About Demon Days by Gorillaz Album
Demon Days is the second studio album and a concept album by Gorillaz, released on 23 May 2005 in the United Kingdom and on 24 May in the United States. The album is produced by Damon Albarn and Danger Mouse and features contributions from De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, Martina Topley-Bird, Roots Manuva, MF DOOM, Ike Turner, Bootie Brown of the Pharcyde, Shaun Ryder, Dennis Hopper, the London Community Gospel Choir and the San Fernando Valley Youth Chorus. Demon Days entered the UK charts at #1 and the U.S. charts at #6, outperforming the band's 2001 debut, Gorillaz. The album features the singles "Feel Good Inc.", "DARE", "Dirty Harry" and "Kids with Guns" / "El Mañana". Demon Days was first mentioned in articles detailing the reopening of Gorillaz' website in early December 2004. Initially, a March or April 2005 release date was announced, but it was later pushed back. In an article for Q Magazine in February 2005 it was reported that the album was to be titled "We Are Happy Landfill". Another early title was reported to be "Reject False Icons", which is also the title of Gorillaz' culture jamming project. In January 2005 a promo for the song "Dirty Harry" was released as a white label 12" and an exclusive video was released online entitled "Rock It". It was later reported that the track would not appear on the album, although it later appeared on "D-Sides", a collection of remixes, rare songs and B-sides released in November 2007. The album's lead single "Feel Good Inc." became Gorillaz' biggest hit (UK #2, US #14, US-Modern Rock #1) at the time. The album's second single, "DARE" featuring Shaun Ryder, became a big hit as well, giving the band their first #1 single in the UK. The album cover is a reference to "Let It Be" by The Beatles and resembles the "Blur: The Best Of" artwork, the greatest hits album by Albarn's first band Blur. A limited edition of the album was released in a special digipak gatefold, allowing the owner to choose which band member is on the cover. It also contains an exclusive booklet, with lyrics and illustrations for each song, a DVD containing the video (with audio commentary), an animatic for the music video "Feel Good Inc.", short animated films featuring the band, an exclusive audio track titled "The Swagga" and online access to exclusive sections of the band's website, with various wallpapers and screensavers, as well as a crowbar, facilitating the opening of a locked cupboard in the kitchen on Gorillaz.com in order to download the song "Happy Landfill". The phrase 'Reject False Icons' was first mentioned on 24 November 2004 on a Gorillaz mail out to fans. On 8 December, the Gorillaz website was re-opened with a brand new music video, "Rock It", which has the saying "Reject False Icons" at the end. On 19 December the 'Reject False Icons' campaign kicked off with the launch of rejectfalseicons.com. Fans could submit their photos of ways to spread the message by using graffiti or by sticking 'Reject False Icons' stickers that were available for a limited period from the site and from selected record shops in the UK. It was first Respect False Icons, but Albarn changed it to Reject False Icons. Noodle said it is both 'Respect' and 'Reject'. In December 2004, the Gorillaz launched their own talent contest, Search for a Star, to find an artist to collaborate with. There were on average over 100 entries per week whittled down to around 10 to be put forward for the public vote. The 200+ entries were viewed over a million times. A gallery room was added to Kong Studios which displayed all of the entries. Originally, Gorillaz' competition, was initially run to pick just one winner from entries submitted to Gorillaz.com. However, at the end of the competition, it was announced that two further entries—one from the submitted images, and one from the submitted audio files—would be chosen by online vote. The winners for each entries are as followed: Video: "Table Manners" by Carlos "Sourbee" Sowerby Audio: "Indian Dance" by Danny "Asidus" Gonzalez Image: "2D and Paula" by Irina "Schneeflocke" Bolshakova ( www.schneef.com ) All three collaborated on the fourth single release of Phase Two, "Kids With Guns" / "El Mañana". Sourbee provided his animated incarnation of the "Don't Get Lost In Heaven (Original Demo Version)" B-side, featured on the DVD version of the single. Asidus made a "Dirty Harry" remix called "Uno Quatro" featured on the Gorillaz website. Schneeflocke created her own artistic interpretation of "El Mañana", featured on an insert included on the DVD version of the single. Spin (p.64) - Ranked #4 in Spin's "40 Best Albums Of 2005" - " vivid, spastic concept album about the last primates to survive the apocalypse" - Spin (p.105) - "Albarn still has great taste in other people's music. His new accomplice, copyright pirate Danger Mouse, fills in suggestively dubby spaces with choirs, staggering synths, and MCs ranging from De La Soul to Roots Manuva to MF Doom." - Grade: B Entertainment Weekly (No. 821/822, p.136) - " follow-up is spookier, blippier, and more on edge." - Grade: B Uncut (p.106) – 4 stars out of 5 - "Dazzlingly clever - great beats, brilliant production, top tunes and some of Albarn's best singing." CMJ (No. 914, p.4) - "...an immensely absorbable experience with plenty of rhymes and funked-out marching beats to bite into." Vibe (p.143) - "s original - and just as much fun - as the first." Mojo (p.18) - Ranked #18 in Mojo's "The 50 Best Albums Of 2005" - " genre-busting, contemporary pop milestone."
