El Mañana
Encyclopedia
"El Mañana" is a song from the Gorillaz
Gorillaz
Gorillaz is an English musical project created in 1998 by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett. This project consists of Gorillaz music itself and an extensive fictional universe depicting a "virtual band" of cartoon characters...

's second album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

, Demon Days
Demon Days
Demon Days is the second studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz, released in May 2005. The album features contributions from De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, Martina Topley-Bird, Roots Manuva, MF DOOM, Ike Turner, Bootie Brown of the Pharcyde, Shaun Ryder, Dennis Hopper, the London Community Gospel...

. It was released as a single on April 10, 2006 in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 as double A-side with "Kids With Guns" as the fourth and final single from the album Demon Days
Demon Days
Demon Days is the second studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz, released in May 2005. The album features contributions from De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, Martina Topley-Bird, Roots Manuva, MF DOOM, Ike Turner, Bootie Brown of the Pharcyde, Shaun Ryder, Dennis Hopper, the London Community Gospel...

. Unlike its Top 10 predecessors from Demon Days, "Kids with Guns"/"El Mañana" reached #27 upon its release in the UK.

Overview

"El Mañana" (being Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...

 for "The Tomorrow"). In early August 2005, the winner of the "Search for a Star" competition was announced to collaborate with Gorillaz on this single. In early November 2005, Gorillaz's co-creator Jamie Hewlett
Jamie Hewlett
Jamie Christopher Hewlett is an English comic book artist and designer. He is known for being the co-creator of the comic Tank Girl and co-creator of the virtual band Gorillaz.-Biography:...

 announced the release of "El Mañana" as the fourth single to be taken from the album. This video was also used in Blue Man Group's "How to be a Megastar" tour in Grand Rapids at Van Andel Arena; however, a different song was used.
A theory into which the song was named this is that it uses the term of "The Morning" and uses it as a play on words, therefore, saying "The Morning" but meaning "The Mourning" since Noodle's appearent death was staged in the video.

Music video

"El Mañana" was a full-budget video from Passion Pictures
Passion Pictures
Passion Pictures is a film and animation production company based in Rathbone Place, off Oxford Street in London's West End. They have been responsible for much of the production of the visual element of the animated rock band Gorillaz....

, directed by Jamie Hewlett and Pete Candeland. According to Gorillaz.com, the video was to be released March 11, 2006. The video is a continuation of the "Feel Good Inc.
Feel Good Inc.
"Feel Good Inc." is a song by Gorillaz, on their album Demon Days, featuring De La Soul. The song was released as the lead single from the album on 9 May 2005 in the United Kingdom . "Feel Good Inc." peaked at #2 in the United Kingdom and #14 in the United States, at the time the band's highest...

" video. Noodle
Noodle (Gorillaz)
Noodle is a musician and member of the virtual band Gorillaz. She provides the guitar and keyboard, as well as some main and backing vocals for the band. She, like all other Gorillaz members, was created by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett...

 is floating along peacefully in the sunshine on her floating island. Suddenly two helicopters (resembling RAH-66 Comanche's
RAH-66 Comanche
The Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche was an advanced five-blade armed reconnaissance and attack helicopter designed for the United States Army. The RAH-66 program was canceled in 2004, before mass production began, after nearly $7 billion was spent on the program.During the early 1980s, the U.S...

) catch up to the island and begin to fire upon Noodle with machine guns. As Noodle flees into the windmill, the helicopters smash into the sails and destroy them. When Noodle comes out of the windmill, the windmill is now in flames from the onslaught of the attacking helicopters, and the ground, once lush, green and full of life, was now barren and empty. The helicopter pilots see her and start to attack again, and she is forced back inside the windmill. The stricken island then starts to lose altitude and falls down into a canyon. Then one of the two helicopters drops a bomb and they fly off. Though it may appear that Noodle is seen parachuting to safety during the crash sequence at 3:27 of the video, the parachute-like object is actually a shrub that is torn from the ground to the left of the windmill as it falls towards the earth, as seen at 3:21.

