NEW STUDIO ALBUM TITLED ‘THE MOUNTAIN’ COMING FEBRUARY 27, 2026
Global phenomenon Gorillaz will visit Bradford for the first time when Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett’s BRIT and Grammy-winning British band play two very special warm-up shows at Bradford Live – the magnificent, newly restored art deco building in the heart of the UK’s City of Culture – on 13 and 14 March 2026. Tickets available now HERE.
The Bradford shows come hot on the heels of ‘The Mountain’ – a brand new studio album out 27 February 2026, the first on the band’s own new label KONG – and will kick off the band’s UK and Ireland tour which opens in Manchester on 20 March.
Gorillaz – The Mountain Tour – UK & Ireland
Tickets & Dates at Gorillaz.com
21 March – MANCHESTER, Co-op Live
22 March – BIRMINGHAM, bp pulse LIVE
24 March – GLASGOW, OVO Hydro* – SOLD OUT!
25 March – LEEDS, First Direct Arena*
27 March – CARDIFF, Utilita Arena* – SOLD OUT!
28 March – NOTTINGHAM, Motorpoint Arena*
29 March – LIVERPOOL, M&S Bank Arena*
31 March – BELFAST, SSE Arena* – SOLD OUT!
01 April – DUBLIN, 3Arena* – SOLD OUT!
20 June – LONDON – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium*
*with support from Sparks and Trueno.
The Mountain is Gorillaz’ ninth studio album, an expansive sonic landscape of instruments and sounds, richly layered with voices, melodies and addictive beats, spanning a collection of 15 songs that embody the very essence of Gorillaz’ collaborative ethos.
The record features an extraordinary list of artists and collaborators including: Ajay Prasanna, Amaan & Ayaan Ali Bangash, Anoushka Shankar, Asha Bhosle, Asha Puthli, Bizarrap, Black Thought, Gruff Rhys, IDLES, Jalen Ngonda, Johnny Marr, Kara Jackson, Omar Souleyman, Paul Simonon, Sparks, Trueno and Yasiin Bey; as well as the voices of friends and collaborators who have gone before us, including Bobby Womack, Dave Jolicoeur, Dennis Hopper, Mark E Smith, Proof and Tony Allen.
The Mountain is a playlist for a party on the border between this world and whatever happens next, exploring the journey of life and the thrill of existence.
A phone call in a freezing Belgrade film studio set Gorillaz’ new album in motion. When Jamie Hewlett’s mother-in-law was taken ill in Jaipur, Damon Albarn flew to India. In the months that followed – and after both men lost their fathers within days of each other – the shape of The Mountain began to emerge.
India wasn’t meant to be the backdrop for an album about mortality. At first, the idea was simple: go, work with local musicians, absorb the atmosphere. In May 2024 they travelled through Mumbai, Jaipur, New Delhi, Varanasi and Rishikesh, moving fast, recording as they went. But grief sharpened everything. “The theme started presenting itself,” Hewlett says. “We just didn’t know how to tell it yet.”
Albarn talks about “cities with scars” and the political atmosphere that seeped in almost unconsciously. The result is a 15-track collection that feels both spiritual and restless – a record about journeys, internal and otherwise.
Visually, Hewlett has responded with some of his most intricate work in years. The album artwork draws on thousands of photographs taken during the India trips, reimagined through his hand-drawn lens. Hindu iconography appears alongside Gorillaz’ familiar quartet – 2D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel – but treated with care and research rather than pastiche. “You’ve got to understand what these images represent,” Albarn says. “Not just use them.”
After 25 years, Gorillaz remain a conversation between the two of them, sometimes argumentative, often obsessive, but rooted in long friendship. “We’ve known each other 35 years,” Hewlett says. “Our kids grew up together.” Albarn still plays him early demos; Hewlett still throws away months of artwork if it doesn’t feel right.
As for what The Mountain means, they resist spelling it out. There is no fixed narrative, only an impression: life widening at the base, narrowing towards the summit. Effort. Loss. Renewal. On the closing track, the theme returns, tinged with disappointment and dark humour. “I gave you atoms,” Albarn sings. “You built a bomb.”
The mountain, they suggest, is a state of mind. Hard to reach. Impossible to map. And, like Gorillaz themselves, always shifting.
The Mountain – Album Tracklisting:
- The Mountain (feat. Dennis Hopper, Ajay Prasanna, Anoushka Shankar, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash)
- The Moon Cave (feat. Asha Puthli, Bobby Womack, Dave Jolicoeur, Jalen Ngonda and Black Thought)
- The Happy Dictator (feat. Sparks)
- The Hardest Thing (feat. Tony Allen)
- Orange County (feat. Bizarrap, Kara Jackson and Anoushka Shankar)
- The God of Lying (feat. IDLES)
- The Empty Dream Machine (feat. Black Thought, Johnny Marr and Anoushka Shankar)
- The Manifesto (feat. Trueno and Proof)
- The Plastic Guru (feat. Johnny Marr and Anoushka Shankar)
- Delirium (feat. Mark E. Smith)
- Damascus (feat. Omar Souleyman and Yasiin Bey)
- The Shadowy Light (feat. Asha Bhosle, Gruff Rhys, Ajay Prasanna, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash)
- Casablanca (feat. Paul Simonon and Johnny Marr)
- The Sweet Prince (feat. Ajay Prasanna, Johnny Marr and Anoushka Shankar)
- The Sad God (feat. Black Thought, Ajay Prasanna and Anoushka Shankar)
The Mountain will be available in the following formats: Digital Download; Standard CD; Deluxe 2CD; Standard Vinyl; Hardback Book Vinyl Edition; Limited Edition Collectors Box (incl. Art Prints). Pre-order HERE.
