Gorillaz takeoverGorillazKano and Bashy: How to handle Gorillaz
The grime stars go back to back on the Plastic Beach track White Flag. So what was it like working with a load of cartoons?Kano: 'I was a bit worried someone was going to turn me into a cartoon'
You may think it's weird working with a cartoon band but there are a lot of characters in grime, especially since the early days. The scene was built on strong characters – I could imagine someone animating Wiley! I was always a bit worried that the label was going to turn me into a cartoon character because they always wanted to exaggerate everything.
I first met Damon when we did a song together, Feel Free, for my album London Town. I went down to his studio and he was working on his Monkey: Journey to the West project. We're definitely on the same page musically, but we're not too similar: it's important to be on a different wavelength as well. In the same way, I think Gorillaz are on a totally different wavelength to most popular music.
When Damon explained the concept of the Plastic Beach album to me I was pretty blown away. He said the idea was that there was this place in the middle of the Pacific ocean and basically all the musicians from around the world were coming to meet at that one place. Once he played me some music I really started to get the idea. I thought it would be too crazy, the idea of two London rappers going back to back on an album featuring the Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music. But the crazy juxtaposition really works.
It was good the way the track worked, as well. Damon wrote the music and just let us get on with it. It was my first time working with Bashy so we tried to do something different rather than just verse/chorus/verse. So we bounced off each other. One thing about the track that you might not know is that me and Bashy both had really bad flu. In fact, I think Damon was getting freaked out that we had swine flu and he was going to get it. We thought about cancelling the session at the time but in the end we soldiered through. It might sound upbeat but we were suffering out there!
Bashy: 'I received a letter from Murdoc asking me to head down to Plastic Beach'
The first time I met Damon Albarn was at Africa Express in Liverpool in 2008. I was performing that night anyway, so I just joined his crew on stage. I met Damon afterwards and I immediately realised that he's straightforward, straight to business. You can vibe with him, but for him it's all about the music. Everything is music.
I carried on with Africa Express after that, until I got a letter from Murdoc inviting me to come to Plastic Beach. I turned up and Kano was there as well. We just looked at the beach and listened to the music they wanted us to work with. It's by the Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music, but it reminded me so much of an old-school computer game. Like the sounds you hear when you reach the next level.
We didn't need to be told what the idea was, just looking at Plastic Beach made it clear. So me and Kano just laid down vocals that day, job done. I wouldn't say I'm environmentally conscious, but then the song isn't really about that. Plastic Beach is a warning, but it's also a chance to start again after the world has been ruined. White Flag is about exactly what the title suggests: peace. It's our way of asking for peace in this world and in the new world of Plastic Beach.
I still haven't listened to the whole album more than twice. Murdoc takes things seriously, as it should be, so the project was kept under strict lock and key. If you look at the list of collaborators like Bobby Womack and Mick Jones, no two are really alike. I think Gorillaz look for artists who share their vision and creativity, and who can see the whole picture.
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