Chuck Klosterman wrote in his book “Fargo Rock City” that becoming “the song of the summer” was the highest honor any single could achieve, regardless of the genre.

Well, “Plastic Beach” one-ups that claim — it includes not only one summer anthem, but at least 15. Almost every song on the new Gorillaz album has the ability to be played obscenely loud with the windows down in the summer heat. In short, it’s a summer album.

Born from the remnants of an attempted album called “Carousel,” which was started back in November 2007, the album’s titled is derived from the plastic debris that set up shop on the beach in front of Damon Albarn’s house. The ex-Blur frontman then started infusing the metaphysics and philosophies of plastic in the concept of this album.

An example of this is the differences he noticed while visiting landfills in Mali, Africa and in his home country of England, seeing how the wildlife had started settling into the trash in Mali, and how locals went in and stripped the trash of anything valuable to sell. This gave him a “strange kind of optimism” and helped inspire the album.

The album includes an eccentric cast of supporting musicians, including the legendary Lou Reed, De La Soul, Snoop Dogg and Mos Def. These artists, among others like Bobby Womack, Little Dragon and Mark E. Smith, support Albarn and visual artist Jamie Hewlett (who drew those all-too-famous Gorillaz characters) as they create an album of swirling textures, warm vibes and chill beats.

The group successfully achieves its goal of creating a pop album filled with depth. Songs like “Rhinestone Eyes” (which includes great, spacey lines like “your rhinestone eyes are like factories far away”) and “Some Kind of Nature” (with Lou Reed) provide that smooth pop vibe. Songs like “Superfast Jellyfish” take that vibe and combine it with old school hip-hop beats, creating a head-bopping blend that’s infectious in a good way.

Besides assembling a group of perfectly produced, vibe-filled songs, the band also mastered the art of releasing an album with an image. The album art — a strange island rising from the sea — is cast in an orange hue that perfectly captures the color of the album. Hewlett has revamped the Gorillaz characters and casted them in short animated videos involving characters with rifles heading to Plastic Beach. With a spring release date, this furthers the innovative approach pioneered by Gorillaz that makes an album more than just a group of MP3s, or even grooves on a record.

“Plastic Beach” is a great album — perhaps one of the best released this year. It reaches something that few other albums, or artists, ever can — it provides an armada of amazing songs written and performed with virtuosity and originality, while forging a warm vibe that transcends its music.

So, go out to your cars, take them to the car wash and wipe off that residue of salt and melted snow. Then roll the windows down, put this album in and turn your stereo to 11 — and prepare yourself for something special.

Grade: A-

Suggested Tracks: “Rhinestone Eyes,” “Some Kind of Nature (featuring Lou Reed)” “Superfast Jellyfish (Featuring Gruff Rhys & De La Soul)”