Gnarls Barkley is a musical duo from the United States, popular in certain circles. The team creates music in the style of soul. The group has existed since 2006, and during this time he has established himself well. Not only among connoisseurs of the genre, but also among lovers of melodic music.
Name and composition of the group Gnarls Barkley
Gnarls Barkley, at first glance, looks more like a name than a band. And this is a correct judgment. The fact is that the duet jokingly positions itself not as a group, but as one musician - Barkley.
At the same time, from the very beginning of its history, all sources of the duet in a comic form presented the singer as a real celebrity, who is known to all connoisseurs of soul music in the world.
Several years have passed, and this legend has become true. In Europe and the USA, two talented musicians have long been known who, by combining their vision, made it possible for soul music to continue to develop.
An interesting fact is that if the name of the group is known mainly in the circles of active listeners of the group, then such names as CeeLo Green and Danger Mouse are known to many lovers of modern pop and rap music.
So, CeeLo is quite a prominent singer and often collaborates with many stars of the American scene. His voice can be heard in the choruses of many hits. Danger Mouse is a famous DJ and musician who has been nominated for five Grammy awards.
Member of CeeLo
It cannot be said that the musicians came to the group as newcomers. So, CeeLo had been rapping for a long time and was a prominent member of the Goodie Mob group.
And although the team did not have significant commercial success, but in the 1990s, many considered it one of the best in the dirty south genre - the so-called "dirty South".
By the end of the 1990s, the musician thought about starting a solo career and left the band. Together with the group, he also changed the release label - from Koch Records to Arista Records.
Despite the fact that CeeLo continued to communicate with the members of his former group, they often spoke taunts about him, including in the lyrics of new songs. However, over time, the relationship improved.
From 2002 to 2004 CeeLo released two albums, but they did not bring significant commercial success. Nevertheless, they contributed to the disclosure of his creative potential. Thanks to some singles and the participation on the second record of such famous musicians as Ludacris, TI and Timbaland, CeeLo became a very famous musician.
Member of Danger Mouse
Danger Mouse's career prior to meeting CeeLo was more successful. By 2006, he was already quite a famous musician. Behind him was work on the album of the cult band Gorillaz (the release of Demon Days under his production even received a Grammy Award) and a number of singles by other famous musicians.
He was also known as an independent musician. Released in 2004, The Gray Album made Danger Mouse famous all over the world.
Meeting CeeLo Green and Danger Mouse
Given the level of fame and authority of the two musicians, their joint work was doomed to increased attention from the public. The first meeting took place back in 2004 - just at the time when both of them were taking important steps in solo work.
By the will of fate, it happened that Danger Mouse turned out to be a DJ at one of CeeLo's concerts. The musicians met and noted that they have a similar vision of music. Here they agreed on cooperation and after a while began to meet periodically to record songs.
There were no plans for a joint album yet, but over time, the musicians accumulated a decent amount of material. This material formed the basis of the St. Elsewhere, which came out in 2006. On May 9, a release took place on Atlantic Records, thanks to which the musicians found real success.
The album sold well and occupied the leading positions of the charts in the USA, Canada, Great Britain, Sweden and many other countries of the world. The release was certified platinum in the US, Canada and the UK, and gold in Australia.
The success has been phenomenal. The musicians managed to preserve the soul sound and at the same time bring the best trends of dance and pop music into it, which allowed bringing soul to a wider audience. After the success of the first release, the musicians set about creating a new album. This was The Odd Couple, released two years after St. Elsewhere, in March 2008.
The release label was Atlantic Records. The release became less successful in terms of sales, but also confidently stormed the charts in the US, Britain, Canada and other countries. True, already at lower positions. However, sales boldly allowed to go on tour and record new records. But, unfortunately, this has not yet happened.
Gnarls Barkley now
For unknown reasons, since 2008, the duo has not yet released a single release, be it an album or a single. The group did not perform at concerts and festivals, did not arrange new studio sessions. Each member is busy with solo work, as well as producing other artists.
However, the participants in interviews have repeatedly said that sooner or later they plan to return to recording joint material again, so fans of the duet's creativity can count on the imminent release of the third album.
