Happy Birthday Damon Albarn! The Blur frontman turned 45 years old on March 23rd this year.
To celebrate, here are some original funny Blur memes we created. Some of the best Damon Albarn pictures are also below.
It's been over 23 years since Damon Albarn, then an unknown Goldsmiths University student, had decided to give up acting and become a full-time musician and singer.
Blur fact: Did you know - Dave Rowntree is actually the oldest member of Blur, not Damon Albarn!
Blur played Mexico City's Vive Latino Festival on March 16th 2013. According to many fans who went to watch the band live, the show was an exceptional one - the "best Blur had ever sounded".
Damon Albarn - Looking young and hip at Vive Latino 2013
Damon waving a Mexican percussion instrument - "Almost hitting his face" said a fan
Blur drummer Dave Rowntree also did an exclusive 15-minute interview with Radio Ibero (Ibero 90.0 FM) about the 2013 shows. The drummer sounded positive and high in spirits, exclaiming that the show had a "packed audience, jumping up and down. That's why we do this really, it's lovely. You can see it was the real fans, everybody from the front to the back knew all the words, it was just lovely." He also mused on Blur's current popularity high. "We got more famous by releasing less music", Dave said. "Last time we weren't selling tickets out in 10 minutes, we weren't playing big festivals. Mystique as been growing around us."
"We became way better known and more popular for doing nothing. I can't explain it."
- Dave Rowntree, 2013 Tour
He seems to be ambiguous about a new Blur album. "It was all really good fun" he said, when asked to describe the 2013 gigs. "This is an extension to that. We did a few shows leading up to [Hyde Park] and we thought it really wasn't possible to do something in London. So why not do some wider touring, for the longer-suffering fans around the world who hasn't seen us in a decade". So it seems this tour is merely to please the wider fans, but not to make a new album.
So why now? Dave said it was a "logical progression" to "try things out" this time, and that previous tours didn't satisfy the global demands of Blur fans. They have recorded some things, but there seems to be no plans to release more future songs so far.
Listen to the audio recording of the excellent interview below.
Popscene There's No Other Way Girls & Boys Tracy Jacks Beetlebum Out of Time Trimm Trabb Caramel Coffee & TV Tender Country House Parklife Song 2 Advert End of a Century This Is a Low Encore
: Under The Westway For Tomorrow The Universal
For more pictures, check out this album on Facebook. Visit this gallery of professional shots HERE.
Every Blur fan
knows that before the first big gig at every tour, a warm-up show is
going to be played… and that is the case for this specific show.
The Plaza Condesa is small venue
located in the most “cultural-artistic-hipster” neighborhood in Mexico City: La
Condesa. The place used to be a movie theater back in the 1960’s, so it has a
1,900 people capacity. Almost two years
ago, it was refurbished for concert purposes, and by the end of last year
hosted bands such as M83, Morrissey, Underworld, Dead Can Dance and Marillion.
However, never had there been a show where tickets were sold out in less than
five minutes, like it happened with the Blur warm-up show on the evening of
March 15th 2013.
The expectations were really high-
you may imagine how it felt to wait 10 years to have your favorite band back in
town playing a live concert. There were people who queued more than nine hours
before the doors opened, and scalpers were everywhere, asking for up to £400
per ticket (when the original cost was £42).
So the show started with the
non-album single “Popscene”. Can you
imagine how crazy the crowd got? Everyone were screaming and jumping, and the
sounds were close to perfect! Then Blur played “There’s No Other Way”, “Girls & Boys” and ”Tracy Jacks”…My first thought were:
these guys sound just like they did the last time I saw them- you got it, ten
years ago! But a few minutes later, I realized I was wrong; their sound that
night was the best I had ever heard.
Thank You - Graham Coxon 2013
“Jubilee”,
“Beetlebum” and “Out Of Time”
were up next. These songs were emotional, raw, and I was crying by then. I do
believe that Blur and the rest of the band were also surprised and amazed at
the level of response from the people. “Trimm
Trabb”,“Caramel” and the other
hits were played next. And then came one of the most chorused songs of the
night: “Coffee and TV”…
“Tender” was a
really emotional moment in the show, but the three songs “Country House”,“Parklife” (with
no Phil Daniels) and “Song 2” were
enough to put everyone’s spirits to the top. “Advert”, “End Of The Century” and “This Is A Low" were the last ones from the main gig set list.
