Gorillaz, The World's Most Successful Virtual Band, Unveil New Book Today

Gorillaz, The World's Most Successful Virtual Band, Unveil New Book Today

GORILLAZ: Rise of the Ogre is the Official Autobiography of the Multi-Platinum Band

NEW YORK, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Gorillaz, the multi-platinum phenomenon that the Guinness Book of World Records named the "World's Most Successful Virtual Band," release their official autobiography today. GORILLAZ: Rise of the Ogre, published by Riverhead Books, a division of Penguin Group USA, features 296 pages of full-color illustrations detailing the band members' lives. Dreamed up in 1998 by Damon Albarn of the band Blur, and Jamie Hewlett, co-creator of the massively popular comic book Tank Girl, Gorillaz have amassed more accolades over the course of their brief but storied career than many "normal" bands will over the course of their lifetimes. Fusing hip- hop, pop, punk, dance, electronic and experimental music, their talent is refreshingly cutting edge.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061102/CLTH513 )

The numbers speak for themselves. Their 2001 eponymous debut album sold 5 million copies worldwide, and their critically acclaimed 2005 studio follow- up, Demon Days, racked up close to 6 million. Awards followed, including a Grammy for "Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals" (they opened the show, in hologram form, alongside Madonna). They've recorded with a who's who of pop music legends: Danger Mouse, De La Soul, Ike Turner, Shaun Ryder, Neneh Cherry and Dennis Hopper. And when they announced a week-long stint at Harlem's historic Apollo Theatre in April 2006, the $75 tickets sold out in less than an hour.

While it's tempting to think of Gorillaz as a tongue-in-cheek side project for Albarn and Hewlett, it's important to realize (or suspend disbelief, as the case may be) that the four ape-like cartoons that make up the band are an entity unto themselves. In many ways, it's this coexistence of real and unreal elements that makes them so hugely appealing.

And so it's only fitting that we now have an official autobiography of the band. Designed by Hewlett and (ghost)written by their official chronicler, Cass Browne, GORILLAZ: RISE OF THE OGRE is the latest in a long line of sordid, rock n' roll tell-alls -- and what a scandalous, peril-ridden rise to fame it's been. After hours, backstage, and out of the studio, the Gorillaz - - 2D, Noodle, Russell Hobbs, and the impossibly sinister Murdoc Nicols -- aren't limited to the mundane highs and lows of a mortal celebrity existence. They're a cartoon band, and their rise to glory is not just stuff of legend; it stretches the furthest limits of the imagination.

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061102/CLTH513
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN3
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Riverhead Books

CONTACT: Matthew Venzon of Penguin Group, +1-212-366-2558 or
matthew.venzon@us.penguingroup.com

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