Monkey Magic
Rip And Burn, April 2005
Speed Dial GORILLAZ
Did you recruit Danger Mouse for animation or musical reasons?
Murdoc: 'He's an odd looking fellow that Danger Mouse. Huge hair... He looks like David Blaine with a wig on.'
2D: 'The idea of getting a giant mouse to produce your album frankly is ridiculous.'
Noodle: 'I was very impressed with the work he had done on his Grey Album. It was wonderfully inventine and showed a child-like creativity and disregard for convention that suited us.'
Dennis Hopper, Shaun Ryder - was it your invention to get the world's main surviving drug fined on one record?
Noodle: 'No.'
Mudoc: 'It's amazing. You can have a back-catalogue as long as your arm, and just because you did a little 'speed' in the 60s people see it as the defining highlight of your career. Unbelievable.'
Russel: 'We contacted Shaun Ryder because we knew he'd fit with the track. Shaun was one of the only true voices and documenters of that late 80s / early 90s period. You can tell he's an original because he spawner so many imitators.'
Kong Studios has pictures of The Clash on the wall. Who do you consider the most punk rock?
Murdoc: 'I fucking love The Clash. But who do I consider most punk rock? er... Neil Armstrong and them boys. Serious. I mean can you imagine what's going through your head on the moon. "Oi! Neil! It's time to go home." "Who's got the keys?" "What if the car don't start? Who's gonna fix it? The fucking AA?" Whos the most Punk Rock? Geezer's going to the moon. Deffo...
Kids With Guns - is hip-hop responsible for making guns a fashion accessory?
Russel: 'I think it's real easy to blame hip-hop for that that. Guns have been glamorised since they were first invented.'
Murdoc: 'I seem to remember Sid Vicious posing around with a gun for the filming of My Way a long time ago.'
Noodle: 'The track is not about glamorising weapons. The song is a cautionary tale about being forced into having to arm your childre. In the song the arms are ambiguous, but there is a definite sense of conflict on the way. De-sensitise yourseld before you get taken advantage of: the line 'They're turning us into monsters' is an expression of that transition.'
Why did you let Damon Albrn go around singing your songs on stage?
Murdoc: 'Good question!'
Noodle: 'Damon has always been close to us. On Demon Days he helped with the production, but more in the sense of making it happane rather than the production of sound.
Russel: 'He also did some voice coaching for 2D. I think 2D has lost a little of his own style and took on some of Damon's. But it's still an improvement from last time.'
Noodle: 'Damon also let us borrow many of his instruments for the recording - he generally filled an all-round supoprtive role in the creation of the recording.'
Murdoc: 'But after that he just er... "Carried On Up the Khyber". He's probably negotiating the purchase of a Venezuelan eight-stringed nose flute as we speak.'
Did you recruit Danger Mouse for animation or musical reasons?
Murdoc: 'He's an odd looking fellow that Danger Mouse. Huge hair... He looks like David Blaine with a wig on.'
2D: 'The idea of getting a giant mouse to produce your album frankly is ridiculous.'
Noodle: 'I was very impressed with the work he had done on his Grey Album. It was wonderfully inventine and showed a child-like creativity and disregard for convention that suited us.'
Dennis Hopper, Shaun Ryder - was it your invention to get the world's main surviving drug fined on one record?
Noodle: 'No.'
Mudoc: 'It's amazing. You can have a back-catalogue as long as your arm, and just because you did a little 'speed' in the 60s people see it as the defining highlight of your career. Unbelievable.'
Russel: 'We contacted Shaun Ryder because we knew he'd fit with the track. Shaun was one of the only true voices and documenters of that late 80s / early 90s period. You can tell he's an original because he spawner so many imitators.'
Kong Studios has pictures of The Clash on the wall. Who do you consider the most punk rock?
Murdoc: 'I fucking love The Clash. But who do I consider most punk rock? er... Neil Armstrong and them boys. Serious. I mean can you imagine what's going through your head on the moon. "Oi! Neil! It's time to go home." "Who's got the keys?" "What if the car don't start? Who's gonna fix it? The fucking AA?" Whos the most Punk Rock? Geezer's going to the moon. Deffo...
Kids With Guns - is hip-hop responsible for making guns a fashion accessory?
Russel: 'I think it's real easy to blame hip-hop for that that. Guns have been glamorised since they were first invented.'
Murdoc: 'I seem to remember Sid Vicious posing around with a gun for the filming of My Way a long time ago.'
Noodle: 'The track is not about glamorising weapons. The song is a cautionary tale about being forced into having to arm your childre. In the song the arms are ambiguous, but there is a definite sense of conflict on the way. De-sensitise yourseld before you get taken advantage of: the line 'They're turning us into monsters' is an expression of that transition.'
Why did you let Damon Albrn go around singing your songs on stage?
Murdoc: 'Good question!'
Noodle: 'Damon has always been close to us. On Demon Days he helped with the production, but more in the sense of making it happane rather than the production of sound.
Russel: 'He also did some voice coaching for 2D. I think 2D has lost a little of his own style and took on some of Damon's. But it's still an improvement from last time.'
Noodle: 'Damon also let us borrow many of his instruments for the recording - he generally filled an all-round supoprtive role in the creation of the recording.'
Murdoc: 'But after that he just er... "Carried On Up the Khyber". He's probably negotiating the purchase of a Venezuelan eight-stringed nose flute as we speak.'