The Story Of Gorillaz

>Phase 3 Plastic Beach<

Murdoc went on to spend the next few years to bender around the world. In 2008, Murdoc began to run low on money, so he burned down the ruins of Kong Studios, cashed in on the insurance money, blamed the fire on some kids and fled the country. He also mentioned that part of the reason for the move was to flee from a deadly underground network of pirates simply referred to as the "Black Clouds," who were out to kill him after their business deal went south.

While searching the world for a new hideout, Murdoc discovered an island in the middle of the ocean made entirely out of landfill stuck together. He sprayed the island bright pink and used the insurance money to build a new Gorillaz HQ on top, renaming the island, "Plastic Beach." According to the pelican at the entrance of the building on the band's website, Plastic Beach is the farthest point from any other land mass in the world, dubbed "Point Nemo". After finding the island, he shipped a great deal of the band's belongings to Plastic Beach, their new home. While residing on the island, Murdoc began production for the third Gorillaz album, but he had to reassemble his bandmates.

Murdoc said he tried to recover clues to Noodle's whereabouts from the wreckage of the windmill from El Mañana, but the most he could obtain was a DNA sample. He later used her DNA to create a violent cyborg version of Noodle, who acts as his bodyguard. In the Stylo video, Cyborg Noodle is shown to be adept at the use of firearms, nearly blowing away a police officer that was in pursuit of 2D and Murdoc as they fled toward Plastic Beach. However, Noodle is confirmed to be alive due to her appearance in the "On Melancholy Hill" and "Rhinestone Eyes" videos. Part of the album artwork for Plastic Beach also included a picture of a battered and bruised Noodle with jet-black eyes. Noodle is being hunted by pirates in a manner similar to Murdoc for unknown reasons, (more on that later) and the cruise ship she was sailing on was sunk by attacking bombers, leaving her drifting at sea in a life raft.

 was gassed, kidnapped in his Beruit retreat, and taken to Plastic Beach in a suitcase (as shown in 2-D's Plastic Beach Ident video clip). He believes Murdoc was the one who kidnapped him; however, it appears that the Boogieman was his kidnapper. The Boogieman is the embodiment of all worldly evil and appears in several artworks, as well as 2-D's Ident, the Stylo video, and the storyboard for Rhinestone Eyes. Currently, he is being held at Plastic Beach against his will by Murdoc, who forces him to assist in the making of his music tracks.

2D Little was known about the fate of Russel initially, as Murdoc mentioned he had essentially dropped off the face of the earth. Murdoc mentions that he used a drum machine built from all of Russel's equipment to provide percussion for his album. Finally, Russel's Plastic Beach Ident clip hit the website, showing him stomping down a fishing dock in a barely suppressed rage and jumping off the end into the ocean. When the album dropped and the artwork for the record debuted, it depicted Russel as a giant; he is now as tall as all of Plastic Beach. In the "Making of Plastic Beach" documentary, included in the deluxe edition of the album, Jamie Hewlett shows Mos Def the artwork for the album and explains the backstory for each character. He says that in swimming the ENTIRE way to Plastic Beach, Russell ingested so much pollution, trash and toxic waste that he was transformed into a giant, making a reference to Gulliver's Travels. Russell's situation reinforces the idea of human excess destroying nature already present on the album. On the way to Plastic Beach, Russel finds the sea-stranded Noodle and rescues her, and together they continue on to be reunited with the rest of the band.

Murdoc and 2-D proceed to make their way to Plastic Beach via a road trip to the ocean in a 1969 Camaro SS (dubbed "Stylo'). Murdoc and 2-D are attacked by Bruce Willis, driving a 1968 El Camino. Cyborg Noodle is rendered useless due to a bullet through her head, and Willis opens fire on the two, resulting in a car chase that makes up the Stylo video. Murdoc drives them off a cliff into the ocean, and the car transforms into a shark-shaped submarine. The car chase was recorded on film by Murdoc's personal camera crew and was edited to make the music video for the "Stylo" single.
Murdoc, 2-D, and the newly recovered Cyborg Noodle, along with all the collaborators for the Plastic Beach album, make their way to Point Nemo together, traveling side by side in an armada of underwater vehicles. Upon arriving in a thick fog, Murdoc sights the Boogieman and orders his Cyborg bodyguard to open fire. The Boogie Man escapes, leaving the fog to dissipate and reveal Plastic Beach
On November 21st, Gorillaz released a new single called "Doncamatic" featuring Daley. The music video for the single featured Daley piloting a one-man submarine through the depths of the ocean on his way to Plastic Beach. The song went to No.37 in the UK Singles Charts.
From October 3rd - December 21st, Gorillaz set off on their first world tour; "The Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour." Unfortunately, Murdoc, 2-D and Cyborg Noodle spent the entire tour locked in the dressing room while the Gorillaz "live band" took over the stage. Murdoc suspected that when he refused to give his soul to Satan for making Gorillaz successful, he kept the real Gorillaz out of the shows and gave the glory to the Gorillaz live band. The live band consisted of Daman Albarn and half of The Clash. It was also Satan who sent the Boogieman to track Murdoc down to claim his soul.

During the American leg of the tour, 2-D had been working on a new collection of Gorillaz music on his iPad. He had been experimenting with new sounds and apps in various locations during the tour, including his hotel room, backstage in the dressing rooms, and in the back of the tour bus. This collection of new music would become, "The Fall." It was released on Christmas Day in 2010 for free download from their website to the members of their Sub-Division fan club. The album was physically released on CD on April 18th, 2011. The first single off the album was a double-sided single featuring the tracks, "Revolving Doors"/"Amarillo".
The storyboard of the now-cancelled music video for "Rhinestone Eyes" reveals that the Boogieman has a grudge against Murdoc due to a deal they made and that the Boogieman is the fifth rejected Horseman of Apocalypse, named "Flatulence". The former could mean that the Boogieman represents the Black Cloud in this video, as he is also seen summoning the live band, as well as planes similar to the ones that attacked Noodle, to raid Plastic Beach in an attempt at Murdoc's life. The album's collaborators, along with Cyborg Noodle, arm themselves with guns and retaliate, while Murdoc hides for fear of his own safety. 2-D, who is shown to be deathly afraid of whales, is frightened senseless when a whale nearly rams the underside of the island during the battle. However, just as it closes its jaws around the underwater window of 2-D's room, Russel appears and hurls the whale into an enemy plane, destroying it. Russel then leans onto the Beach and opens his mouth, revealing the real Noodle. Noodle then takes off her mask, revealing scars around her eye. While escaping Plastic Beach, Murdoc was caught up in a typhoon and eventually landed in Hawaii. There, he began to record a radio show to celebrate Gorillaz' Ten Year anniversary. It later turned out he wasn't in Hawaii at all, but he was instead in a ransacked house in London, where the other three members managed to reach him.
In late 2011 the four remaining band members were seen living at 212 Wobble Street, London (as seen in the "DoYaThing" music video). 2-D is seen checking on Noodle as she sleeps. Most of her facial injuries appear to have healed. The Boogieman was also revealed to still be alive and lived in with the band, reading a newspaper. Russel is later seen sleeping on the roof of the row house as 2-D receives a letter stating that the band was being evicted from the residence. The floating windmill island can be seen in a state of disrepair and anchored to the roof of the building. 

(Sorry This Was So Long)