Demo Crazy [10" VINYL]

Is it uncompromising or purely pretentious? Well, it's a mixture of the two, being at turns equally touching and embarrassing. Alongside moments of genuine emotive power such as "Sub Species of an American Day" and "I Miss You", which expose Albarn's obvious frustration, exhaustion and alienation while on tour, "A Rappy Song" is as truly awful as its title suggests.

Many of the brief musical snippets do provide pleasant late night company but they offer little insight into Albarn's seemingly impenetrable psyche. Gems such as "With the Passing of Time" and "Back to Mali" stumble along with only a languorously strummed acoustic guitar, insomnia-driven vocal and Casio-sounding keyboard, giving the album a more playful than poignant feel. Music stripped to the bone, Democrazy is an enjoyable demonstration of Albarn's songwriting in its embryonic stages and is nothing if not brave. --Christopher Barrett