- 2025-11-07
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MUSIC
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Gorillaz Premieres New Song “The God of Lying” featuring IDLES on BBC Radio 1
British virtual band Gorillaz, consisting of virtual: Murdoc Niccals (bass), 2-D (vocal), Noodle (guitar) and Russel Hobbs (drums), Non-virtual: Damon Albarn (vocals/guitar/keyboards), Jamie Hewlett and Remi Kabaka Jr. (drums), premiered a new song “The God of Lying” on BBC Radio 1's New Music Show with Jack Saunders.
On the track, the band teamed up with British post-punk band IDLES' Joe Talbot.
The song is the third single off of their upcoming ninth studio album “The Mountain”, following “The Happy Dictator featuring Sparks” and “The Manifesto” featuring Trueno and Proof.
The album is set to be released on March 20, 2026 via he band's own label KONG.
The band first performed the song at their phone-free “House Of Kong” mystery show in London back in September.
It was written by Damon Albarn and Joseph Talbot. Produced by Gorillaz, James Ford, Samuel Egglenton, and Remi Kabaka Jr.
The band lead singer 2-D said of the song, “Can I tell you a secret? Doubt is very tiring but questioning things is really good for you.”- Damon Albarn told Jack Saunders about the song, “I suppose I've kind of got in my head what happened a few days ago with Mamdani in New York. And one of the things he said that really kind of stuck out for me is that 'Hope is alive'. And in this track, Joe and I are kind of we've been chased by hope. And I thought, Oh, that's nice.”
Joe Talbot said, “A play on is obviously 'The God of Lion' was the title. It was obviously really inspiring to me. Having lost my mother. And a lot of things came to mind, I think, like it's the cycles of lies. And the cycles of addiction for me was like this thing where I'd lie to myself and lie to others, and I've had a couple of friends who've been going through it recently, especially when I was writing the song, it was a lot to do with a couple of my mates going through.” -
He continued, “I wanted to kind of explore that idea of the mythology around addiction, but in a way that is analogical of like, lots it is grief, and there's a thing. There's a pressure put on you, how to breathe, why you should grieve, and what it is to be an addict and what it is to be sober doesn't mean you're a better person. It doesn't. There's still work to do. There's still love to give, and you gotta like, be kind to yourself and grieving your own. So I like the idea of it kind of intertwining.”
The new album comprises 15 tracks, featuring guest appearances from Ajay Prasanna, Amaan Ali Bangash, Anoushka Shankar, Asha Bhosle, Asha Puthli, Ayaan Ali Bangash, Bizarrap, Black Thought, Bobby Womack, Dennis Hopper, Gruff Rhys, IDLES, Jalen Ngonda, Johnny Marr, Kara Jackson, Omar Souleyman, Paul Simonon, Proof, Sparks, Tony Allen, Trueno, Trugoy the Dove and Yasiin Bey. - source : BBC Radio 1
