Cool Hunting
As I write, Britain is recovering from being battered by the strongest storm in years, while six more soldiers have been injured in Iraq. The war and global warming seem to dominate the news right now, and they're also the defining themes of The Good, The Bad & The Queen. It's the first notable British release of the year from arguably the most prolifically successful British musician of recent years. That's not to say that Damon Albarn hasn't once again roped in some decent support, including his multi-tasking Gorillaz cohort Danger Mouse and The Clash bassist Paul Simonon.
Dealing with prickly, political issues is inevitably going to influence the sound—see Thom Yorke's The Eraser—yet Albarn has a knack of marrying world-weary lyrics and a wistful melody, with a deft lightness of touch. Foreboding opener "History Song" echoes the shuffling skank of The Specials' "Ghost Town," while the skittish percussion of Afrobeat legend Tony Allen, as evidenced on single "Herculean," gives the record its slightly nervy, uneasy feeling. Waltzing "80s Life" and "Green Fields" both go some way to backing up the assertion that The Good, The Bad & The Queen is the natural successor to Blur's 90s high point, Parklife. Both records are pin-sharp depictions of the London milieu, albeit more than a decade apart.
The Good, The Bad & The Queen is released in the U.K. today, 22 January 2007, and in the U.S. tomorrow.
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