5 ms·

Making the video that made Gorillaz

222 points by darekkay 2y ago

CodeCompost 2y ago
I know they were a hugely popular band, but I the only song I know is the one from the video.
- zoklet-enjoyer 2y ago
  You're missing out! Gorillaz, Demon Days, and Plastic Beach are all great albums. Their other albums are ok. Blur is a great band too, pretty sure I like all of their albums. Also, if you like that rap verse, check out Del the Funky Homosapien/Deltron
  - tptacek 2y ago
    If you love Demon Days and Plastic Beach, one of the things you probably also love (know it or not) is De La Soul.
    - ZeroGravitas 2y ago
      De La Soul for legal contractual reasons didn't have their music on any streaming services until recently so a good time to revisit or to discover them.
  - mars009 2y ago
    Yeah Gorillaz is my favorite band and this video was the beginning of the journey. Remember watching it and being blown away by the music and the video itself
  - muziq 2y ago
    Deltron 3030 is one of the most amazing things ever!
  - gopher_space 2y ago
    Dr. Octagon has the same vibe.
  - miketery 2y ago
    > We may act different in some ways > But we still grouped together like a fuckin' survey Deltron 3030 -- Madness https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3EiAYQB0pY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3EiAYQB0pY Coincidentally the album Plastic Beach came out 1 month before the BP oil spill.
- 9283409232 2y ago
  Gorillaz are still massive and were Grammy nominated last year.
- seneca 2y ago
  I think they're bigger in the UK. Super creative band, I wish they got more recognition, even though I don't really listen to them myself.
lbotos 2y ago
Demon days 4 eva Gorillaz were an excellent exercise in reminding me as a youth that it was okay to build this sort of fantasy world and make it real. It was more than okay, it was cool. If anyone has the Japanese minidisc kids with guns and they wanna part with it https://www.discogs.com/release/16025872-Gorillaz-Kids-With-Guns-El-Ma%C3%B1ana https://www.discogs.com/release/16025872-Gorillaz-Kids-With-... my email is in my profile!
chikenf00t 2y ago
I remember as a kid putting that cd in my computer and driving the car from the "19-2000" music video around. The physics were so mind-boggling to me at the time. I loved it. This article is bringing back those memories. Actually, I'm not sure if that demo/game came from the CD or from a promo website. It's been so long I don't remember.
- Lammy 2y ago
  It was both. The game was called “Final Drive” or “GEEP Simulator” due to the name of the car and the original URL: http://web.archive.org/web/20011213230145/http://www.gorillaz.com/geep/ http://web.archive.org/web/20011213230145/http://www.gorilla... Here's a widescreen ver: https://archive.org/details/final_drive https://archive.org/details/final_drive It was a cool demo of the new-at-the-time 3D features in Macromedia Shockwave 8.5 (Director; not Shockwave Flash)
  - chikenf00t 2y ago
    Woah... I can't even describe what it feels like seeing this again! Thank you!
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
_gnad_ 2y ago
Gorillaz are timeless. My teenage kids love them
- morkalork 2y ago
  I saw both Gorillaz and Offspring a couple months apart at the same arena venue and I want to say they're all in their 50s and the difference in audience was wild. Damon Albarn has been very successful at staying relevant to the younger crowd.
Anon4Now 2y ago
I loved that song and never saw the video. I don't think a video made any band famous since the MTV era.
- hiccuphippo 2y ago
  Was Ok Go's Here it goes again after the MTV era?
  - 9dev 2y ago
    Right at the end. Loved that one.
- boomboomsubban 2y ago
  >I don't think a video made any band famous since the MTV era. Gangnam Style?
scyzoryk_xyz 2y ago
This is the video that defined my identity as a teen.
tines 2y ago
Damon Albarn is a genius, plain and simple.
wrfrmers 2y ago
>Guitar Hero 2 "Woman" Ad >The Beatles: Rock Band Trailer/Opening Movie >Motorcity >Tron: Uprising >Love, Death, and Robots: Ice I always forget if it was Candeland or the other guy who was prominent in early Gorillaz productions, but suffice it to say, those videos spawned quite the rad pedigree. EDIT: Forgot to add that, since this is a Gorillaz-related comment section, I'm obligated to state my personal esoteric theory that DD/PB/HZ constitute Albarn's attempt to reboot Dante's Divine Comedy. (Among all the other fantastic things those albums are.) (Think about it.)
ultimoo 2y ago
Feel Good Inc.
NKosmatos 2y ago
Ahh... nostalgia. Gorillaz, one of my favorite bands and listened to Gorillaz, Demon Days and Plastic Beach many times. "I'm useless, but not for long The future is coming on"
- ZeroGravitas 2y ago
  Coincidentally Gorillaz just posted a new clip video to their YouTube titled Nostalgiaz: https://youtu.be/KQBlt1sfUhY?si=2WeBcrrQ1zDxZPi0 https://youtu.be/KQBlt1sfUhY?si=2WeBcrrQ1zDxZPi0