Themes

Many themes seem to be displayed throughout the video. Two of such themes are the struggle between childhood innocence and adulthood war, as well as the idea that when kept in a paradise too long, one would rather stay in that paradise as it goes up in flames rather than move on. Also, the turning of the windmill may symbolize the ticking of a clock, more so as the clock of life or something similar. As 2-D said in "Feel Good Inc.
Feel Good Inc.
"Feel Good Inc." is a song by Gorillaz, on their album Demon Days, featuring De La Soul. The song was released as the lead single from the album on 9 May 2005 in the United Kingdom . "Feel Good Inc." peaked at #2 in the United Kingdom and #14 in the United States, at the time the band's highest...

", "It is sinking, falling down."

Some of the themes, which are continued from the "Feel Good Inc." video, are once again the "dumbing down" of mass culture and how mental freedom can be destroyed by a "corporation". This is shown when the floating island (mental freedom) is destroyed by the helicopters (media/"Corporation"). With Noodle on the island when being attacked, another theme is how children are being desensitized by images of violence and war. This particular theme can also be heard in the song and seen in the music video for "Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry (song)
"Dirty Harry" is a song from Gorillaz' second album Demon Days. It was the third single from the album, released 21 November 2005. It peaked at #6 in the UK. It was also released as a promo and onto iTunes earlier that year. An early version of "Dirty Harry" titled "I Need a Gun" was included on...

".

The video also seems to reflect Damon Albarn's views against war. The windmill burning not unlike an oil well and the helicopters, that are similar to the Comanche
RAH-66 Comanche
The Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche was an advanced five-blade armed reconnaissance and attack helicopter designed for the United States Army. The RAH-66 program was canceled in 2004, before mass production began, after nearly $7 billion was spent on the program.During the early 1980s, the U.S...

 helicopters, can be interpreted as a reference to the War in Iraq. The attack on Noodle and the island itself seems to be a comment on the targeting of innocent by-standers in times of war and that war destroys all things that are peaceful in the world. Finally, in the end, the dropping of the bomb onto Noodle, who is Japanese, can be interpreted as a reference to the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the United States conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the first on August 6, 1945, and the second on August 9, 1945. These two events are the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date.For six months...

, or nuclear weapons in general.

In addition, it is shown that the floating island seems to have the only green environment around, while the world below is only a barren land. With the floating island also representing nature and the helicopters representing industry, the theme of ecological destruction is also apparent, which 2-D hinted at in "Feel Good Inc.", with the lyrics "Windmill, windmill, for the land...".

When one first watches this video, it becomes clear on who is the villain and who is the hero, according Vladimir Propp
Vladimir Propp
Vladimir Yakovlevich Propp was a Russian and Soviet formalist scholar who analyzed the basic plot components of Russian folk tales to identify their simplest irreducible narrative elements.- Biography :...

's character functions. Most viewers would originally see Noodle as the hero of the video, and the helicopters as the villains. But these roles can be switched.
Noodle and her island are in the skies or, as one could see it; heaven. So, Noodle is there, but could not be allowed there. Therefore the helicopters come to remove her from the premises, making the helicopters the heroes and Noodle, potentially, the villain. The passing of the canyon top on the video could be seen as Noodle passing back into her world.

Noodle's supposed "death"

For a few weeks before the video release, a series of events had been taking place. First, at Kong Studios on the Gorillaz
Gorillaz
Gorillaz is an English musical project created in 1998 by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett. This project consists of Gorillaz music itself and an extensive fictional universe depicting a "virtual band" of cartoon characters...

 website, boxes and other packing materials were seen in the lobby on February 16, 2006. A few weeks later, they were moved into Noodle
Noodle (Gorillaz)
Noodle is a musician and member of the virtual band Gorillaz. She provides the guitar and keyboard, as well as some main and backing vocals for the band. She, like all other Gorillaz members, was created by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett...

's room. Subsequently, Noodle apparently began to pack the contents of her room into those boxes, and the windmill from the "Feel Good Inc." video was seen tethered to the balcony. After 7 March, as an intro before entering Kong Studios, a movie would play depicting the windmill flying away.

