The Good, The Bad & The Queen – Herculean (Honest John’s)
4/5
By: Thomas Hannan
What was I thinking? Did the glorious 'Think Tank', one of the most underrated albums ever, teach me nothing (please everyone, you've got lots of other records that don't have Graham on them, and you enjoy them just fine...)? Have I forgotten the numerous lessons taught by the joyously eclectic 'Demon Days' already? Why oh why was I expecting Damon Albarn's new project to be anything other than the moody brilliance this single shapes it up to be?
Because I remember the days of 'Ordinary Decent Criminal'. I remember 'Demo Crazy'. Far too vividly. And this supergroup (featuring another hero of mine, The Clash's Paul Simonon on bass, as well as Tony Allen on percussion and, er, The Verve's Simon Tong on guitar) it seemed to me had 'ego-motivated flop' written all over it. There was I forgetting the few years of true form Damon's hit, because the bad times stuck out more prominently in the memory of this Blur geek. There was I being resoundingly wrong. Here am I loving admitting what a fool I was.
The band may not have a real name, but 'Herculean' sounds like the work of a genuine, focused project - deliciously dense, like Gorillaz without the joviality or 'Think Tank' without Fatboy sodding Slim, if there a subsequent album full of things of this quality it'll rank among some of Albarn's (not to mention Simonon's) finest work. After this, I'd be a prat to expect anything less.
Your Feedback
Login to post your comment