- bigiain 2y ago
  is coming on is coming on
zichy 2y ago
Three more facts about the song Clint Eastwood: 1. The drum beat is just the Rock 1 preset of the Suzuki Omnichord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDX6l9_58RA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDX6l9_58RA 2. Del tha Funkee Homosapien wrote the full lyrics in 30 minutes with the help of the book "How to Write a Hit Song": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qq2qSq6NpNY#t=373 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qq2qSq6NpNY#t=373 3. The first version of the song didn't feature Del, but the British group Phi Life Cypher: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM-DK3b5yuo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM-DK3b5yuo
- ovalanche 2y ago
  Deltron 3030 (the song) is a work of art. I can recite it in full. Lol.
- autoexec 2y ago
  > The drum beat is just the Rock 1 preset of the Suzuki Omnichord I wonder if you need to pay royalties or get permission for that kind of thing... or is license to use it commercially included in the price of the instrument?
  - KerrAvon 2y ago
    IANAL, but you don't need a license to publish yourself playing a piano or a guitar, and synthesizers are also musical instruments. That said, I'm not sure that's ever been tested in court, so if someone wanted to be a right-wing asshole about it, like take over Suzuki and try to get royalties from every hit song that used it, I guess it might be interesting.
  - acomjean 2y ago
    This came up recently, but generally musical instruments include a license for any music performance with that instrument. Includes: "STYLES, VOICES, PERFORMANCES, PATTERNS, ARPEGGIOS" https://usa.yamaha.com/about_yamaha/proprietary_rights_notice/index.html https://usa.yamaha.com/about_yamaha/proprietary_rights_notic... There are limits to prevent copying of raw sounds and reselling.
- 2y ago
Lammy 2y ago
Thanks for posting this. I 'member seeing this video originally on MTV at like 3AM. Instantly captivated. I'm a huge fan to this day, but there's something uniquely special about all the Phase 1 stuff: the album, the B-sides (or “G” Sides lol), the explorable Flash Kong Studios site, the DVD, Jamie Hewlett's art†, the fact that the eponymous album as originally released is 55:55 (iykyk) There's also a track on Deltron 3030 (an album I liked a lot more when it was new than I do now) which I have tagged as “feat. 2-D” instead of “feat. Damon Albarn” because come on :p https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxd_eDTbBMQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxd_eDTbBMQ It's also kinda funny that 2D's entire existence is just a stupid pun on Robert Del (lol) Naja a.k.a. “3D” (a.k.a. Banksy?) from Massive Attack, although the later Gorillaz albums strayed from the trip-hop thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unTP4rn0nc4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unTP4rn0nc4 And RIP Gorillaz-Unofficial https://web.archive.org/web/20071222221958/http://www.gorillaz-unofficial.com/news/index.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20071222221958/http://www.gorill... † https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13ub5EfL6YHel5_Gn36v4YBxfpGmSyyVo https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13ub5EfL6YHel5_Gn36v4... edit: and the art Jamie Hewlett is editing in the article's photo was part of the 19／2000 single: https://www.discogs.com/release/66714-Gorillaz-192000/image/SW1hZ2U6MTIwMDk1NA== https://www.discogs.com/release/66714-Gorillaz-192000/image/...
- tptacek 2y ago
  I don't think Robert Del Naja is Banksy? I think that's kind of an urban legend.
  - 4gotunameagain 2y ago
    I think every theory about banksy's identity is just a theory, no ? It's really impressive he has managed to remain anonymous for so long, really. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/banksy-robert-del-naja-massive-attack-art-who-is-he-identity-real-name-graffiti-music-similarities-a7805741.html https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/...
    - pen2l 2y ago
nsbk 2y ago
Such cool videos. I listened to Gorillaz a lot when they first came out. Incidentally I’ve been listening to them lately as I’m learning to play the bass and the “Feel good inc.“ riff is super cool yet beginner friendly. By listening to it I got back into the band again
nicebyte 2y ago
I was 11 or 12 when I first saw Clint Eastwood and the video + the song lived in my head rent free. Genius work, and aged well.
Quiza12 2y ago
Aside from the numerous So Fresh instalments, Demon Days might have been the first CD my brothers and I played to death. Timeless.
ericzawo 2y ago
Such an amazing band. Thanks for sharing.
Cody_C 2y ago
I've always been a huge Gorillaz fan. Such a good name because a group of gorillas is called a band. They have made some really unique music that is almost a new genre.

