Albums to watch

Song Machine, Season One: Strange

Gorillaz

Song Machine, Season One: Strange

Seventh studio album from Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett's virtual band is part of the Song Machine project

ADM rating[?]

7.6

Label
PLG UK Frontline
UK Release date
16/10/2020
US Release date
16/10/2020
  1. 9.0 |   DIY

    The LP fizzles with a self-made, impromptu energy
    Read Review

  2. 9.0 |   Vinyl Chapters

    A creative mix that showcases Gorillaz’ incredible versatility
    Read Review

  3. 8.0 |   NME

    On album seven, the virtual band continue to eschew tradition and expectation with a guest-heavy romp where punk sits effortlessly beside glitzy ballads
    Read Review

  4. 8.0 |   The Arts Desk

    While the floorplan may be Albarn’s, he makes his guests comfortable... he allows them the space to put up a few posters and make the place their own
    Read Review

  5. 8.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    A deviation from their previous releases, where the songs appear as standalone releases and there’s no immediate overarching concept across the album as a whole
    Read Review

  6. 8.0 |   The Independent

    The finest Gorillaz album in a decade
    Read Review

  7. 8.0 |   The Observer

    Damon Albarn is the melodic anchor to this pioneering album that balances concept with fun
    Read Review

  8. 8.0 |   musicOMH

    Seven albums in, and Gorillaz and their revolving stage of guest stars feel like they’re just getting started. Song Machine, Season Two can’t come soon enough.
    Read Review

  9. 8.0 |   Clash

    A record that walks the streets of West Africa and West London with equal confidence, ‘Strange Timez’ offers respite from the dark clouds that swarm above 2020, a gateway into another realm. Seasons come and seasons go but Gorillaz remain – we’re lucky to have them
    Read Review

  10. 8.0 |   The Guardian

    Damon Albarn’s cartoon band mark their 20th anniversary with a record whose star guests – Elton John, Robert Smith and St Vincent among them – are folded into a fluent, brilliant whole
    Read Review

  11. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    Strange Timez boasts another whopping cast, featuring Beck, St Vincent, Kano, Peter Hook, Slowthai, Joan as Policewoman, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Skepta, the late Tony Allen and the most eye-catching guest of all, the Rocket Man himself, Sir Elton John
    Read Review

  12. 7.6 |   Sputnik Music (staff)

    Strange Timez doesn’t break a whole lot of new ground, but it’s Damon Albarn’s strongest release since Plastic Beach and an infectious celebration of the unique legacy of Gorillaz
    Read Review

  13. 7.5 |   Consequence Of Sound

    The English troupe’s latest project is as sundry, vibrant, playful, and superficial as you’d expect
    Read Review

  14. 7.0 |   Gigwise

    An A-List companion to modern hysteria
    Read Review

  15. 7.0 |   Rolling Stone

    Damon Albarn and Co. go further into borderless pop with the help of Beck, Elton John, and others
    Read Review

  16. 7.0 |   All Music

    Strange Timez may have followed a different template than previous Gorillaz albums, but it is unmistakably a Gorillaz album, a record that hides its melancholy among a series of sunny, genre-bending fusions
    Read Review

  17. 6.0 |   Loud And Quiet

    It’s an intentionally mixed bag, but there’s surprising thematic consistency from Albarn, with his toybox approach to sound design and genre fusion
    Read Review

  18. 6.0 |   The FT

    The latest album from Damon Albarn’s side-project draws a diverse array of musical personalities
    Read Review


blog comments powered by Disqus

Watch it

Roll over video for more options

Hear it

Latest Reviews

More reviews