Gorillaz announce new album, ‘The Mountain’, share ‘The Happy Dictator’ alongside UK tour dates
Gorillaz, the virtual art pop project spearheaded by Damon Albarn, have announced details of their ninth album, The Mountain, alongside the release of a new single, ‘The Happy Dictator’ and news of a 2026 tour.
The track, which features US art rock stalwarts Sparks as guests, is a jovial synthpop cut that showcases both parties’ love of whimsy and playfulness, but there appears to be deeper political commentary about the world falling apart coming courtesy of Albarn and Russell Mael.
Speaking about the track, Albarn explained that the idea came from a visit to Turkmenistan with his daughter where they learned about dictator Saparmurat Niyazov. He said on BBC Radio 1: “The point of ‘The Happy Dictator’ is that the Turkmenbashi [lit: ‘Head of the Turkmen’] wanted everyone in Turkmenistan to only think happy thoughts and sleep unaffected by the doom of the world, and just keep everything upbeat, so he kind of banned all bad news. When I was there, I was kind of inspired by that.”
He continued: “There’s a degree of satire, but it’s one of those things that you can sort of imagine people singing back at you and it being quite a joyful experience even though the origins of it are quite sinister and dark.” Albarn also spoke about how large amounts of the album were inspired by his travels in India, Douglas Adams’ Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, and is sung in five languages, including English, Hindi, Arabic, Spanish and Yoruba.
This new release comes following a recent performance at the Copper Box in London, where the band played the entirety of their forthcoming album live for the first time on the final night of a four-night residency at the venue.
The band had dedicated the first three nights of the residency to playing their first three records, Gorillaz, Demon Days, and Plastic Beach in full, but stunned audiences by choosing to surprise them with an exclusive performance of all unheard material, bringing out guests that included Johnny Marr, Joe Talbot of Idles, and upcoming Argentine rapper Trueno.
Gorillaz have also announced a 2026 tour in support of The Mountain, which will see them play their first ever stadium show at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, as well as the Co-Op Live Arena in Manchester. The Mountain will be released March 20th, 2026, with the tour commencing the following night.
Gorillaz 2026 tour dates:
March
- 21 – Co-op Live, Manchester
- 22 – BP Pulse Live, Birmingham
- 24 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow
- 25 – First Direct Arena, Leeds
- 27 – Utilitia Arena, Cardiff
- 28 – Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham
- 29 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool
- 31 – SSE Arena, Belfast
April
- 01 – 3Arena, Dublin
June
- 20 – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
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