At Gorillaz website, Noodle's room is largely barren, although the links associated with her belongings are still accessible and Shaun Ryder
Shaun Ryder
Shaun William Ryder, aka X, is an English musician, occasional newspaper columnist, actor, author, singer-songwriter and television personality, best known as lead singer for Happy Mondays and Black Grape – and more recently as the runner-up of the 2010 version of the British TV Show I'm a...

's head (introduced in the music video for "DARE
DARE (song)
"DARE" is a song by Gorillaz and is featured on their 2005 album Demon Days. It was released 29 August 2005 as the second single from the album and became the first Gorillaz single to hit number one on the UK Singles Chart. On online music stores such as iTunes, the radio edit of the song was...

") is still hooked up behind the partition. As of 13 March, her room started to crack around the corners on the walls. Additionally, the "Armageddon clock" on the wall had appeared to have slowed down and had an additional fourth hand. The clock has fallen off the wall and a part of the ceiling has collapsed, revealing a corridor from both Noodle's room and the Map.

It was theorized that the events of the video are not merely staged because the helicopters change in appearance. In "Feel Good Inc." they are lighter, and seem to more closely resemble Bell 47
Bell 47
The Bell 47 is a two-bladed, single engine, light helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. Based on the third Model 30 prototype, Bell's first helicopter designed by Arthur M. Young, the Bell 47 became the first helicopter certified for civilian use on 8 March 1946...

Gs. In "El Mañana", they appear heavier and more armoured, seemingly modeled more like the Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche
RAH-66 Comanche
The Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche was an advanced five-blade armed reconnaissance and attack helicopter designed for the United States Army. The RAH-66 program was canceled in 2004, before mass production began, after nearly $7 billion was spent on the program.During the early 1980s, the U.S...

 and AH-64 Apache
AH-64 Apache
The Boeing AH-64 Apache is a four-blade, twin-engine attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear arrangement, and a tandem cockpit for a two-man crew. The Apache was developed as Model 77 by Hughes Helicopters for the United States Army's Advanced Attack Helicopter program to replace the...

 attack helicopters. This would seem to indicate that Noodle was pursued in the "Feel Good Inc." video, stayed at Kong Studios, packed up, departed, and was then pursued by two different helicopters in the "El Mañana" video. (NOTICE: This Wikipedia article is mentioned in the Gorillaz "autobiography" Rise of the Ogre
Rise of the Ogre
Rise of the Ogre is an autobiography about the virtual band Gorillaz. Ostensibly written by the four band-members in collaboration with Gorillaz musician and official scribe Cass Browne, the book is 304 pages long and is extensively illustrated. It was released in the UK on 26 October 2006 by...

. The paragraph about the difference of helicopters is quoted, with Murdoc
Murdoc (Gorillaz)
The fictional character Murdoc Faust Niccals is a musician, member of the virtual band Gorillaz. He provides bass, and is the self-proclaimed leader of the band.-Biography :Voice actor and bassist for the band Phil Cornwell voices him...

 replying with, "Er... yeah. That sounds about right.")

According to the fictional history of the band, Noodle found that she was in fact a test subject in a secret government super soldier project.

The limited edition of Demon Days
Demon Days
Demon Days is the second studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz, released in May 2005. The album features contributions from De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, Martina Topley-Bird, Roots Manuva, MF DOOM, Ike Turner, Bootie Brown of the Pharcyde, Shaun Ryder, Dennis Hopper, the London Community Gospel...

includes a DVD full of bonus features, including the "Feel Good Inc." video with audio commentary
Audio commentary
On disc-based video formats, an audio commentary is an additional audio track consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with video...

 by the band members, confirming that "Feel Good Inc." was indeed staged.

Since the video was released, an interview with Damon Albarn by MTV confirmed that Noodle had been "killed off", though he added that she "may return".

