Gorillaz returning with third album in March

NEW YORK - Hot on the heels of this week's announcement of a headlining slot at the Coachella festival in southern California in April, Damon Albarn's cartoon-pop band Gorillaz is set to return on March 9 with its third album.

The 16-track Virgin Records set "Plastic Beach" features a slew of guests, including Lou Reed, Mos Def, Snoop Dogg, De La Soul, Bobby Womack, the Fall's Mark E. Smith and Super Furry Animals' Gruff Rhys. The first single, "Stylo," debuted on radio Wednesday, and be available at digital retailers starting on January 26.

Mixing hip hop, pop, reggae and Middle Eastern influences along with a comic like narrative for the "performers," Gorillaz has scored a string of hit singles such as "Clint Eastwood" and "Feel Good Inc." This eclectic combination of sounds and vocals have resulted in lofty sales, with 2000's self-titled debut selling 1.9 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan and 2005's "Demon Days" selling 2.2 million.

While no other dates have been announced, Gorillaz' performance at Coachella, which runs April 16-18 in Indio, Calif., stands to be augmented by guest appearances from De La Soul, Gruff Rys and Little Dragon, who are all also on the festival bill.