Austin360 blogs > Digital Savant > Archives > 2006 > February > 09 > Entry
800 lb. Gorillaz
The Gorillaz/Madonna pseudo-mashup at last night’s Grammys hit me where I live in that:
- It was Gorillaz, a band I love.
- It was 3-D animation made to look like a real production on stage, something that to attempt to show off to an audience of millions at a live performace (all right, slightly tape-delayed performance) to the entire world, a feat that takes a lot of the body part that Stephen Colbert claims to have a lot of.
- It was Madonna opening an awards show, an event that takes me back to my youth and has come to be as reliable a form of yearly entertainment as 4th of July fireworks.
- Though the animated members of Gorillaz looked a little pokey in movement in 3-D form, they looked convincing and fantastic. I have no idea who at CBS allowed the underwear-clad Gorillaz character Murdoc to thrust his pelvis like that, but bless them for not pulling a Rolling Stones-at-the-Super Bowl.
- De La Soul jumped out and performed. Who doesn’t like De La Soul?
- The “What is this!?” factor for those who don’t know what Gorillaz is was very high. That’s delicious.
A conversation about what Gorillaz is played out in my house after the show. Try explaining it to someone that’s never seen their videos: “Well, it’s a band. But it’s really that guy from Blur with some guest musicians. And the characters are cartoons. It’s like the Archies. Or Josie and the Pussycats. But cooler. And they do videos. “
Depending on whom you ask, a Gorillaz tour may not happen for a while If it’s just 3-D-animated characters on big screens while Damon Albarn works his magic backstage, I’m perfectly fine with that. I’ve seen Modest Mouse at Austin City Limits Fest. It can’t be any less lively than that.
