X-clusive: Gorillaz "Damon's A Glory Seeker!"
XFM, May 2005
With their new album ‘Demon Days’ set for release on May 23, we asked you, the loyal Xfm listener, for questions to put to Gorillaz, and you responded in your droves. Here are the animated anti-heroes’ responses in full....
Q: "I heard Dirty Harry is based on ‘I Need A Gun’ from Damon Albarn's Democrazy. Did he give you the sample, or did he steal one of your songs for the album?" - Ross Foubister
Murdoc: "If Damon Albarn wants to swan around telling people that he made the album, fine. It just highlights his desperate lust for glory really. There’s only four people who are responsible for making that record. Me, Noodle, Russel and er...2D. And to be honest, mate, I’ve even got my suspicions about some of them."
Noodle: "I did receive some guidance from Damon Albarn. He has been a long time supporter of the Gorillaz band, and his advice is always welcome. He will suggest references, or ideas and, although the album is indisputably a Gorillaz record, it would probably sound different without his input."
Q: "When will you playing <insert country>?" - Thais Evelyn Canha de Jesus, 'Knives', Johnny Cheung…
Murdoc: "We're definitely hoping to tour this album. Whether it happens or not that’s another thing. I don’t get out of bed for anything under 50K."
2D: "I came up with an idea that maybe we should be like…animated. It’d be a really different way of a band playing."
Russel: "When we toured last time it was a quick show to put together. But this time we’re going for something more ambitious. But we can’t talk about it until the time’s right or the people from NASA are going pull out."
Noodle: "Last time, we played behind a screen. Everyone was so curious as to what the public image would be, we thought we would take a leaf out of Public Image Ltd’s book and have projections shown on screen, while we cast shadows and silhouettes behind it."
Q: "Are you as cool and laid back in real life, as you are in your videos. Also who is Murdoc's dentist?" - Samuel Kilcoyne
Q "Murdoc, who, in this world populated with fame hogging talentless tosspots, would you most like to kick the living daylights out of and why?" - Colin Windows
Murdoc: "YES. NEXT QUESTION. And talking about teeth, I went to see my dentist the other day for the first time in like four years. He took one look and me and said I didn’t deserve them, so he just kicked them out... And definitely 2-D. I would love to terrorise him in a non-virtual way. It would make a nice break form the routine."
Q: "You always have some unexpected performers on your albums, is there anyone in particular living or dead that you'd like to appear on one of your records?" - Martin Summers
Russel: "Well, Larry Hagman was our backup plan for the tune ‘Fire coming out a Monkey’s Head’."
Noodle: "The song, albeit under a disguise, is a parable about the true intentions of certain nation to submit their will onto others, under the disguise of some other reason. We thought for this reason that Larry Hagman may be in the correct position to narrate this, as he had also expressed his position as an Anti-war campaigner."
Murdoc: "Look mate, without drawing to much attention to this issue, If the guy who played the oil baron ‘J.R. Ewing’ in ‘Dallas’ says the situation in Iraq was about oil, I’m gonna take his word for it. He knows a lot more about the stuff than me or you."
Q: "Do you have groupies and are they cartoons as well?" - Leslie Lee
Murdoc: "2D’s too busy fiddling with his ringtone to be out with any real women. Where as I abuse my position at every opportunity. I’ve got a big list of chicks and I‘m crossing them out one by one as I get through them. In fact I think FHM just printed a copy of it."
2D: "Anyone who shags Murdoc gets what they deserve."
Murdoc: "My thoughts exactly."
Q: "What's happened to the Gorillaz movie that was on the cards?" - Nathan Pruitt
Noodle: "We spent a long time after the American Tour of 2002 negotiating to do a film. It was very time consuming. We got caught up in rehearsals, meetings, script approvals etc. We moved over to LA in order to make the film and things went downhill from there. No-one was focused enough. 2D couldn’t understand the difference between film and reality. Murdoc got kicked out of the Playboy Mansions for stealing ashtrays. Eventually we decided to cut our loses and take time to recuperate."
Q "If and when you made a movie, which actress would play the love interest?" - Zara Chauhan
2D: "As for a leading lady, Britt Eckland. You seen her in that film ‘The Wickerman’?"
