Self-described, British “virtual band” Gorillaz played a nearly sold-out show at the Barclays Center on Oct. 13 for what is possibly one of the band’s last concerts for a long time.
As the band finished its first song “M1 A1” from the 22-track-long setlist, Damon Albarn addresseed Brooklyn with the same enthusiasm the crowd did when the band first stepped out onstage.
“We loved you guys so much, that we decided to come back here twice,” frontman Albarn said.
Opened by Los Angeles-based band The Internet, Gorillaz focuses its attention on the many people behind the cartoon band. “The Now Now,” the second album released after the band’s five-year hiatus, feels a like a goodbye for the band and for Albarn. It focuses more on the a collaborative effort among the bandmates, instead of on collaborations with outside artists, which was a defining trait of the group’s discography in the past.
Dubbed by some as the “Damon Albarn Album” due to its lack of guest voices, Albarn’s cartoon counterpart — for the first time — is overshadowed by the man himself; the visuals fall to the background instead of playing the leading role. And now, after more than a decade together, Albarn and visual artist Hewitt are considering that it might be time to retire Gorillaz soon. “We always think that when we get to a point where we’ve achieved something, it’s time to stop,” Albarn told the Guardian. “I couldn’t keep going at this size and pace.”
The show celebrates some of the band’s old hits such as “Feel Good Inc.,” “El Manaña,” “Tomorrow” and “Stylo.” While the new album is notably less guest-heavy than previous releases, the band did collaborate with Peven Everett on “Strobelite,” Jamie Principle on “Hollywood,” Bootie Brown on “Dirty Harry,” De La Soul on both “Feel Good Inc.” and “Superfast Jellyfish.” At the show, there were some surprise guest appearances too, as the band brought out Yasiin Bey (formerly known as Mos Def) during “Stylo” and Peven Everett took over for the late Bobby Womack. Hewitt’s graphics, drifting over the back screen, depict the connections we make in isolation — on empty beaches, oceans and deserts, the cartoon characters fight for survival.
Contrasting the album’s emphasis on desolation in a post-apocalyptic world, the concert felt like a sweet, sad goodbye to both Brooklyn and to the band itself. In the song “Kids with Guns” off of Gorillaz’ second album “Demon Days,” Albarn changed one of the lines to “Who am I? Where am I? Oh, Brooklyn” for the live performance. Albarn’s crooning voice evoked an intense emotional release from the audience that would be impossible to achieve if just listening through a pair of headphones.
The show closed on a beautiful and regal note: “Demon Days” was played in front of a graphic of a bright, burning sun over a stained-glass mosaic of the four cartoon band members. With a career spanning nearly two decades, one burning question was left in the minds of the dissipating crowd as they exited the stadium: will the sun ever set on the Gorillaz?
Email Jessica Xing at [email protected].
