There will be new Blur and Gorillaz shows- Damon Albarn

Damon Albarn was quoted to be making plans for new Gorillaz album and perform several new Blur gigs. According to various sources, Albarn is ''sure'' that Blur will play live again.

The frontman releases his debut solo album 'Everyday Robots' this month but is still very close to his Blur band mates Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree, who celebrated the singer's 46th birthday together on March 23. And now, he claims that the foursome will take to the stage again.

He said: ''Graham was at my surprise party on Friday, along with Dave and Alex. ''Everything is good between us all. When you get to our age, you accept people for who they are, you know.'' Damon insists it's ''bollocks'' that their planned appearance at Australia's Big Day Out festival later this year, which they pulled out of, was set to be their last gig.

He explained: ''I said it's the last gig of a brilliant period we spent doing these gigs and we didn't want to sully it by going to something that was badly organised and where things weren't as they should have been.

''I'm sure [Blur] will play again at some point. It'd be mad to go for the rest of our life and never play any of those songs again.''

The singer also revealed he could record another Gorillaz album with his music partner Jamie Hewlett as soon as ''next week''.

He said: ''I can definitely see another Gorillaz-esque record at some point, yeah. That will almost definitely happen. I could put a Gorillaz album out next week, I've got enough stuff that I haven't finished. The only thing really that defines a Gorillaz record in my head is when I just play most of it on keyboards.

''I've just been in Paris with Jamie Hewlett. There are points in everyone's relationship where they fall out with people that they're close to and then they reconcile, hopefully, and actually, you know, the relationship's probably in a healthier place as a result of that.''

This is evidently good news for all Blur and Gorillaz fans out there who are waiting for something new in 2014. 

Damon Albarn- Everyday Robots Documentary: Watch

Watch the 30-minute documentary on Damon Albarn and his first solo album "Everyday Robots". In the short film, Damon Albarn tells us where he grew up, talks about his music and describes what it is like being a world-famous artist.

Everyday Robots is the first solo debut studio album by Damon Albarn. It is to be released on 28th April 2014. It was produced by Albarn and Richard Russell of XL Recordings and was recorded over a three-month period in Albarn's personal studio in London, although production itself began in 2011, the album didn't officially start production until 2013. Albarn and Russell, had previously worked together on Bobby Womack's comeback album The Bravest Man in the Universe.

Scroll down to watch the full documentary below or watch it HERE.

Happy Birthday Damon Albarn

Damon Albarn turns 46 years old this year today. The Blur frontman was born on March 23rd 1968.

Everyday Robots- Damon Albarn's New Solo Album

Damon Albarn is set to release his debut solo album "Everyday Robots" on April 28th 2014. The album's title track and lead single will see a March 3rd digital and vinyl release.

Albarn celebrated the announcement with the release of a new trailer for the album- a short movie clip featuring moving shots of landscapes and urban shots, ending with the hashtag #everydayrobots.

According to Billboard, "Everyday Robots," under the Warner Music umbrella, is comprised of 12 songs. The album will also include a deluxe CD/DVD package that features footage of a live performance in Los Angeles.

An interview with Rolling Stone last year revealed that Albarn had created the project with XL Recordings head Richard Russell, and that it would be a "sort of folk soul" release. Little else is currently known about the album.

Check out the full tracklist below.

1. "Everyday Robots"
2. "Hostiles"
3. "Lonely Press Play"
4. "Mr. Tembo"
5. "Parakeet"
6. "The Selfish Giant"
7. "You and Me"
8. "Hollow Ponds"
9. "Seven High"
10. "Photographs (You Are Taking Now)"
11. "The History of a Cheating Heart"
12. "Heavy Seas Of Love"

Happy Birthday Alex James - 45 Years Old

Alex James was born on November 21st 1968 - hence he celebrated his 45th birthday last week.

Happy belated birthday to one of the coolest and innovative bassist in the history of British music! Browse below for a selection of the very best Alex James photos spanning his career.

