Cracker Island

by Gorillaz

Overview

Cracker Island marks something of a retreat for Gorillaz, moving the virtual group away from the excess of The Song Machine, a multi-part series of collaborations that sometimes threatened to collapse upon its own weight. Guests are still featured on Cracker Island -- collaboration is one of the chief reasons Damon Albarn launched the group at the dawn of the millennium -- but he sticks with Greg Kurstin and Remi Kabaka, Jr. as his main collaborators, giving the record an appealingly streamlined feel. Another element lending the album a sleek, unified vibe is how the guests are effectively used as extra texture. Bad Bunny may dominate the vibrant "Tormenta," but he's the exception to the rule: Stevie Nicks gives "Oil" a hint of harmony, and Tame Impala sets "New Gold" adrift in a neo-psychedelic haze, while Beck fades into the background of "Possession Island." All this means is that Damon Albarn is at the center of Cracker Island, a shift that underscores how the record is less an exploration of new sonic territory as it is a reaffirmation of his strengths. Balancing bright, colorful electro-pop with a slight air of melancholy is hardly a new trick for Albarn, yet there's a clean, efficient energy propelling Cracker Island that gives the album a fresh pulse. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	02/24/2023
Label:	Parlophone / Warner Records
UPC:	5054197213212

Tracks

1. Cracker Island
2. Oil
3. The Tired Influencer
4. Tarantula
5. Silent Running
6. New Gold
7. Baby Queen
8. Tormenta
9. Skinny Ape
10. Possession Island

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Gorillaz   Primary Artist,Bass,Piano,Vocals,Keyboards,Mellotron,Percussion,Synthesizer,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Kevin Parker   Guitar,Wurlitzer,Synthesizer,Bass,Drums
Randy Merrill   Medieval Fiddle
Tame Impala   Vocals,Featured Artist
Ade Omotayo   Vocals,Featured Artist
Thundercat   Bass,Vocals,Featured Artist
Jeff Wootton   Guitar
Bootie Brown   Vocals,Featured Artist
Beck   Vocals,Featured Artist
Del the Funky Homosapien   Vocals,Featured Artist
Dawn Penn   Vocals,Featured Artist
De La Soul   Vocals,Featured Artist
Greg Kurstin   Marimba,Keyboards,Mellotron,Percussion,Pump Organ,Vibraphone,Synthesizer,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Bass,Drums,Piano,Congas,Guitar
Remi Kabaka   Percussion
Stevie Nicks   Vocals,Featured Artist
Seye Adelekan   Bass
Bad Bunny   Vocals,Keyboards,Percussion,Featured Artist
MC Bin Laden   Vocals,Featured Artist

Technical Credits

Kevin Parker   Engineer,Producer,Composer,Producer
Randy Merrill   Mastering
Benito Martinez   Composer
Darren Jones   Engineer
Cody Cichowski   Assistant Engineer
Matt Tuggle   Engineer
Tainy   Producer,Drum Programming
Stars Redmond   Design,Artwork
Dom Dolla   Remix Engineer
Julian Burg   Engineer
B Hansen   Composer
Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio   Composer
Matt Wolach   Assistant,Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Jefferson Cristian Dos Santos Lima   Composer
Giacomo Vianello   Engineer
Joel Workman   Engineer
Remi Kabaka Jr.   Composer,Producer
Teren Jones   Composer
Dave Reitzas   Engineer
Dawn Penn   Composer
Mark "Spike" Stent   Mixing
Romye Robinson   Composer
Gorillaz   Producer,Drum Programming
Greg Kurstin   Composer,Engineer,Producer
Remi Kabaka   Composer,Producer,Drum Programming
Jamie Hewlett   Design,Artwork
Stephen Sedgwick   Mixing Assistant
Dave Jolicoeur   Composer
Kevin Douglas   Assistant Engineer
Sam Egglenton   Mixing,Engineer
Federico Foglia   Engineer
Henri Davies   Engineer
Damon Albarn   Composer
Stephen Bruner   Composer