Gorillaz – On Melancholy Hill

Gorillaz are a British virtual band formed in 1998 by a collaboration between Damon Albarn of Britpop band Blur and Jamie Hewlett, co-creator of the comic book Tank Girl. They had the idea to create the band while watching MTV in their London flat and originally intended to call the project Gorilla. The band is comprised of four fictional band members: 2-D (vocals, keyboard), Murdoc Niccals (bass), Noodle (guitar, vocals) and Russel Hobbs (drums). These characters only appear in animated form and are not alter-egos of real people, as is often mistakenly assumed. There is an extensive fictional back-story behind these band members, written by Albarn and Hewlett. The albums, several videos and their autobiographical book Rise Of The Ogre all tell the saga. Damon Albarn is the only permanent musical contributor to the band, which is a collaboration between various musicians. Their style is broad, with a large number of alternative influences including rock, hip-hop and electronica.

They have released three studio albums: Gorillaz (2001), Demon Days (2005) and Plastic Beach (2010). Additionally, they have put out two B-side collections, G-Sides (2001) and D-Sides (2007), and a reggae remix of the Gorillaz album entitled Laika Come Home (2002). The band has also released three DVDs: Phase One: Celebrity Takedown, Demon Days: Live at Manchester Opera House and Phase Two: Slow Boat To Hades.