If 2010 has taught us anything, it’s that Damon Albarn might be better known as the Gorillaz front man than as the singer of influential Brit-rockers Blur. What was once an all digital and rather reclusive group, Gorillaz have had a sort of coming out in 2010. Plastic Beach is a staple of year in review lists, the group is currently touring the globe with star studded guests, and Albarn says another album is coming by year’s end. Obviously that was not enough to keep them busy, so Albarn and company dropped “Doncamatic,” a uptempo electro-driven track featuring the androgynous vocals of U.K. Singer/Songwriter Daley.
“Doncamatic” occupies a strange space in the Gorillaz catalogue. It would sound completely out of place on this year’s Plastic Beach, but right at home on Demon Days, a record littered with radio tracks, more the style of “Doncamatic.” Listen to “Doncamatic” and then listen to anything on Plastic Beach and you’ll get a strange reaction. Where I aways thought “Stylo” and “Plastic Beach” were uptempo dance tunes, I now find them slow and brooding. “Doncamatic” feels like it’s being played in double time compared to this year’s LP.
There’s a chopped up accordion guiding “Doncamatic”’s steady pace, layered with countless synthesizer loops and electronic drum kicks. And while there is the polish we’ve all come to expect from a Gorillaz song, the catchy-while-still-being-dark aspect of the track is missing. Daley’s vocals are nothing short of gorgeous, but even that can’t stop “Doncamatic” from being quickly forgotten. Ultimately the track sounds like it tries too hard to sound huge. Too many sounds, too feverish a pace, too soon a release. Albarn should take a page from Gorillaz circa 2001 and slow down this intense release schedule, a track like “Doncamatic” could surely benefit from some more polish. “Doncamatic” should find a home in every loyal Gorillaz fan’s library, but any passerby would likely dismiss the track as over hyped and doubly over produced.
