Gorillaz Interview
MTV Asia, August 2001
Why did Gorillaz turn down the Mercury Prize nomination, which is perceived by many as prestigious?
Murdoc: The Mercury award is the same as the Norwich steam train award for elitist and redundant old men. So many musicians and critics lust after that particular one because it supposedly endorses their quality release. It’s just an old giffer's club it may have something to do with music but it’s got nothing to do with entertainment. Also, everyone who wins it goes down the crapper afterward. It’s cursed. A really boring curse too. Whereas the MTV award has explosions and naked Britney.
And the MTV Video Music Awards nominations are fine with you guys?
Russel: At least the MTV Awards have the occasional Hip-Hop artist performing.
Murdoc: Not just another Weller clone polishing his “Wild Wood.”
Your album cover shows the four of you in an army vehicle. Is that a statement that you're waging war on pop music?
Murdoc: No, we just like the uniforms. Anyway, waging war on pop music is futile. They’re not exactly a tough competition. It’d be like beating up little kids. We too good.
Russel: He’s talking “artistic war”. He couldn’t physically win a fight with an old lady.
What do you reckon is wrong with today's pop music?
Murdoc: Because that’s all it is. Same as it ever was. It hasn’t moved on at all. Pop used to be innovative. And now it’s just become as traditional and formulaic as Rock. It’s no fun.
2-D: If you hate pop music so much, Murdoc, how come you’ve got pictures of Atomic Kitten and Kylie all over your toilet door?
Murdoc: Uh... er... they’re just there to help me... relax.
You have an American drummer and a 10-year-old Asian guitarist, have there ever been any cultural clashes in the band?
Russel: No, both I and Noodle have a cosmopolitan taste in food. I eat sushi and she loves hamburgers. It's like “I say potato, she says jaga-imo”
Murdoc: "Let’s call the whole thing off." And actually Russ, you eat sushi and hamburgers.
Who's the most intelligent member of Gorillaz?
Murdoc: Me, me, me, me, me!
2-D: Er...
Murdoc: Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!
Russel: It’s Noodle. She’s got an I.Q. of 203.
Question for Noodle: How did you, a 10-year-old Asian kid, learn to play guitar like that?
Noodle (Translated from Japanese): I was sent to a Zen guitar monastery at the age of three, this is a long tradition in my family. My great, great, great, great grandfather discovered the missing chord.
Who's the fan of Clint Eastwood?
Murdoc: That would be his old mum, Ma Eastwood.
Was it scary to go into the real world and play gigs?
Murdoc: Not for us, man. But maybe for the cats in the audience.
Russel: What d’you mean, “…go into the real world”? We been keeping it real since day one.
Is Napster evil?
Murdoc: I think it’s safe to say we’ve all done our fair share of “file sharing” in the past. “Let he who is without blame cast the first stone “
Russel: Yeah man, but still. I catch you downloading our album. I’m going bust your head over your balls.
Do you think the old cartoon band The Archies was cool or as bad as today's manufactured pop bands?
Murdoc: Back off with your Archies questions. What would I know about the damn Archies?
Russel: Calm down, it’s just a joke. Don’t get so uptight.
Murdoc: I’m just drawn that way.
Russel: Have you been drinking again?
You've got some big and acclaimed names guesting on your album like Talking Heads' Tina Weymouth, Cibo Matto's Miho Hatori, Buena Vista Social Club's Ibrahim Ferrer, and Blur's Damon Albarn. How did they get involved with Gorillaz?
Russel: These people are musicians. We people is musicians. We is the people. All around the world, there’s an interconnectivity and a single language. This language is the rhythm of life and although we all may speak different languages we’re all saying the same thing, y’dig?
Murdoc: Y’dig? What are you digging? What are you on about, lard arse? Keep off of the dopey Twinkies, you’re rubbish. I’d never heard of any of these people before they worked with us. I gave them their first break.
Would you agree to do a TV series or a movie if you guys were approached to do one?
2-D: I used to do drama at school. Everybody said it was just a lesson that you could muck about in, but what’s wrong with that? I mean, I mucked about in Maths too, and look at me now.
Murdoc: A toothless half-wit who never combs his own hair, great!
Russel: Like LL, I’d take a walk-on part in Charlie’s Angels.
Murdoc: Aaahh! Walk on? Roll on, roll off more like. Fatso.
Russel: Seriously Murdoc, lay off the booze and the fat jokes, both will damage your liver, y’follow me?
What would you say to people who call you guys a novelty band?
Murdoc: Better to be a novelty than just plain, boring, repetitive, derivative, redundant, unremarkable, and unknown. But fair enough, if other bands' record sales are sliding so far down that they have to get a quote about us being a novelty band, then fine!
Russel: Surely the point of being an entertainer is to be a one-off and in some way novel.
Who gets the most fan mail and hate mail?
Murdoc: We get the most fan mail and I would guess that Thom Yorke gets the most hate mail, but it does take me ages and is costing me a small fortune in stamps. Does anybody have his e-mail address?
How does it feel to be MTV Asia's Hotseat artist for September?
