Pitchfork

I can see how this happened: Damon Albarn driving across England in a white van, thieving Simon Tong, Paul Simonon (ex-Clash bassist), and Tony Allen (ex-Fela Kuti drummer) out their beds, ducttaping and blindfolding each one till he's done explaining his master plan. Yet for all the omg! surrounding this British pop chimera, it plopped onto the internet like a hunk of molasses-- a surprisingly heady, sedated number considering Albarn's recent "Feel Good" hits. If you're going to recruit a dream team, you should probably use all the players. This wispy electronic backing says otherwise, allowing little showmanship for the rhythm section. Also, I'm sure the other band members probably shot Albarn a look when he doused his vocals with the same intercom effect that's all over the last Gorillaz LP, but here it complements the melody well; at this point it might even be Albarn's actual singing voice. With their powers combined they're not exactly Captain Planet (only Albarn is), but on paper this lineup's just too good to fuck up such an easy alley-oop.