserving of acclaim all their own.
Of the Damon Albarn albums on this list, this falls somewhere between Blur (2 stars) and Gorillaz (4 stars).
man, i didn't know what to expect from this one going in. i wasn't familiar with the name but saw that damon albarn and danger mouse were attached, so i was cautiously optimistic, knowing that both of them have made some quality stuff. i really didn't care for this one. it wasn't bad, i just really found it a bit boring. i felt like the pacing didn't suit my liking and the quality of the songs i didn't care too much for. the musicianship here was good but there were not very many moments that stood out to me. i did enjoy the title track and how it built, but other than that, nothing really stood out to me.
Was I aware of this band previously? I’m not sure. It was not unpleasant but not sure it had the charm of the Travelling Wilburys.
Better than blur
not bad
Alvin the chipmunk on some of the background vocals
It aight kinda tuned it out while working. - 6/10
Sounded kinda like Gorillaz and then I saw that this dude was involved with Demon Days. Pretty interesting listen. Cool instrumentals. High 3.
wasn't paying a ton of attention to this
6/10 - A bunch of the intros are super cool, but they get worse when it gets to the middle of the songs. The whole album was alright. I think they each had good potential with their intros but the song itself never lived up to the hype I was feeling.
Not long after my Alex Turner randomly assembled side project, here's Damon Albarns. Pretty tame/bland again. Last song the best, which makes me think he had a good idea for a song and decided to name both the band and the album after it. Very inoffensive. Doesn't deserve to be anywhere near this list, which makes me want to mark it down, but I'll refrain.
Listenable and enjoyable, not world changing.
Of course it's Damon Albarn
I loved this album at the time but I wouldn't miss it if I never heard it again.
Rock - nothing stood out
Didn't dislike this, but at the same time nothing jumped out at me.
I mean, it's fine. It's there. But it's not particularly interesting in any way.
Come on England 3.5 HL: “Northern Whale”, “Nature Springs”, “Green Fields”, title May 21, 2024
History Song - I liked it 4/5 80s Life - Nah, not my sorta of music. 1/5 Northern Whale - nah, same. 1/5 Kingdom of Doom - back to 'interesting' 4/5 Herculaen- good music, nice soft rounded sound 4/5 Behind the sun - album filler. 2/5 The bunting song - a boring 1/5 Nature springs - I enjoyed 4/5 A soldiers tale - awfully boring 1/5 Three changes - over-experimental slowed down ska 1/5 ...hit and miss album, so it gets an average 3 star
Hey, this sounds like the “woo hoo!” Guy. Hey, this IS the “woo hoo!” Guy!
Not bad. It was a little boring here and there. Probably won't return to this. 3/5
fín
Not bad but Tony Allen was severely underused here
I see Damon Albarn, I'm intrigued Enjoying the sound, something very different. 3* because not sure about fave album territory.
Meh
It's alright, but pretty much any given Gorillaz album is more dynamic and interesting.
Seemed okay. Felt quiet and respectful, like music you'd hear around a campfire if a full band was playing. History Song was my favourite track.
Not unlistenable. It has its pleasant moments, but this album feels monotonous and unoriginal. I’m left unconvinced that this album has a place on this list.
I probably would like this more if there were at least one or two upbeat songs. But kinda felt the same and plodded on. But I like Damon Albarn so it gets a higher score than what I would've given it normally.
This is a supergroup with Damon Albarn (Blur/Gorillaz), and includes band members from The Clash and The Verve, and a well-known drummer and producer. I thought it was pretty average actually, but this kind of thing isn’t reallly my genre. Listens: 1 Fave Track: Herculean Rating: 3
Art rock. Ni fu ni fa.
Did everything Damon Albarn touch need to be on here? No. No it didn't.
The Good, The Bad & The Queen by The Good, The Bad & The Queen Basically a blur & Gorillaz album about England. Damon Albarn group created to write songs about England. It's ok, nothing spectacular. 3/5
Despite my badmouthing a good amount of British music on this list, I do enjoy many artists that happen to be British. One of the best to ever do it is Damon Albarn and I am always open to see what he's up to. I wasn't aware of this project before my listen and while it's not up to Gorillaz or Blur levels, I found it to be enjoyable, but not particularly memorable. Paul Simonon from the Clash is also always appreciated. 3.5 stars
Enjoyed this album, but no more than a blur or gorillas album which I have given 4, so by default makes this a 3.
Danger Mouse phoned this one in. He's usually so much more involved with the beats and overall sound. Damon Albarn is, well, he's just Damon Albarn. That's not bad but god damn is it predictable as hell. He found his voice with Blur and has ridden every producer since. Don't get me wrong, I love his sound and voice, but it'd be nice to get some variety from him.
Seemed older than 2007
Some pretty good stuff on here. Didn't blow my mind but def enjoyed it.
While moody and grandiose in its conceptual design, the production’s a step too slick and the prevailing feeling I walk away with is one of heavy-blanketed languidity.
Didn't hate it and it held me till the end but I was done with it by the end.
It was okay. Kinda had a Smiths whiney vibe
this was an entirely unknown to me and feels halfway between steampunk ass nerd music (which i loved at like, 13) and broken bells (which i loved at like, 17) so statistically, there IS a balance point where teenage me would have adored this, probably
This album was fine but after a listen through I don't remember much of it. It was fairly standard mid 2000s alt-rock. Damon Albarn's work ethic and range is impressive, but of all his projects, this one stood out to me the least.