The Good, the Bad & the Queen
Merrie Land

Twelve years after that absolute gem known as "The Good The Bad & The Queen," Damon Albarn dusts off one of his most anticipated creations and decides to follow up that incredible album composed together with Tony Allen (Fela Kuti), Simon Tong (The Verve), and the legend Paul Simonon.

The "nameless" band (now identified with the title of that brilliant debut produced by Danger Mouse) returns in great style with this "Merrie Land," and the timing is certainly no accident; in 2006, the British Prime Minister was still Tony Blair, an initiative like Brexit was practically science fiction, and Albarn was engaged in a tribute to life, sounds, and colors of London. Now Brexit is a reality, and this new work is meant to be (explicitly) "a sad farewell letter and an ode to Northern England, as well as an accurate and deep analysis of what it means to be British today."

Today as then, a heavyweight name like Tony Visconti, historical partner of David Bowie, has been chosen for production, hitting the mark to refine a beautiful album, British to the core and very classic in both construction and execution. Albarn's writing, needless to say, is incredibly inspired, and it's amazing to think that this is practically the third album the prolific frontman of Blur has released in a year, counting also the two works published with the much more renowned Gorillaz.

There is a feeling of nostalgia and concern that pervades the entire work, starting from the title track, placed right at the beginning after a brief introduction and totally centered on the rhythmic tangles of an absolute master like Allen, but there are also more airy and open moments that refer to Albarn's other projects; "Gun To The Head" is a kind of outtake from "Parklife" projected into 2018, the beautiful "The Truce Of Twilight" is the closest thing to Gorillaz ever written by Damon outside of Gorillaz (with Simonon taking the lion's share), while "Ribbons" could have been included in his spectacular 2014 solo debut.

Also very successful are the sweetened kraut of "Nineteen Seventeen" (another absolutely magnificent piece) and the almost declaimed "The Last Man To Leave," where Simonon and Allen (as throughout the album) build a perfect and organic rhythmic base, perhaps putting Tong in the background, who, as much as a talented and reliable guitarist, cannot keep up with two heavyweights of the genre.

Damon Albarn continues to surprise and release music of absolute quality without an end in sight. We do not yet know if this band will delight us with other releases; for now, we can enjoy this second, absolute triumph known as "Merrie Land."

Best track: The Truce Of Twilight