Damon Albarn says he plans to release an album this summer that will feature a 100 piece Chinese choir.

The former Blur frontman said that the as-yet-untitled project features upwards of 90 musicians in total.

“There’s a monkey or two in there at least – bit like Gorillaz as well,” he explained. “It’s not an opera, it’s a proper record. And it's all in Mandarin I can tell you that for sure!”

Albarn has enjoyed endless success since he released Blur's last album, scoring chart hits with Gorillaz and more recently The Good, The Bad and The Queen.

Speaking to BBC 6 Music, Albarn said that he was putting all of his “passion” into the new project.

“It’s nice that things kind of stick around a while so it gives the impression that there are lots of things but I do one thing at a time generally. I have only two arms, two legs,” he said.

The album is expected this July.

(by Jason Gregory)