Q: "What is your favourite cheese and why?" - Daniel Ransom
“...”
Q: "I heard Dirty Harry is based on ‘I Need A Gun’ from Damon Albarn's Democrazy. Did he give you the sample, or did he steal one of your songs for the album?" - Ross Foubister
Murdoc: "If Damon Albarn wants to swan around telling people that he made the album, fine. It just highlights his desperate lust for glory really. There’s only four people who are responsible for making that record. Me, Noodle, Russel and er...2D. And to be honest, mate, I’ve even got my suspicions about some of them."
Noodle: "I did receive some guidance from Damon Albarn. He has been a long time supporter of the Gorillaz band, and his advice is always welcome. He will suggest references, or ideas and, although the album is indisputably a Gorillaz record, it would probably sound different without his input."
Q: "When will you playing <insert country>?" - Thais Evelyn Canha de Jesus, 'Knives', Johnny Cheung…
Murdoc: "We're definitely hoping to tour this album. Whether it happens or not that’s another thing. I don’t get out of bed for anything under 50K."
2D: "I came up with an idea that maybe we should be like…animated. It’d be a really different way of a band playing."
Russel: "When we toured last time it was a quick show to put together. But this time we’re going for something more ambitious. But we can’t talk about it until the time’s right or the people from NASA are going pull out."
Noodle: "Last time, we played behind a screen. Everyone was so curious as to what the public image would be, we thought we would take a leaf out of Public Image Ltd’s book and have projections shown on screen, while we cast shadows and silhouettes behind it."
Q: "Are you as cool and laid back in real life, as you are in your videos. Also who is Murdoc's dentist?" - Samuel Kilcoyne
Q "Murdoc, who, in this world populated with fame hogging talentless tosspots, would you most like to kick the living daylights out of and why?" - Colin Windows
Murdoc: "YES. NEXT QUESTION. And talking about teeth, I went to see my dentist the other day for the first time in like four years. He took one look and me and said I didn’t deserve them, so he just kicked them out... And definitely 2-D. I would love to terrorise him in a non-virtual way. It would make a nice break form the routine."
Q: "You always have some unexpected performers on your albums, is there anyone in particular living or dead that you'd like to appear on one of your records?" - Martin Summers
Russel: "Well, Larry Hagman was our backup plan for the tune ‘Fire coming out a Monkey’s Head’."
Noodle: "The song, albeit under a disguise, is a parable about the true intentions of certain nation to submit their will onto others, under the disguise of some other reason. We thought for this reason that Larry Hagman may be in the correct position to narrate this, as he had also expressed his position as an Anti-war campaigner."
Murdoc: "Look mate, without drawing to much attention to this issue, If the guy who played the oil baron ‘J.R. Ewing’ in ‘Dallas’ says the situation in Iraq was about oil, I’m gonna take his word for it. He knows a lot more about the stuff than me or you."
Q: "Do you have groupies and are they cartoons as well?" - Leslie Lee
Murdoc: "2D’s too busy fiddling with his ringtone to be out with any real women. Where as I abuse my position at every opportunity. I’ve got a big list of chicks and I‘m crossing them out one by one as I get through them. In fact I think FHM just printed a copy of it."
2D: "Anyone who shags Murdoc gets what they deserve."
Murdoc: "My thoughts exactly."
Q: "What's happened to the Gorillaz movie that was on the cards?" - Nathan Pruitt
Noodle: "We spent a long time after the American Tour of 2002 negotiating to do a film. It was very time consuming. We got caught up in rehearsals, meetings, script approvals etc. We moved over to LA in order to make the film and things went downhill from there. No-one was focused enough. 2D couldn’t understand the difference between film and reality. Murdoc got kicked out of the Playboy Mansions for stealing ashtrays. Eventually we decided to cut our loses and take time to recuperate."
Q "If and when you made a movie, which actress would play the love interest?" - Zara Chauhan
2D: "As for a leading lady, Britt Eckland. You seen her in that film ‘The Wickerman’?"
Q: "What is your favourite cheese and why?" - Daniel Ransom
“...”