Gorillaz Interview
Total Guitar, August 2001
Is Gorillaz essentially 2D's band?
Noodle (Translated from Japanese): Murdoc asked 2D if he wanted to be in his band long before Russel and I were on the scene. So I guess when he starts shouting about it being his group it’s not without reason, but that’s such an outdated perception of how a collection of musicians work together. The days of the seventies rock tantrum are long gone but its institutionalized spectre hangs over all bands, not just ours.
Does everyone pick on you in the band as you're only 10 and they're all older?
Noodle: Quite the opposite, they all look after me because I am ten and a girl too. They let me stay up late if I want to but it makes me tired and moody, like Murdoc.
You're a big riff-meister: would you say the guitar solo is dead?
Noodle: Only until the next great solo god resurrects it
Do you practice your guitar playing much?
Noodle: Wherever I am I am thinking and hearing music, not just guitar! I try to split my time between guitar and Karate practice, one informs the other.
Who's your favourite member of the band?
Noodle: Russel is so nice, 2D smells like butterscotch-flavored Angel Delight, and I love them. Murdoc is sometimes very happy, and other times very angry, sometimes both at once. He always makes me laugh.
How did you learn to play guitar?
Noodle: 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.
You play a Les Paul - why? Aren't they heavy as you're quite a small person?
Noodle: Actually, I always use a Fender Duo-Sonic 2, for that Shadows and Beach Boys vibe, I like to stick it through a Sans Amp to give it that Sonic Youth edgy edge. Then there’s my Electro Harmonix Bad Stone for when I need to bring on that Reggae-influenced sound, we are all big fans of Augustus Pablo and the whole Rockers Sound System vibe, this was also the inspiration for 2D's Melodica work on the album. I pull out an Electro Harmonix Big Muff for when we need to sound like a charging tank! I also use an MXR Phazer 100 and a Roland 501 Space Echo. On some tracks I play a Taylor Classic acoustic, a lovely-sounding guitar, it's my baby. On the Electric, I use Ernie Ball Slinky top heavy bottom strings because I heard the twisted legend Graham Coxon uses them, I love him and his sound. My amp is a Selmer Zodiac 30 True Voice, I use it because I like the pre-set buttons for the Bass and Treble, and the strobe light on the tremolo really helps.
You're a big fan of Ritchie Sambora - is he your favourite guitarist? Who else is?
Noodle: My main influences are Zen poetry, and I’m always torn between Tony Iommi and Angus Young. Both of their playing moves me, but Angus has got the moves! Richie is more than a guitarist to me, it’s not just about his sound or his hair, but both and more.
Does playing in Gorillaz give you enough chance to play guitar?
Noodle: Plenty! There’s more to life than this though, I like to spend time downloading MP3s for my headphones, watering my Bonsai trees, practicing karate, and learning how to mix and scratch with Russel.
Why do you think more girls don't play guitar?
Noodle: Another historical hangover which still has us all in its grip. Even the most positive statement about this only perpetuates the myth that girls are too worried about their nails to do Pete Townsend windmills and Van Halen solos.
Tell us about your 'special Zen bond' with 2D.
Noodle: Him. Me. We. A special bond.
If you weren't in Gorillaz, what band would you like to be in?
Noodle: I like playing with other people, but I really don’t want to be in any other band.
Tell us how you recorded your debut album...
Noodle: Things began to take on a life of their own after a while. We started very quietly, the four of us in our studio vibing off of each other, then the vibe began to spread pulling people in from near and far to come and play with us. Two things were pivotal to this album, Pro Tools and Jamaica. Both inform the entire sound of the album.
When Gorillaz do a gig, the audience don't see you, just your image on a screen; will we ever see you on stage playing live?
Noodle: Live shows are always all about image. I am there playing live, you can see me, you can feel me. I’m not sure what you mean.
Will Gorillaz do a second album, and if so, what will it sound like?
Noodle: There will be a second album, but we haven’t started it yet so it’s impossible to pre-empt what the finished work will be like. Like before, we will all be bringing what is happening to us at the time into the studio and express it through our music and during this process, it will change by sharing it with each other and our friends. When we are making our music, it’s important for us to be fluid and part of everything that is around us.
What are your ambitions for the band?