222 points by darekkay 2y ago

CodeCompost 2y ago

I know they were a hugely popular band, but I the only song I know is the one from the video.

zoklet-enjoyer 2y ago
You're missing out! Gorillaz, Demon Days, and Plastic Beach are all great albums. Their other albums are ok. Blur is a great band too, pretty sure I like all of their albums. Also, if you like that rap verse, check out Del the Funky Homosapien/Deltron
- tptacek 2y ago
  If you love Demon Days and Plastic Beach, one of the things you probably also love (know it or not) is De La Soul.
  - ZeroGravitas 2y ago
    De La Soul for legal contractual reasons didn't have their music on any streaming services until recently so a good time to revisit or to discover them.
- mars009 2y ago
  Yeah Gorillaz is my favorite band and this video was the beginning of the journey. Remember watching it and being blown away by the music and the video itself
- muziq 2y ago
  Deltron 3030 is one of the most amazing things ever!
- gopher_space 2y ago
  Dr. Octagon has the same vibe.
- miketery 2y ago
  > We may act different in some ways > But we still grouped together like a fuckin' survey Deltron 3030 -- Madness https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3EiAYQB0pY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3EiAYQB0pY Coincidentally the album Plastic Beach came out 1 month before the BP oil spill.
9283409232 2y ago
Gorillaz are still massive and were Grammy nominated last year.
seneca 2y ago
I think they're bigger in the UK. Super creative band, I wish they got more recognition, even though I don't really listen to them myself.

lbotos 2y ago

Demon days 4 eva Gorillaz were an excellent exercise in reminding me as a youth that it was okay to build this sort of fantasy world and make it real. It was more than okay, it was cool. If anyone has the Japanese minidisc kids with guns and they wanna part with it https://www.discogs.com/release/16025872-Gorillaz-Kids-With-Guns-El-Ma%C3%B1ana https://www.discogs.com/release/16025872-Gorillaz-Kids-With-... my email is in my profile!

chikenf00t 2y ago

I remember as a kid putting that cd in my computer and driving the car from the "19-2000" music video around. The physics were so mind-boggling to me at the time. I loved it. This article is bringing back those memories. Actually, I'm not sure if that demo/game came from the CD or from a promo website. It's been so long I don't remember.

Lammy 2y ago
It was both. The game was called “Final Drive” or “GEEP Simulator” due to the name of the car and the original URL: http://web.archive.org/web/20011213230145/http://www.gorillaz.com/geep/ http://web.archive.org/web/20011213230145/http://www.gorilla... Here's a widescreen ver: https://archive.org/details/final_drive https://archive.org/details/final_drive It was a cool demo of the new-at-the-time 3D features in Macromedia Shockwave 8.5 (Director; not Shockwave Flash)
- chikenf00t 2y ago
  Woah... I can't even describe what it feels like seeing this again! Thank you!

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

_gnad_ 2y ago

Gorillaz are timeless. My teenage kids love them

morkalork 2y ago
I saw both Gorillaz and Offspring a couple months apart at the same arena venue and I want to say they're all in their 50s and the difference in audience was wild. Damon Albarn has been very successful at staying relevant to the younger crowd.

Anon4Now 2y ago

I loved that song and never saw the video. I don't think a video made any band famous since the MTV era.

hiccuphippo 2y ago
Was Ok Go's Here it goes again after the MTV era?
- 9dev 2y ago
  Right at the end. Loved that one.
boomboomsubban 2y ago
>I don't think a video made any band famous since the MTV era. Gangnam Style?

scyzoryk_xyz 2y ago

This is the video that defined my identity as a teen.

tines 2y ago

Damon Albarn is a genius, plain and simple.

wrfrmers 2y ago

>Guitar Hero 2 "Woman" Ad >The Beatles: Rock Band Trailer/Opening Movie >Motorcity >Tron: Uprising >Love, Death, and Robots: Ice I always forget if it was Candeland or the other guy who was prominent in early Gorillaz productions, but suffice it to say, those videos spawned quite the rad pedigree. EDIT: Forgot to add that, since this is a Gorillaz-related comment section, I'm obligated to state my personal esoteric theory that DD/PB/HZ constitute Albarn's attempt to reboot Dante's Divine Comedy. (Among all the other fantastic things those albums are.) (Think about it.)

ultimoo 2y ago

Feel Good Inc.

