Gorillaz “Plastic Beach” debuts at #2

On the heels of their current single “Stylo” setting the record for the most successful YouTube Music Tuesday premiere to date, Gorillaz have now set two more career landmarks with their brand new third album, Plastic Beach: Selling more than 112,000 copies in the seven days since its March 9 U.S. Release on EMI’s Virgin Records, Plastic Beach has entered the U.S. album chart at #2. Both career highs, the sales number and chart position best those of 2005’s double-platinum Demon Days, which sold 107,000 in its debut week, entering the chart at #6.

Reached for comment at Point Nemo, Gorillaz bassist and mouthpiece Murdoc Niccals gloated, “I hear my Plastic Beach masterpiece has shot into the U.S. charts at No.2!! What about that? Whatever: this means you like me, you really like me!!”

Hailed as “Gorillaz’s third excellent album in a row” (Rolling Stone), “full of hidden and unexpected treasures” (The Chicago Sun-Times), a People magazine “Critics Choice,” and “Best New Music” by Pitchfork, Plastic Beach is the first self-produced Gorillaz album and features a roster of guest stars including Snoop Dogg, Bobby Womack, Mos Def, Lou Reed, The Clash’s Mick Jones and Paul Simonon, The National Orchestra for Arabic Music and many more.

The physical and digital deluxe editions of Plastic Beach are the most elaborate packages ever conceived by co-founders Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett: The iTunes LP version of Plastic Beach includes the “Stylo” video and a Making of “Stylo” documentary; a video collection of Gorillaz animation, Plastic Beach trailers and six exclusive films set to album tracks; a still gallery featuring original Gorillaz art and images exclusive to iTunes; a Gorillaz interactive game; and an Online Extras section providing access to Gorillaz live concert performances and additional exclusives. The iTunes deluxe edition of the record also features the bonus tracks “Pirate’s Progress: and “Three Hearts, Seven Seas, Twelve Moons.”

The physical “Experience Edition” of Plastic Beach includes such bonuses as a Making of Plastic Beach DVD, ability to stream live Gorillaz performances, and a special access card unlocking a world of exclusive and interactive online content to be revealed over time.

Gorillaz a/k/a Murdoc Niccals, 2D, Noodle and Russel Hobbs were co-created by Albarn and Hewlett over ten years ago, and unleashed on the world with their self-titled 2001 debut album, which has sold nearly two million copies in the U.S. The band’s 2005 follow up, Demon Days, featured the Best Pop Collaboration with Vocal Grammy winner “Feel Good Inc.” and sold in excess of two million copies in America. Gorillaz will headline the April 18 final day of this year’s Coachella festival in Indio CA, which will be the first live Gorillaz experience in the States since Demon Days Live sold out five-night run at Harlem’s Apollo Theater back in April 2006.