Gorillaz have shared the reflective new single ‘The God Of Lying’, featuring IDLES frontman Joe Talbot.
The track is the third preview to be shared from their forthcoming album ‘The Mountain’ – following lead single ‘The Happy Dictator’ featuring Sparks, and the sprawling track ‘The Manifesto’ with Trueno and late D12 member Proof.
Recorded in London, Devon and Mumbai, the new song sees Damon Albarn and co. join forces with the IDLES, as well as with Ajay Prasanna on bansuri and Viraj Acharya on percussion.
As with the rest of the album, ‘The God Of Lying’ sees Gorillaz explore motifs of grief, political division, and whether there is a wider meaning to life.
“Who am I?” a voice asks at the beginning of the track, as an intriguing, rhythmic beat starts to emerge.
“Are you happy with your housing?/ Are you climbing up the walls? / Are you deafened by the headlines, or does your head not hear at all?” sings Talbot in his signature vocal style. “Are you pacified by passion?/ Are you armed to the teeth? / Are you bubbling at the surface of what’s cooking underneath?”
The track gradually and effortlessly builds, leading to the withdrawn chorus: “Running to the exit, with a huge grin on my face / Screaming, hope is behind, and I want to get high.”
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“Can I tell you a secret? Doubt is very tiring but questioning things is really good for you,” Gorillaz frontman 2D said of the new single.
While officially released today (Thursday November 6), ‘The God Of Lying’ was first previewed by Gorillaz at their phone-free ‘House Of Kong’ mystery show in London back in September.
At the gig – which came after a handful of shows celebrating their earlier discography –Albarn and co. announced details of their forthcoming ninth album, and played the record in full for fans.
‘The Mountain’ is set for release on March 20 2026 via the band’s own label KONG –and available for pre-order here.
As well as Sparks, IDLES, Trueno, and Proof, the record also sees Albarn and Jamie Hewett join forces with Black Thought, Omar Souleyman, Asha Puthli, Asha Bhosle, Gruff Rhys, Kara Jackson, Yasiin Bey, Paul Simonon, Johnny Marr, and Anoushka Shankar.
Other featured musicians are The London Arab Orchestra, Demon Strings, Chris Storr, James Copus and Matthew Gunner, while deceased acts like Dennis Hopper, Bobby Womack, De La Soul‘s Dave Jolicoeur, Tony Allen, and the late Mark E Smith of The Fall are billed as ‘Voices from Elsewhere’.
In a recent interview, Albarn opened up about how he and Jamie Hewlett losing their fathers and travelling to India was a huge source of inspiration for the album.
“Both Jamie and I lost our fathers,” he said (via The Sun). “We did two quite amazing, magical trips to India. India is a very interesting place to carry grief, because they have a very positive outlook on death.”
“I did things I’d never done before. I swam in the Ganges in Varanasi. I watched the bodies being burnt on the banks of the Ganges,” he added. “I took my dad’s ashes there and I cast them in the river. It was very beautiful.”
He also shared that Gorillaz will not be continuing their tradition of making animated music videos to support the singles on the album, but instead making a one-off production.
In March 2025, Gorillaz will head out on a UK and Ireland tour, which includes stops in Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Cardiff, Nottingham, Liverpool, Belfast and Dublin, as well as a one-off headline show at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Visit here for tickets and here to check out a full list of dates.
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