2-D: Isn’t that summertime over there? I imagine that it would feel very hot then!
Murdoc: The Mercury award is the same as the Norwich steam train award for elitist and redundant old men. So many musicians and critics lust after that particular one because it supposedly endorses their quality release. It’s just an old giffer's club it may have something to do with music but it’s got nothing to do with entertainment. Also, everyone who wins it goes down the crapper afterward. It’s cursed. A really boring curse too. Whereas the MTV award has explosions and naked Britney.
And the MTV Video Music Awards nominations are fine with you guys?
Russel: At least the MTV Awards have the occasional Hip-Hop artist performing.
Murdoc: Not just another Weller clone polishing his “Wild Wood.”
Your album cover shows the four of you in an army vehicle. Is that a statement that you're waging war on pop music?
Murdoc: No, we just like the uniforms. Anyway, waging war on pop music is futile. They’re not exactly a tough competition. It’d be like beating up little kids. We too good.
Russel: He’s talking “artistic war”. He couldn’t physically win a fight with an old lady.
What do you reckon is wrong with today's pop music?
Murdoc: Because that’s all it is. Same as it ever was. It hasn’t moved on at all. Pop used to be innovative. And now it’s just become as traditional and formulaic as Rock. It’s no fun.
2-D: If you hate pop music so much, Murdoc, how come you’ve got pictures of Atomic Kitten and Kylie all over your toilet door?
Murdoc: Uh... er... they’re just there to help me... relax.
You have an American drummer and a 10-year-old Asian guitarist, have there ever been any cultural clashes in the band?
Russel: No, both I and Noodle have a cosmopolitan taste in food. I eat sushi and she loves hamburgers. It's like “I say potato, she says jaga-imo”
Murdoc: "Let’s call the whole thing off." And actually Russ, you eat sushi and hamburgers.
Who's the most intelligent member of Gorillaz?
Murdoc: Me, me, me, me, me!
2-D: Er...
Murdoc: Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!
Russel: It’s Noodle. She’s got an I.Q. of 203.
Question for Noodle: How did you, a 10-year-old Asian kid, learn to play guitar like that?
Noodle (Translated from Japanese): I was sent to a Zen guitar monastery at the age of three, this is a long tradition in my family. My great, great, great, great grandfather discovered the missing chord.
Who's the fan of Clint Eastwood?
Murdoc: That would be his old mum, Ma Eastwood.
Was it scary to go into the real world and play gigs?
Murdoc: Not for us, man. But maybe for the cats in the audience.
Russel: What d’you mean, “…go into the real world”? We been keeping it real since day one.
Is Napster evil?
Murdoc: I think it’s safe to say we’ve all done our fair share of “file sharing” in the past. “Let he who is without blame cast the first stone “
Russel: Yeah man, but still. I catch you downloading our album. I’m going bust your head over your balls.
Do you think the old cartoon band The Archies was cool or as bad as today's manufactured pop bands?
Murdoc: Back off with your Archies questions. What would I know about the damn Archies?
Russel: Calm down, it’s just a joke. Don’t get so uptight.
Murdoc: I’m just drawn that way.
Russel: Have you been drinking again?
You've got some big and acclaimed names guesting on your album like Talking Heads' Tina Weymouth, Cibo Matto's Miho Hatori, Buena Vista Social Club's Ibrahim Ferrer, and Blur's Damon Albarn. How did they get involved with Gorillaz?
Russel: These people are musicians. We people is musicians. We is the people. All around the world, there’s an interconnectivity and a single language. This language is the rhythm of life and although we all may speak different languages we’re all saying the same thing, y’dig?
Murdoc: Y’dig? What are you digging? What are you on about, lard arse? Keep off of the dopey Twinkies, you’re rubbish. I’d never heard of any of these people before they worked with us. I gave them their first break.
Would you agree to do a TV series or a movie if you guys were approached to do one?
2-D: I used to do drama at school. Everybody said it was just a lesson that you could muck about in, but what’s wrong with that? I mean, I mucked about in Maths too, and look at me now.
Murdoc: A toothless half-wit who never combs his own hair, great!
Russel: Like LL, I’d take a walk-on part in Charlie’s Angels.
Murdoc: Aaahh! Walk on? Roll on, roll off more like. Fatso.
Russel: Seriously Murdoc, lay off the booze and the fat jokes, both will damage your liver, y’follow me?
What would you say to people who call you guys a novelty band?
Murdoc: Better to be a novelty than just plain, boring, repetitive, derivative, redundant, unremarkable, and unknown. But fair enough, if other bands' record sales are sliding so far down that they have to get a quote about us being a novelty band, then fine!
Russel: Surely the point of being an entertainer is to be a one-off and in some way novel.
Who gets the most fan mail and hate mail?
Murdoc: We get the most fan mail and I would guess that Thom Yorke gets the most hate mail, but it does take me ages and is costing me a small fortune in stamps. Does anybody have his e-mail address?
How does it feel to be MTV Asia's Hotseat artist for September?
2-D: Isn’t that summertime over there? I imagine that it would feel very hot then!