Daily Music Rec #2
The Mountain - Gorillaz (2/27/2026)
“Is it hip hop? Is it Gothic? Can it fit into the corner pocket?”
It is hardly an over-exaggeration to say that I was born a Gorillaz fan. My mother was the world’s biggest Blur fan in the 90s and my dad, the nerd he is, loved Tank Girl. So, when Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett created Gorillaz together, released the first album and included a feature from Del the Homosapien? Of course they were hooked.
While I may be partial to Laika Come Home, Journey to the West, and Demon Days, I can acknowledge the fact that Gorillaz’s magnum opus is widely considered to be Plastic Beach (which is a great album!). However, if any album could possibly take that label, I think it could be The Mountain.
The Mountain has 15 tracks spread over a runtime of 1 hour and 6 minutes. The album was largely recorded during trips to India taken by Albarn and Hewlett and their love for the culture they experienced shows in every track included. There’s plenty of use of the sitar, sarod, and bansuri, plus the many different voices of their collaborators, a constant with Gorillaz that they’ve only increased with time. The Empty Dream Machine, The Plastic Guru, Casablanca, and The Sweet Prince feature Johnny Marr on electric guitar, hopefully signaling more collaborations between the two. The album features both previous collaborators like Yasiin Bey (Sweepstakes, Stylo) and Paul Simonon (Plastic Beach) as well as newcomers to the menagerie of Gorillaz collaborators, such as Sparks, Black Thought, and IDLES.
I think my feelings towards this album are best summarized with this meme. The entire album takes you on a journey, detailing the cycle of life and the inevitable death and rebirth that follows. Every song blends so well into its predecessor but stands just as strong on its own. The sound of The Mountain is incredibly different from the most recent works out of Gorillaz, namely Cracker Island and The Now Now, feeling closer to Plastic Beach but with the polish that comes with time.
My favorite tracks are The Moon Cave, Damascus, and The Sad God.
I knew The Moon Cave would make me cry, with its posthumous feature of Dave Jolicouer, I just didn’t expect that I would start tearing up as soon as I saw the dedication on the CD insert. The Moon Cave features the posthumous voices of Bobby Womack and Jolicouer, pulled from earlier recording sessions the two had years previous. The way that Black Thought weaves his own verses with snippets of Jolicouer’s unfinished lines is masterful, creating a beautiful dialogue between the two in the song. During the recording session of The Moon Cave, Albarn and singer Asha Puthli discussed the passing of Albarn’s father, his grief and the spiritual afterlife, and this song is the perfect one to introduce the overarching theme of this album, of grief and the hope that there is somewhere after for those who leave us in this world.
Damascus, a reworked track from Plastic Beach initially called Fresh Arrivals, is easily my favorite song on this album. Featuring Yasiin Bey and Omar Souleyman, this song begs you to dance to it. It’s fast-paced, with a strong beat to it. I’m most compelled by the way Souleyman’s lyrics and Bey’s interact with each other. Souleyman sings in Arabic of a lover, how he wishes to hold them close and stay by their side. Bey, meanwhile, raps about migration and the survival of refugees, upholding tradition and rejecting manufactured, consumerist products (Starbucks, you’re corny.) The song is joyous, a celebration of immigrants, love, and what it takes to take your life into your own hands. However, there is still a hint of something more somber in Souleyman’s lyrics, his final line being translated as “Even if you were a Hijazi Zaboon, it would be forbidden for me to wear you.” The travel and safety of immigrants and refugees should be celebrated, yes, but we should also acknowledge the struggles and losses they must make to survive.
The Sad God is a somewhat melancholic choice for a final song, and yet, it is not defeatist. The Sad God laments humanity, how we’ve been given a chance for paradise, and yet we’ve used all that we’ve been gifted to instead harm and oppress others or to escape into our vices. Black Thought offers a more optimistic perspective. To be human, to live, we must accept and experience hardship. Some level of pain will come for all of us—grief, loss, depression—and instead of returning to vices or accepting the powerlessness we feel, we must endure.
The Mountain symbolizes a rebirth for the band, a reinvigorated passion in both Hewlett and Albarn that has been missed in the creative works they make together.
Best enjoyed loudly and with those you hold closest in mind.
Further recommendations:
Matangi – M.I.A (DISCLAIMER: I do not agree with Mathangi Arulpragasam’s endorsement of Donald Trump. If you choose to listen to this album, I urge you to find alternative ways to listen without giving profit to Arulpragasam.) Land of Gold – Anoushka Shankar Wonderwall Music – George Harrison Manual de Romería – Rodrigo Cuevas 3 Feet High and Rising – De La Soul
Listen to The Mountain here:
YouTube | Spotify | Apple Music | Watch the short film here!