Did anyone ever guess, amidst the childish insults being hurled back and forth between Blur and Oasis during the mid-'90s, that Damon Albarn would ever become such an innovative and prolific figure in modern music? Most certainly wouldn't have; the clown prince of Britpop, though responsible for a few great albums with Blur, was more or less expected to either fizzle out after he reached thirty, or grow old disgracefully like the Gallagher oafs. After Blur temporarily disbanded, however, Albarn turned his hand to several projects, most notably cartoon anti-heroes Gorillaz. His latest undertaking is The Good, the Bad and the Queen, but this is no mere off-the-cuff side project; enlisting Clash bassist Paul Simonon, Verve guitarist Simon Tong and esteemed Africa 70(Fela Kuti) drummer Tony Allen, their self-titled debut album is as checkered as their line-up. Produced by hallowed knob-twiddler Danger Mouse, TG,tB&tQ is a sprawling mash-up of styles that has its roots firmly planted in indie-rock, but its head unsteadily elsewhere. The second concept album of-sorts founded around life in London in as many months, (Bloc Party's A Weekend in the City being the other), it's a largely dark and muted affair of scratchy, downbeat and world-weary songs that recurrently reference war (Albarn is a noted anti-war campaigner). Experimental but not disengaging, there are reggae-tinged basslines a-plenty, trickles of off-kilter music hall-style piano, and a mass of electronic buzzes that wouldn't sound out of place on a Gorillaz b-side. '80s Life is a pessimistic narrative of not wanting to 'live in a war that's got no end in our time' over a defiantly optimistic backing track; Herculean is a heavily Danger Mouse-influenced dancey gothic demo, while Nature Springs' electronica/gospel/sci-fi/reggae hybrid alludes to the likes of Portishead or Massive Attack. The Good, the Bad and the Queen is an indubitably easygoing, if often schizophrenic album that needs to be considered to be appreciated. If you're expecting to simply hear an amalgam of its protagonists' rock styles, however, be prepared for some surprise.