An official mailout was sent out that featured Noodle congratulating Jamie Hewlett for winning the Designer of the Year Award 2006. There had also been an interview with the Gorillaz on the Australian video music show Video Hits
Video Hits (Australian TV series)
Video Hits was an Australian music video program that first aired on 15 February 1987. From 7 May 2011 it broadcasted on Network Ten for two hours each Saturday and Sunday morning: 10am – 12pm on Saturdays and 8am – 10am on Sundays. Video Hits was the world's second longest running music show...

. Shortly after the video was released, Gorillaz also performed on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross was a British comedy chat show presented by Jonathan Ross. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 2 November 2001. The programme featured Ross's take on current topics of conversation, guest interviews and live music from both a guest music group and the house band...

, with Noodle present. Another recent mailout (released on 6 June 2006) had reported that she was "missing".

Seven months after the video was released, the truth was revealed in the Gorillaz autobiography Rise of the Ogre
Rise of the Ogre
Rise of the Ogre is an autobiography about the virtual band Gorillaz. Ostensibly written by the four band-members in collaboration with Gorillaz musician and official scribe Cass Browne, the book is 304 pages long and is extensively illustrated. It was released in the UK on 26 October 2006 by...

. In it, Murdoc finally revealed that the "El Mañana" video was indeed "staged" and that Noodle is still "alive".

It turns out that the entire "El Mañana" conspiracy was calculated specifically to get rid of an enemy of the band: Little Jimmy Manson, a psychotic hippie turned industry executive who was set on sabotaging Gorillaz. Jimmy auditioned for Gorillaz a few years back, but was turned down after Noodle got the job. He held a grudge with Gorillaz ever since. Murdoc saw Jimmy's plan and decided to get rid of Jimmy before it was too late. Murdoc told Jimmy that he had a plan to "help him" to kill off one of the band members so that firstly, Gorillaz would end with a bang and secondly, Jimmy could start a new band with Murdoc. Noodle was to do the "El Mañana" video with Manson stowed away on the island and then, while the windmill was crashing around them, Jimmy would shoot the guitarist whilst taking the parachute for himself. However, Murdoc turned the tables on Jimmy by not only "forgetting" to leave the weapon aboard the island but by also locking him in the windmill; Jimmy supposedly died within the crash while Noodle parachuted to safety. His statement followed.

Murdoc stated that Noodle had been planning to leave after Demon Days. Murdoc, in order to run with his plan to off Jimmy, made a deal with Noodle: she could disappear for some R&R with no fuss if she did the video. As stated in Rise of the Ogre, Noodle is in the Maldives "chilling out".

On 21 January 2010, Murdoc had hijacked the NME Radio
NME Radio
NME Radio is the radio station from NME magazine, that broadcasts in a new commercially oriented alternative music format. It first began broadcasting on 24 June 2008.- History :...

 and Yahoo!
Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine , Yahoo! Directory, Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, advertising, online mapping ,...

 Radio where he played a set of songs and further unveiled the premise of recording the new album, Plastic Beach
Plastic Beach
Plastic Beach is the third studio album by British virtual band and alternative hip hop supergroup Gorillaz, released 3 March 2010 on Parlophone and Virgin Records. Conceived from an unfinished Gorillaz project called Carousel, the album was recorded during June 2008 to November 2009 and produced...

, where it was revealed that Noodle's survival had been naturally retconned in that while the parachuting was confirmed, the band never saw her again after the recording of "El Mañana" and Murdoc's supposed rescue attempt was but a drunken delusion. As such Noodle became replaced by a cyborg replica built by Murdoc using her DNA found at the windmill wreckage and parts from Russell's drum machine in order to provide guitar for the new album. Murdoc had also revealed that the helicopters that shot the windmill down were pirates and mercenaries that Murdoc had been selling bad weapons to in Mexico and that he was still on the run from them.

In the music video for On Melancholy Hill
On Melancholy Hill
"On Melancholy Hill" is the third single from British alternative group Gorillaz' third studio album, Plastic Beach. The song was originally written by Damon Albarn during the production time for The Good The Bad and The Queen's self titled album. The single was released on 26 July 2010...

it is shown that Noodle is alive.

External links

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