Best word to describe Alex James?
	Funky
	Groovy
	Eccentric
	Funny
	Cool
	Dangerous
	Cheesy

Blur drops out of Big Day Out Festival Australia

Here is a disappointing piece of news for Blur fans- Blur announced that they have pulled out of the Big Day Out Festival 2014 in Australia two months before it was scheduled to begin, citing “shifting goalposts and challenging conditions” from the festival organisers. 

Announced on their official Facebook page, the message alludes to behind-the-scenes conflict between Blur and the festival's management. Many fans were angry at the news, stating they only bought tickets to the festival to see the headlining act Blur.

The organisers for Big Day Out issued a statement which said: “Devastated to report that Blur won't be performing at BDO in 2014. It’s a shock that it has come to this,”. The statement continues that the band “feels that with the constantly shifting goalposts and challenging conditions of the organizers, they can't let it drag on any longer and want to make this announcement, to be clear to Blur fans that they won't be there. We've done our very best to work with the organisers and considered every option to make it happen, but they’ve let us down and let everyone else down too.”

Blur were set to head the festival alongside with heavyweights Pearl Jam, Snoop Dogg, Primus, Major Lazer, Lumineer and Arcade Fire. Ticket sales for the festival, however, were reported to be slow. The band has not set foot 'down under' since their last tour in 1997.

“Devastated to report that Blur won't be performing at BDO in 2014. It’s a shock that it has come to this,” stated the band on their official announcement.

The six day music festival begins on 17th January 2014 in Auckland, New Zealand, before touring around major Australian cities.

10 great photos of Blur

Picture Feature: Black and white photos of Blur the band, in various magazine and photo-shoots throughout their career. 

William Orbit feud with Blur continues- "Damon was really awful"

Blur's feud with super-producer William Orbit is not yet over. William Orbit has announced that he will "never" work with lead singer Damon Albarn again after the Blur frontman halted recording sessions they were collaborating on last year in 2012.

It was reported in May last year that Albarn had worked on new Blur material, with Orbit confirming that the four-piece had been in the studio before the sessions were stopped "suddenly".

Orbit had previously hinted that he was recording with the band in a series of tweets. In January 2012 he wrote: "I just found out that she [Diawara] has done tracks with Damon A, who I’m in the studio with from Wednesday!" 

In an exclusive new interview with NME magazine, Orbit says he will never work with Blur again because he claimed that he didn't get paid for his time recording with the band last year. 

"Oh don’t start me on Blur," he says. "Put it this way, I’m not going to work with them again – Damon was really awful. That’s all I’ll say. Let’s put it this way, I wouldn’t care to go back. I wouldn’t be hurrying back to do that album. I didn’t get paid! But, you know, I’m not the first." 

In January of this year, Blur announced to excited music fans that would begin work on a new album after singer Damon Albarn releases his solo LP in 2014. The band had been on tour since the start of 2013 and are nearing the end of their set of gigs. The band have released standalone tracks 'Fool's Day', 'The Puritan' and 'Under The Westway' since Graham Coxon rejoined them after a long hiatus in 2008, but a new album has not been forthcoming so far.

Blur Tour 2013 - Full dates and rundown  HERE
Blur @ Coachella- video and image gallery HERE 

Blur confirmed for Mexico HERE

Blur Europe Tour News  HERE

Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE

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Alex James - Gadget Man (Season 2 Ep. 6)

Alex James was recently featured on Gadget Man, a British television series which feature the latest techonology

Scroll down to watch the episode.



Blur Tour 2013 - Full dates and rundown  HERE
Blur @ Coachella- video and image gallery HERE 

Blur confirmed for Mexico HERE

Blur Europe Tour News  HERE

Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE

SUBSCRIBE NOW!

If you missed old news, visit the NEWS ARCHIVE to read about past news!

Remember to subscribe to RSS and "LIKE" BlurBalls on Facebook.