Noodle: We are living them. All I want is for people to enjoy what we are doing as much as we are. So far, so good.
Noodle (Translated from Japanese): Murdoc asked 2D if he wanted to be in his band long before Russel and I were on the scene. So I guess when he starts shouting about it being his group it’s not without reason, but that’s such an outdated perception of how a collection of musicians work together. The days of the seventies rock tantrum are long gone but its institutionalized spectre hangs over all bands, not just ours.
Does everyone pick on you in the band as you're only 10 and they're all older?
Noodle: Quite the opposite, they all look after me because I am ten and a girl too. They let me stay up late if I want to but it makes me tired and moody, like Murdoc.
You're a big riff-meister: would you say the guitar solo is dead?
Noodle: Only until the next great solo god resurrects it
Do you practice your guitar playing much?
Noodle: Wherever I am I am thinking and hearing music, not just guitar! I try to split my time between guitar and Karate practice, one informs the other.
Who's your favourite member of the band?
Noodle: Russel is so nice, 2D smells like butterscotch-flavored Angel Delight, and I love them. Murdoc is sometimes very happy, and other times very angry, sometimes both at once. He always makes me laugh.
How did you learn to play guitar?
Noodle: 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.
You play a Les Paul - why? Aren't they heavy as you're quite a small person?
Noodle: Actually, I always use a Fender Duo-Sonic 2, for that Shadows and Beach Boys vibe, I like to stick it through a Sans Amp to give it that Sonic Youth edgy edge. Then there’s my Electro Harmonix Bad Stone for when I need to bring on that Reggae-influenced sound, we are all big fans of Augustus Pablo and the whole Rockers Sound System vibe, this was also the inspiration for 2D's Melodica work on the album. I pull out an Electro Harmonix Big Muff for when we need to sound like a charging tank! I also use an MXR Phazer 100 and a Roland 501 Space Echo. On some tracks I play a Taylor Classic acoustic, a lovely-sounding guitar, it's my baby. On the Electric, I use Ernie Ball Slinky top heavy bottom strings because I heard the twisted legend Graham Coxon uses them, I love him and his sound. My amp is a Selmer Zodiac 30 True Voice, I use it because I like the pre-set buttons for the Bass and Treble, and the strobe light on the tremolo really helps.
You're a big fan of Ritchie Sambora - is he your favourite guitarist? Who else is?
Noodle: My main influences are Zen poetry, and I’m always torn between Tony Iommi and Angus Young. Both of their playing moves me, but Angus has got the moves! Richie is more than a guitarist to me, it’s not just about his sound or his hair, but both and more.
Does playing in Gorillaz give you enough chance to play guitar?
Noodle: Plenty! There’s more to life than this though, I like to spend time downloading MP3s for my headphones, watering my Bonsai trees, practicing karate, and learning how to mix and scratch with Russel.
Why do you think more girls don't play guitar?
Noodle: Another historical hangover which still has us all in its grip. Even the most positive statement about this only perpetuates the myth that girls are too worried about their nails to do Pete Townsend windmills and Van Halen solos.
Tell us about your 'special Zen bond' with 2D.
Noodle: Him. Me. We. A special bond.
If you weren't in Gorillaz, what band would you like to be in?
Noodle: I like playing with other people, but I really don’t want to be in any other band.
Tell us how you recorded your debut album...
Noodle: Things began to take on a life of their own after a while. We started very quietly, the four of us in our studio vibing off of each other, then the vibe began to spread pulling people in from near and far to come and play with us. Two things were pivotal to this album, Pro Tools and Jamaica. Both inform the entire sound of the album.
When Gorillaz do a gig, the audience don't see you, just your image on a screen; will we ever see you on stage playing live?
Noodle: Live shows are always all about image. I am there playing live, you can see me, you can feel me. I’m not sure what you mean.
Will Gorillaz do a second album, and if so, what will it sound like?
Noodle: There will be a second album, but we haven’t started it yet so it’s impossible to pre-empt what the finished work will be like. Like before, we will all be bringing what is happening to us at the time into the studio and express it through our music and during this process, it will change by sharing it with each other and our friends. When we are making our music, it’s important for us to be fluid and part of everything that is around us.
What are your ambitions for the band?
Noodle: We are living them. All I want is for people to enjoy what we are doing as much as we are. So far, so good.