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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
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Demon Days
by Gorillaz
When the comic supergroup's 2001 debut sold an astounding 6 million copies worldwide, a sequel became necessary. Hence 'Demon Days.' Returning leader Damon Albarn (Blur) and new producer Danger Mouse are joined by guests Shaun Ryder (Happy Mondays), Ike Turner, MF Doom, De La Soul and Dennis Hopper.
| LABEL: |
Virgin |
| RELEASE DATE: |
24 May 2005 |
| DISCS: |
1 disc |
| GENRE(S): |
Alternative, Rock, Electronic, Rap |
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
100
E! Online
Get past the dark stuff and Demon Days reveals a stash of songs that are more fun than a Hong Kong Phooey marathon.
100
Delusions of Adequacy
Innovative as it is satisfying.... It’s hard to imagine a more realized meld of hip-hop, electronica, and post-rock.
90
Urb
Brilliant.... This album sounds like Albarn and Danger Mouse are an inspired team. [Jul/Aug 2005, p.101]
90
All Music Guide
It not only eclipses the first Gorillaz album, which in itself was a terrific record, but stands alongside the best Blur albums, providing a tonal touchstone for this decade the way Parklife did for the '90s.
90
PopMatters
Demon Days is fantastic.
90
Q Magazine
[Danger Mouse's] stunning flourishes... help place Demon Days notches above any vaguely electronic release in recent memory. [Jun 2005, p.104]
90
Dot Music
Utterly unique and frequently wonderful.
90
Uncut
A dazzlingly clever record--great beats, brilliant production, top tunes and some of Albarn's best singing. [Jun 2005, p.106]
89
Austin Chronicle
The results are reason enough for Damon Albarn's other outfit to finally pack it in.
88
Los Angeles Times
It's Albarn's evocative words, compelling if understated melodic sense and subdued vocals that are the emotional center, transcending the gimmick even more than on the first Gorillaz album. [22 May 2005]
83
Stylus Magazine
A much more consistent and coherent album, equaling Gorillaz’s high points and easily besting its shortcomings.
80
Under The Radar
[Albarn's] sad, plaintive vocal presence elevates near-filler tracks like "November Has Come"... [and] sub-par tracks like the experimental "White Light" and... "Fire Coming Out Of The Monkey's Head" all but beg for Albarn's persona to return. [#10, p.111]
80
musicOMH.com
Demon Days as a whole is a thing of considerable depth and melancholia and offers rather more soul than the cartoon gimmick would suggest.
80
Filter
Amazingly, only a couple of times does the broadness of what is going on get in the way or misfire... and at album's end, you can look back in wonder at how in the hell a barrel of cartoon monkeys managed to pull it off again. [#15, p.93]
80
Amazon.com
Demon Days actually is even better than its predecessor.
80
New Musical Express
Before you even consider the sonic and melodic innovation paraded through the album there’s so much crammed into each of these fifteen songs (without any one of them sounding overproduced or cluttered) that repeated listening is a must.
80
The Guardian
First impressions could not be more wrong. Demon Days goes boldly against the current trend for brash immediacy and instead repays time and effort on the part of the listener.
80
Lost At Sea
Less accessible than its eponymous predecessor, it creates a darker, less cartoonish world where hip-hop, brit-rock, electronica and Dennis Hopper monologues all seem perfectly at home.
80
Drawer B
Albarn’s ability to slither arrogantly from genre to genre while maintaining his charm is truly remarkable.
80
Mojo
Funky, playful but sinister like the best children's stories. [Jun 2005, p.98]
80
Junkmedia
The record's disparate experiments are unified by an overriding darkness, the black light Albarn shines on the dancehall. It's this unusual tone that makes Demon Days intriguing long after it's ceased to be novel.
75
Spin
Danger Mouse sets a consistent tone that wryly chafes against Albarn's paranoia. [Jun 2005, p.105]
75
RapReviews.com
It's [the] beats by Danger Mouse that make "Demon Days" a winner, even when the Gorillaz concept threatens to overwhelm itself with pretentious twaddle.
75
Entertainment Weekly
Spookier, blippier, and more on edge. It's also not as cohesive. [27 May 2005, p.136]
70
ShakingThrough.net
Granted, the world isn’t exactly better off since since the last Gorillaz album, but that doesn’t mean we need to be reminded of it by a loose collaborative outfit that will never be mistaken for the Clash when it comes to political or social consciousness.
70
Slant Magazine
Demon Days is decidedly bleaker than its predecessor.
70
Blender
Darker and colder than its predecessor but, surprisingly, more fun. [Jun 2005, p.109]
70
Paste Magazine
The sound is more psychedeli-danceable than ever.
70
Planet
The results are sinister. [#10, p.70]
70
Prefix Magazine
As you listen to it more and more, the music begins to make sense, the hooks come into focus and everything appears in sharp resolution, manifesting itself in a giant pop animal created for your indulgence.
70
Alternative Press
The music is mostly an interesting hybrid of unlikely elements and naggingly catchy tunes. [Jul 2005, p.186]
70
The Onion (A.V. Club)
It's all quite innovative and cool, and Albarn's deadpan vocals suggest a Han Solo-like seen-it-all interplanetary weariness. Too bad it lacks a track as tight and memorable as the fluke 2001 hit "Clint Eastwood" to anchor it in place.
70
Drowned In Sound
So many names, so many influences: perhaps unsurprisingly 'Demon Days' is a dizzying, disorientating and sometimes directionless album.
69
Pitchfork
Like the Gorillaz's self-titled debut, Demon Days goes the way of most auteur projects, its oversize idea load making for a trip equal parts peak and valley. But also like the debut, Demon Days is better than it has any right to be, featuring singles stronger than anything released under the Blur banner since, you know, that "Woo-hoo" song.
60
Rolling Stone
Surprisingly, Albarn's vocals, phoned-in and incredibly flat, weigh the record down.
58
cokemachineglow
What’s particularly interesting about Demon Days is not that they have half of a good record--there are plenty of albums that can’t even manage that--it’s that it’s so clearly the first half.
50
Playlouder
About as disappointing a follow-up as you could ever imagine.
The average user rating for this album is 8.7 (out of 10) based on 140 User Votes
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