Damon Albarn Has A New Project for 2019 and it's Big!

Damon Albarn has announced details of new project ‘The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows’, which he’ll be taking on tour in May 2020.

The Blur and Gorillaz frontman’s new work is inspired by the landscapes of Iceland, and will see him take it on the road with an ensemble and ambitious visuals by Icelandic filmmakers in the Spring. One date at The Barbican in London will Albarn team up with conductor André de Ridder.⁣

“The land of the midnight sun, Iceland is a unique country, filled with an abundance of natural beauty; glaciers, volcanoes, thermal springs, mountains and stunning headlands,” a synopsis reads. “Stretching across two continents; it’s a land where North America and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. What can be more fascinating than the signs of the passage of time and the fragility of nature.

“This new piece from Albarn, a frequent visitor to Iceland for almost three decades, will see the musician perform this new, very personal piece with an ensemble of orchestra instrumentation, electronics, vocals and piano. The title is taken from a John Clare poem entitled Love and Memory.”

Full tour dates are below. Visit here for tickets and more information.

MAY
17-18: Brussels, (Bozar)
20: Budapest, (Mupa)
21: Eindhoven, (Muziekgebouw)
23-24: Paris, (Philharmonie)
25: Lyon, (Auditorium – Orchestre National de Lyon)
26: London, (Barbican)
27: Nantes, (Cité des Congrès)
29: Luxembourg, (Philharmonie)
31 – June 1: Dublin, (National Concert Hall)

This comes after Albarn appeared to announce the end of The Good, The Bad & The Queen this summer. The band, which also features The Clash’s Paul Simonon, The Verve’s Simon Tong, and Afrobeat legend Tony Allen, reunited last year for their second album ‘Merrie Land’. “This is our last gig,” Albarn told the audience at the Netherlands festival. “This is our last gig. After this, poof. Done.”