The moment of the night, without a
doubt, was when Blur performed “Under
The Westway”. By this time, we all knew that we were close to the end. “For Tomorrow” and “The Universal” were the songs that closed the show.
Great Band + Great Venue = One the
greatest gigs I’ve ever attend!
PICTURES, fan photos, drawings and fan photography, as well as official images have emerged after Blur played their first concert of 2013 in Mexico City on March 15th 2013. The warm up gig was held in El Plaza Condesa, where Blur played a conventional set-list of their biggest hits, including 'The Universal', 'Song 2', 'Advert', 'Country House', 'Beetlebum', 'Caramel' and new single 'Under The Westway'.
Brilliant picture by fan @malfi
El Plaza Condesa Mexico 2013 Setlist:
Popscene
There's No Other Way
Girls & Boys
Tracy Jacks
Jubilee
Beetlebum
Out of Time
Trimm Trabb
Caramel
Coffee and TV
Tender
Country House
Parklife
Song 2
Advert
End of a Century
This is a Low
Under the Westway
For Tomorrow
The Universal
Watch: Clips of songs played at the gig.
This page on the Blur forums has links to the rest of the videos from the entire gig, available on Youtube.
A must-see gallery of professional photos of the gig yesterday via the Blur Fans Facebook Page.
Check out the gallery of Instagram pictures below (Note: it's long, image-heavy, keep scrolling). Our top four picks by @vaalx, @dadisand @gavilangavilan:
Read a review of the gig (non-English) HERE. Don't forget to follow the twitter hashtag#BlurMXfor more live tweets from the second Mexico show at the Vive Latino Festival. Live tweets can be foundhere.
Stay tuned for more videos, audio and mp3s of the World Tour as it happens! Went to a Blur concert in 2013? Have a picture for us to feature? Write a review for us and get published. Contact us!
Blur played their first ever concert of 2013 and took the stage on March 15th 2013 in Mexico's El Plaza Condesa. The band announced this exclusive warm-up gig to be held in Mexico City just one day before their big main concert at the city's Vive Latino Festival (March 16th). With singer Morrissey dropping out of tomorrow's Vive Latino Festival, Blur are set to be the biggest name of the day. Pictures on the fanpage Blur Mexico showcased Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree with fans at the airport before the gig. The group are seen signing autographs, walking through the terminal and posing for photos with fans who lined up to greet them. Scroll down for some photos from Twitter and Instagram users who posted about the show.
Blur looked excited and cheerful as they kickstart their massive 2013 world tour. It seems like a great start and if all goes well, perhaps a new album will follow. Read about Blur's stint at Mexico's Vive Latino Festival for tomorrow here. Don't forget to follow the twitter hashtag #BlurMX for more live tweets from the show tonight. Live tweets can be found here. Check out our Blur World Tour page for all the dates in a convenient table. Stay tuned for more videos, audio and mp3s of the World Tour as it happens! Went to a Blur concert in 2013? Have a picture for us to feature? Write a review for us and get published. Contact us! Blur Tour 2013 - Full dates and rundown HERE
Giveaway: We have 2 copies of Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of Blur to giveaway to two lucky fans. This album re-creates the top Blur singles into kid-friendly, percussion tunes that's soft and gentle for the ears. Simply head over to the new Giveaways page, follow us on Facebook or answer a simple fun Blur question and you're in for the draw!
Camden - the London borough that is renowned for it's vibrant musical scene, artistic flair, massive market and for being Blur guitarist Graham Coxon's residential hometown. Ask any Blur fan which pub Graham Coxon is known for hanging out in, and Camden Crawl will be answered.
And now, Camden will be the proud new owner of a Music Walk of Fame, a disc route along the town that will feature 30 discs of famous musicians including Blur, Elvis Presley, Amy Winehouse, Led Zeppelin Frank Sinatra, Grandmaster Flash, Gill Scott-Heron, Soul II Soul and Camden's very own Madness.
Bustling Camden town - a musical jumble
One special musical disc will even be created to celebrate deceased and troubled singer Amy Winehouse to mark her 30th birthday.
