The Good The Bad and the Queen - "Merrie Land"

The Good, The Bad and The Queen are the legendary supergroup made up of Damon Albarn, Paul Simonon, Simon Tong, and Tony Allen.  They originally made their debut way back in 2007 with their self-titled debut and made a ton of waves with it. It made all sorts of year-end lists, and between its Socio-Political commentary and Art Rock vibes made for an intriguing listen.  But for me, it's not really anything I've loved too much of over the years.  I'm a huge fan of all of these guys, and tracks like "Kingdom of Doom" are good.  But with all of these geniuses together, I feel like I just expected more.  So honestly, I don't think I really ever expected this coalition to ever reform.  But here we are, 11 years later with new material.  And these singles, they're not terrible.  Let's chat my friends!

So we get a short intro in “Intro” featuring some quotes from “The Canterbury Tales”.  But guys.  It’s been 11 years.  This is all you have for an intro?  I don’t buy it.  This album starts off properly with “Merrie Land”, and it’s actually a really pleasant intro.  I really honestly wish they just sort of cut out that little intro and added it somehow to this.  Damon sounds just fine if you’re familiar with his current sound than you’ll know very well what to expect.  And honestly, I’m actually really loving just how graceful and elegant these instrumentals are.  Like I said earlier, I was never really too wild about their legendary debut.  But at the very least this is dramatic and interesting.  Not to mention, Damon’s socially aware lyrics this time around seem to be a bit easier to swallow.  I’m just fine with this!  But with “Gun to the Head” things start to get a little hairy for me.  They just built up this very elegant and sweet sound.  But here, this is just sort of corny and goofy, at least elements of it is.  Like, when things sort of straighten up things get alright.  I actually do really love the group-sung chorus and the sort of ragtime feel to all of this.  But like, why do I feel like this is some bizarre, long-lost soundtrack to a disturbing Disney movie.  It’s seriously not terrible, and I can’t listen to this without singing along to some extent.  But I just wish this wasn’t so corny at times.  On the other hand “Nineteen Seventeen” is much less goofy and even a little dark.  Like, there is some seriously weird stuff going on at the intro of this one.  But I love the groovy drums and the synths that are just so hard to place.  And Damon’s performance here is one of his more lively of the bunch.  And yes, that actually does a lot, it gives this one so much life and pizazz.  Hell, “Nineteen Seventeen” is even fun at points.  Sure, Damon’s lyrics are still very conscious and not diving into any “fun” topics.  But between all of that and the backing vocals that seem to be haunting everything and the cinematic vibes, I actually really love this.  Not to mention those strings are a really nice touch. 

Ugh, but here’s my problem.  I think that Damon and company on tracks like “The Great Fire” are still very away and writing very important material.  But this track is such a bore.  The very dreary, drawn-out intro takes forever.  And even when it picks up a little into this sort of upbeat, whimsical tune there really isn’t anything about this that I can grab on to.  It’s like, a nightmare cocktail party which on paper sounds so much more interesting than it actually is.  Now, “Lady Boston” takes a much more direct approach.  It’s sweet on the ears, it’s actually pretty graceful, and Damon sounds legitimately passionate here.  The pianos here are just so charming, and the shimmering atmosphere is really a nice touch.  I would also say that lyrically this one is actually much easier to swallow as well, and I’m loving just how broad these choir vocals around Damon are.  And sure, I think that flute is a little absurd and not necessary.  But call me nuts, but this practically sounds like a really conscious and well written Blur track.  I’m all for this.  On the other hand, “Drifters & Trawlers” actually picks up a little into some low-key funk with some World Music influences.  Honestly, where has this sound been?  And as far as a truly catchy tune that sticks with you goes, this may be one of the most undeniable tracks of the bunch.  But I continue to really be on the fence with some of these flutes which make things loads more intolerable.  But Damon’s legitimately lively performance here and the instrumental shift make this very enjoyable.  But so many of these tracks on this album end up blending together.  With “The Truce of Twilight” we get yet another very downtrodden, woozy track fueled by a ragtime feel and a conscious attitude.  And once again, I really REALLY love the chorus, hell I found myself singing it all day.  But outside of that, this isn’t an interesting tune and it absolutely doesn’t stand out.  And all of these goofy instrumentals back to back are making me want to bang my head into the wall a couple of hundred times. 

But hey look!  With “Ribbons” we get some actual guitars and a sort of rustic, stripped back tune.  And well, it’s actually a genuinely cool and interesting sound.  Here, the band ends up coming off so much easier to take seriously, there’s no goofball ragtime in sight.  Damon’s performance is heartfelt, the atmosphere is somber, and the instrumental is just such a great sound for them.  If we got more tracks like this I would see the hype much more.  But what the actual fuck is going on with “The Last Man To Leave”?  Here we have Damon trying his best to make this one SUPER SPOOPY and combining that with some semi-political tones.  And holy hell is this one terrible.  No, really REALLY terrible.  And the goofy horns that pop in and over-the-top synths, I can’t deal with this.  If Damon wants this project to be taken seriously this is not doing it for me.  And is “The Poison Tree” really that much better?  This album has a fine base sound to it.  But why the hell does so many tracks blend here and float into one another end up coming off so boring.  Like, I don’t mind Damon’s falsetto’s here and the breezy atmospheres.  But everything else here is a joke.  Maybe it’s not necessarily bad, but I couldn’t tell the difference between this and some of the earlier tracks here. 

Rating:   7.0/10

Give A Listen To: “Merrie Land”, “Nineteen Seventeen”, “Lady Boston”, “Ribbons”

Least Favorite Track: “The Last Man to Leave”

Genre: Art Rock / Folk Rock 

Overall Thoughts:  Ok so this new album from The Good The Bad and the Queen is literally 11 years in the making.  And while yes, this album in parts actually captivates me more than their original work, is this worth the hype?  So many of these tracks just wash together, with the same oddball instrumentals which more than often get a little goofy.  It’s alright, but that’s literally it.  Its when the supergroup branch out into areas of Folk Rock and other genres that things get really interesting.  But those moments aren’t enough to carry this.