Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn was first introduced to Little Dragon through his partner Suzi Winstanley, who was a fan of the band's music. Yukimi Nagano had not known of Gorillaz prior to collaborating, and was initially ambivalent towards the idea of collaboration; when Nagano's manager explained that Albarn was a member of English rock band Blur, she expressed mild surprise that Albarn still made music. Nagano later explained: "I definitely wasn’t as charged as I perhaps might have been if I knew who they were. Everyone was telling me it was a big deal."
Overview
Nagano and Albarn spent multiple days at Studio 13, Albarn's personal studio in London, England; Nagano's vocal contributions to "Empire Ants" and "To Binge" were recorded during this time. Albarn played several instrumental tracks for Nagano, allowing her to choose which would be used for the collaboration. Nagano enjoyed collaborating with Albarn, praising both the diversity of the tracks and the organic nature of the recording process.
Live performances
"Empire Ants" was performed live throughout the Escape to Plastic Beach world tour. Both Nagano and Little Dragon bassist Fredrik Wallin toured alongside Gorillaz for the North American leg of the tour, with the remainder of Little Dragon joining on for the European and Oceanic legs. The song was also performed at Coachella 2010, an event which Nagano would later claim was a turning point for her as an artist.
For Humanz Tour, Nagano reunited with Gorillaz to perform "Empire Ants" at the Outside Lands Music Festival in San Francisco in 11 August 2017, her first performance of the song in nearly 7 years.
Empire Ants Ft. Little Dragon
Gorillaz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The sun has come again to hold you
Sailing out the doldrums of the whole week
The polyphonic prairies here, it's all around you
It's all around you, out here
And if the whole world is crashing down
Fall through space out of mind with me
Blows all the shadows far away
The falling alcohol empire, is here to hold you
Rolling out and haunted 'til it sleeps
Little memories, marching on
Your little feet, working the machine
Will it spin, will it soar
My little dream, working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
Little memories
Your little feet, working the machine
Will it spin, will it soar
My little dream, working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
The lyrics of Gorillaz' "Empire Ants" featuring Little Dragon and Yukimi Nagano speak of the start of a new day after a week of doldrums. The sun, metaphorically, has come back to hold you, and it feels like you are sailing out of the doldrums, into an open world of polyphonic prairies. The lyrics suggest that the world may be crashing down, but it is possible to fall through space and out of our minds, leaving behind emptiness on warm air rising that blows all the shadows far away. The "falling alcohol empire," is offering to hold you and is currently rolling out, but there's a haunting feeling present as it slowly sleeps.
The lyrics continue to describe "little memories," marching on as our "little feet" work the machine, wondering if it will spin and soar. It feels like a little dream, working the machine, while the wave of life passes by and proceeds to close in on us. In this context, the song speaks about how we are all cogs in the machine of life and our lives are often at the mercy of time. The world keeps moving, and we have to keep up, even with the mundane tasks of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh joy's arise
Positive emotions are taking over
The sun has come again to hold you
The feeling of warmth and positivity surrounds you
Sailing out the doldrums of the whole week
Going through the ups and downs of life, getting over the mundane events
The polyphonic prairies here, it's all around you
Feeling the rhythm of the surrounding environment and being lost in it
It's all around you, out here
Being able to feel the rhythm and beauty of your surroundings
And if the whole world is crashing down
In the face of disaster and collapse of everything around you
Fall through space out of mind again
Escape the world and feel free and disconnected
Where the emptiness we leave behind on warm air rising
Leaving the burden behind and feeling the lightness in the air
Blows all the shadows far away
All negative and oppressive feelings are blown away by the air and the surroundings
The falling alcohol empire, is here to hold you
The influence of alcohol - the release it brings, helps to forget the world and be comfortable in feeling and surroundings
Rolling out and haunted 'til it sleeps
The relief of escaping reality till you eventually fall into a peaceful sleep
Little memories, marching on
Small, but poignant memories moving forward
Your little feet, working the machine
Moving forward through life with a purpose
Will it spin, will it soar
Wondering how life will continue to progress
My little dream, working the machine
The dream of progress and hope to come that keeps you going
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
Like everything in life, even the most significant moments will come and go
And closing in on you they're going on
Life progresses relentlessly, surrounding and permeating about you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Damon Albarn, Little Dragon, Jamie Hewlett
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@yopkinomoto
Oh joy's arise
The sun has come again to hold you
Sailing out the doldrums of the whole week
The polyphonic prairies here, it's all around you
It's all around you, out here
And if the whole world is crashing down
Fall through space out of mind again
Where the emptiness we leave behind on warm air rising
Blows all the shadows far away
The falling alcohol empire, is here to hold you
Rolling out and haunted 'til it sleeps
Little memories, marching on
Your little feet, working the machine
Will it spin, will it soar
My little dream, working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
Little memories
Your little feet, working the machine
Will it spin, will it soar
My little dream, working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
@KnotZombie
Lyrics:
Oh joy's arise
The sun has come again to hold you
Sailing out the doldrums of the whole week
The polyphonic prairies here, it's all around you
It's all around you, out here
And if the whole world is crashing down
Fall through space out of mind again
Where the emptiness we leave behind on warm air rising
Blows all the shadows far away
The falling alcohol empire, is here to hold you
Rolling out and haunted 'til it sleeps
Little memories, marching on
Your little feet, working the machine
Will it spin, will it soar
My little dream, working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
Little memories
Your little feet, working the machine
Will it spin, will it soar
My little dream, working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
@jorgedelgadotoxotrofogo
The sun has come again to hold you
Sailing out the doldrums of the week
The polyphonic prayer is here,
It's all around you
It's all around you out here
And if the whole world is crashing down on you
Fall through space out of mind with me
Where the emptiness we leave behind on warm air rising
Blows all the shadows far away
The falling of the whole empire is here to hold you
Rolling out and haunted till it sleeps
Little memories marching on
Your little feet working the machine
Say will it spin, will it soar
My little dream working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
Little memories
Your little feet working the machine
Say will it spin, will it soar
My little dream working the machine
Soon like a wave that pass will fall
And closing in on you they're going on
@rosestrohm7986
Damn this Damon Albarn guy sounds a lot like 2D
@rosestrohm7986
@@taborredford214 Whoosh bro
@AnDreS-nz9tv
XD
@BelowAvgBarney
@@rosestrohm7986 woosh bro
@RipVanWinkle74
XD
@mememaster6928
Tabor Redford r/wooosh
@Dana__black
Do you think those audience members realize how lucky they are?
@raymundosanchez7270
I got to see tiempo in chicago,Chicago, show.
@apolo_spartan
No.
@danielmustafa3006
Nah.