Manager Lee Bennett said there are even plans to "get bands who have split up back together again" for one-off concerts, when they receive a place in the iconic walk. Does this mean there be an Oasis and Blur concert ? Watch out Liam Gallagher.
"We hope this will be the highest accolade in music," Mr Bennett also said.
"This is an international brand not specific to Camden, but it is in Camden as we truly see it as the world's rock and roll capital."
According to the BBC, those honoured will be divided into five groups: innovative artists, influential artists, icons, unsung heroes and industry types like managers and producers.
A committee of global industry figures and local community members are working on shortlist of nominations for the first 30 plaques.
The list will go to a decisive public vote on the Music Walk of Fame website in May.
Special concerts, gigs and events will also follow the unveiling of the Walk of Fame. Who knows - perhaps Graham Coxon will drop by to do a set from his own albums. Or maybe Blur will pop into Camden Town for a last-minute gig.
This will surely be added to the list of Blur places to visit for all fans of the band.
Damon Albarn recently played an exclusive gig for the premier of the new Rufus Norris film 'Broken'. The coming-of-age movie, starring Tim Roth and Cillian Murphy, details the story of a young girl from North London whose life changes after witnessing a murder. The film features an exclusive new rendition of Blur song 'Colours' , sung by a different vocalist but with the same lyrics as the original song.
The soundtrack is created by the new music collective Electric Wave Bureau (which Damon Albarn is a part of) and features the original song by Blur – 'Colours. The limited edition single was originally released in 2003 as part of Blur's fan magazine "Blurb".
Electric Wave Bureau is Damon Albarn's latest new creation, a music supervision company dedicated to creating the perfect soundtrack to any video or movie. Its members include Damon Albarn's long-term partner Suzi Winstanley, Nelson De Freitas, Mike Smith and Damon Albarn.
Spot Damon Albarn... on the live set at Broken's movie premier
Director Norris, who worked with Damon Albarn for the opera Dr Dee, said: “The two of us were heavily involved in Dr Dee, which
I did last year in Manchester and I'm doing at the ENO. I was hoping they would do it, but
they're kind of busy, and it wasn't until we started working on Dr Dee again, for the Cultural
Olympiad, and when we sat down for the first session for that, that one of them said, 'How's the
film going?’ I said, ‘Well, it would be good to have a minute on that when we're done today,’
and they said, ‘Let's have a minute now.’ I said, ‘Will you do it?’ And they said yes. Which was
great; I already had a robust working relationship with them, and we'd already done a big show
that was put on under pressure.”
Listen to the original 'Colours' (2003)- by Blur: -
“We had a very limited budget, but we made that work for
us in a good way. We had to be inventive and quick and intuitive. And then we were able to have
the strings to articulate the emotion of the story in a more conventional but still powerful way" said Norris.
Listen to the new version of 'Colours'- Blur track: -
"COLOURS"
Music by Albarn/James/Rowntree
Performed and Produced by Electric Wave Bureau
Vocals by Eloise Laurence
Recorded and Mixed at Studio 13
Published by EMI Music Publishing Ltd
Additional Guitar Simon Tong
The film will be out in UK Cinemas on Friday 8th March 2013. For more pictures from the film visit the official press release gallery. Watch the trailer here.
Visit the official website or their Facebook page for more information about this featured film and production facts, as well as who's involved.
Blur have announced yet another date for their world tour 2013. The band announced their Ireland gig on March 4th 2013 and will perform at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) in Kilmainham, Dublin, on Thursday August 1 2013.
This is Blur's first gig in Ireland in four years. Blur announced that they are playing in Turkey last week as part of their new world tour, where the band are set to tour in Europe, Asia and America.
The IMMA is a 17th century Irish landmark commonly used as a venue for theatrical and musical events. For Blur fans in Ireland, this is a golden opportunity to see the band play, in what may be their best year yet - Blur have been fuelling rumours of a new album and new release after their 2013 world tour.
According to Blur's official facebook page, this gig will be the band's only UK/ Ireland date for 2013. That means the hotly contested Reading / Leeds festival in the UK is ruled out for this round of Blur gigs. UK fans - take this chance to travel to Ireland if you can to watch the band live.
Tickets costing 62.50 euros each will be available for sale on Thursday via Ticketmaster.
