Video: The Good, The Bad & The Queen – “Gun To The Head”

From Merrie Land, out now on Studio 13.

It’s been eleven years since the last album from The Good, The Bad & The Queen, the band featuring members of The Clash, Blur, The Verve and Tony Allen: Master Drummer of Afrobeat (which is also the name of Allen’s autobiography). And man…what an eleven years it’s been.

Just as America is struggling in the Trump years with questions of patriotism vs. nationalism and democracy vs. authoritarianism, the United Kingdom is facing a very public break up with the European Union that would make Pete Davidson cringe. The Good, The Bad & The Queen explores the very question of what it is to be English in this modern world and the answers are anything but easy.

“Gun to the Head” sees a return for the creepy ventriloquist dummy who reintroduced us to the band in the lead-off video for “Merrie Land” (after the jump). If the the truth comes from the mouths of babes, what can we expect from a dummy? It turns out that it’s maudlin carnival music and a  hard dose of reality.

I was a dedicated follower of Oasis back when Albarn was warring with the Gallaghers in the 90s, but have really taken to the bookish pop sensibilities he’s brought to pop music. The first album from The Good, The Bad & The Queen is still in frequent rotation around my house and if the first two singles represent the album, then I’ll be listening intently to the continuation of the story. And taking notes…

The Good, The Bad & The Queen: web, twitter, amazon, apple, spotify, wiki.

Video: The Good, The Bad & The Queen – “Merrie Land”

From Merrie Land, out now on Studio 13.