If the average person were to predict the rough sonic direction of Damon Albarn’s Gorillaz from album to album, they would absolutely fail. The virtual band’s upcoming album, The Mountain, is already a partial departure from Cracker Island’s syncopated synth-pop; Albarn, in collaboration with a number of new collaborators, is experimenting. Now the band is back with ‘Damascus’, another major single from their upcoming project, The Mountain.
The track premiered at Brian Eno’s Together for Palestine concert back in September. The song introduces itself with glittering 80s-style synths which build into something much grander; Albarn, joining forces with long-time collaborator Yasiin Bey (formerly Mos Def, a notable contributor on Plastic Beach) and Syrian singer Omar Souleyman, is able to combine musical sensibilities to engineer a new sonic chapter for Gorillaz. Whilst the first minute of pleasing keyboards and synths that hum is nothing new for Albarn and Bey (who produced a similar sound on 2010’s ‘Stylo’), the gradual incline to a melody that borrows heavily from Arabic hip-hop seems to be all Souleyman.
The track is interesting for more than just its sonics — its premiere at the Together for Palestine concert made clear its pro-humanity message. “Shipped from Damascus / Nemo Point” raps Bey, a clear commentary on Syrian refugees being unfairly sent away from its capital at the hand of the civil war. Albarn, Bey and Souleyman are making their position crystal clear in ‘Damascus’: big corporations and state organisations, particularly those with a hand in any sort of war, should not be afforded our tolerance and support. We should, in lieu, offer succour to neighbours, to small businesses, and to those trying to make a home in a new land.
Words by Sarina Maloy
Support The Indiependent
We’re trying to raise £200 a month to help cover our operational costs. This includes our ‘Writer of the Month’ awards, where we recognise the amazing work produced by our contributor team. If you’ve enjoyed reading our site, we’d really appreciate it if you could donate to The Indiependent. Whether you can give £1 or £10, you’d be making a huge difference to our small team.