NKosmatos 2y ago

Ahh... nostalgia. Gorillaz, one of my favorite bands and listened to Gorillaz, Demon Days and Plastic Beach many times. "I'm useless, but not for long The future is coming on"

ZeroGravitas 2y ago
Coincidentally Gorillaz just posted a new clip video to their YouTube titled Nostalgiaz: https://youtu.be/KQBlt1sfUhY?si=2WeBcrrQ1zDxZPi0 https://youtu.be/KQBlt1sfUhY?si=2WeBcrrQ1zDxZPi0
bigiain 2y ago
is coming on is coming on

zichy 2y ago

Three more facts about the song Clint Eastwood: 1. The drum beat is just the Rock 1 preset of the Suzuki Omnichord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDX6l9_58RA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDX6l9_58RA 2. Del tha Funkee Homosapien wrote the full lyrics in 30 minutes with the help of the book "How to Write a Hit Song": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qq2qSq6NpNY#t=373 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qq2qSq6NpNY#t=373 3. The first version of the song didn't feature Del, but the British group Phi Life Cypher: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM-DK3b5yuo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM-DK3b5yuo

ovalanche 2y ago
Deltron 3030 (the song) is a work of art. I can recite it in full. Lol.
autoexec 2y ago
> The drum beat is just the Rock 1 preset of the Suzuki Omnichord I wonder if you need to pay royalties or get permission for that kind of thing... or is license to use it commercially included in the price of the instrument?
- KerrAvon 2y ago
  IANAL, but you don't need a license to publish yourself playing a piano or a guitar, and synthesizers are also musical instruments. That said, I'm not sure that's ever been tested in court, so if someone wanted to be a right-wing asshole about it, like take over Suzuki and try to get royalties from every hit song that used it, I guess it might be interesting.
- acomjean 2y ago
  This came up recently, but generally musical instruments include a license for any music performance with that instrument. Includes: "STYLES, VOICES, PERFORMANCES, PATTERNS, ARPEGGIOS" https://usa.yamaha.com/about_yamaha/proprietary_rights_notice/index.html https://usa.yamaha.com/about_yamaha/proprietary_rights_notic... There are limits to prevent copying of raw sounds and reselling.
2y ago

Lammy 2y ago

Thanks for posting this. I 'member seeing this video originally on MTV at like 3AM. Instantly captivated. I'm a huge fan to this day, but there's something uniquely special about all the Phase 1 stuff: the album, the B-sides (or “G” Sides lol), the explorable Flash Kong Studios site, the DVD, Jamie Hewlett's art†, the fact that the eponymous album as originally released is 55:55 (iykyk) There's also a track on Deltron 3030 (an album I liked a lot more when it was new than I do now) which I have tagged as “feat. 2-D” instead of “feat. Damon Albarn” because come on :p https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxd_eDTbBMQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxd_eDTbBMQ It's also kinda funny that 2D's entire existence is just a stupid pun on Robert Del (lol) Naja a.k.a. “3D” (a.k.a. Banksy?) from Massive Attack, although the later Gorillaz albums strayed from the trip-hop thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unTP4rn0nc4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unTP4rn0nc4 And RIP Gorillaz-Unofficial https://web.archive.org/web/20071222221958/http://www.gorillaz-unofficial.com/news/index.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20071222221958/http://www.gorill... † https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13ub5EfL6YHel5_Gn36v4YBxfpGmSyyVo https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13ub5EfL6YHel5_Gn36v4... edit: and the art Jamie Hewlett is editing in the article's photo was part of the 19／2000 single: https://www.discogs.com/release/66714-Gorillaz-192000/image/SW1hZ2U6MTIwMDk1NA== https://www.discogs.com/release/66714-Gorillaz-192000/image/...

tptacek 2y ago
I don't think Robert Del Naja is Banksy? I think that's kind of an urban legend.
- 4gotunameagain 2y ago
  I think every theory about banksy's identity is just a theory, no ? It's really impressive he has managed to remain anonymous for so long, really. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/banksy-robert-del-naja-massive-attack-art-who-is-he-identity-real-name-graffiti-music-similarities-a7805741.html https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/...
  - pen2l 2y ago

nsbk 2y ago

Such cool videos. I listened to Gorillaz a lot when they first came out. Incidentally I’ve been listening to them lately as I’m learning to play the bass and the “Feel good inc.“ riff is super cool yet beginner friendly. By listening to it I got back into the band again

nicebyte 2y ago

I was 11 or 12 when I first saw Clint Eastwood and the video + the song lived in my head rent free. Genius work, and aged well.

Quiza12 2y ago

Aside from the numerous So Fresh instalments, Demon Days might have been the first CD my brothers and I played to death. Timeless.

ericzawo 2y ago

Such an amazing band. Thanks for sharing.

Cody_C 2y ago

I've always been a huge Gorillaz fan. Such a good name because a group of gorillas is called a band. They have made some really unique music that is almost a new genre.