August 28, 2015

Damon Albarn: Blur, Gorillaz and other Fables - Book Review + Giveaway 2015

Heads up for all Damon Albarn fans- there's a new Damon Albarn biography out in the bookstores and this one is the most up to date, most recent Blur biography of all time.

This fully updated book by authors Martin Roach and David Nolan was published in August 2015. Featuring first-hand interviews with those closest to the musician in his formative years, is the only available dedicated biography of Albarn and covers his multiple musical personas in depth, as well as the Britpop era and the rock star’s re-emergence as the Godfather to the iPod generation.

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Damon Albarn: Blur, Gorillaz and other fables. Out 6th August, Paperback, Music Press, RRP £7.99. 


‘I can’t stand the idea of being a sad, lonely bedsit poet. I’d much rather be perceived as loud and arrogant, because all our sensitivity’s in our records’ - Damon Albarn

From Blur to the virtual band Gorillaz and his unique solo album Everyday Robots, to working with recently deceased Soul legend Bobby Womack, everything Damon Albarn touches turns to success. With The Magic Whip – Blur’s first album in over a decade - released last May, Damon Albarn is once again ready to take his place as an iconic jewel in the crown of the British music scene.

Yet this book documents the musician's struggles, life, love, relationships, origins and musical journey throughout his most formative years. The book follows Damon Albarn through Blur, the Britpop era, to his next musical endeavours, to his life with his partner Suzi and ends with a complete discography encompassing all of the singer's songs up to the year 2015.

This book is a definite must have for any Damon Albarn fan out there who wants an accessible, well-written and thorough book. It's biggest advantage is it's timely relevance- the year 2015 marks the beginning of possible a new chapter in Damon Albarn's musical career, and this book serves as a good memorabilia for the 'new' Blur of 2015.

About the authors: David Nolan is a British television producer and author, specialising in music and popular culture biographies, including the seminal book on the Sex Pistols, ‘I Swear I Was There’.

Martin Roach is a firmly established writer and publisher on all things popular music, having ghost-written several extremely high-profile projects for major publishing houses and owned his own music publishing company

This book is great for both younger fans and to the more serious Albarn fans who want more insight into how the musician developed his career throughout the years.

This book is available on Amazon for purchase.

Alternatively, BlurBalls is bringing you an exclusive chance to win 1 FREE COPY of the book Damon Albarn: Blur, Gorillaz and other fables. Simply enter using the form below and the winner will be chosen in 4 weeks (September 28)! 




July 14, 2013

New Blur Book: England, Damon Albarn and the Art of Melancholy

For die-hard music fans, there’s nothing more enjoyable than being able to find out more about your favorite band and it’s members. Whether it is the lead singer, the roadies, groupies, bodyguards, managers, producers, spouses or the other band members’ high-school classmates, the roadies, groupies, girlfriends, boyfriends, wives-husbands-kids, the list can go on to include all the people who have been part of a musician’s career.

Music is people-orientated – we create the music. However, one thing that is often overlooked is the importance of physical places that influence a band’s musical style. Geography matters- whilst The Beatles launched into a new musical direction after visiting India, Blur’s front man Damon Albarn similarly experimented with new sounds depending on his geographical location.

England, Damon Albarn and the Art of Melancholy (By Dylan Moore)

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Kindle Price: $6.99 (£3.96)

A new Blur book titled England, Damon Albarn & The Art of Melancholy is the first full-length study and analysis of one of Britain’s greatest talents. 

The book is a combination of geographical analysis, cultural commentary and biography, exploring each of Damon Albarn’s bands, collaborations and projects (Blur, Gorillaz, Mali Music, The Good, The Bad and The Queen, Dr Dee).

About the Book  

In the summer of 1995, Damon Albarn seemed to have Britain at his feet. Blur had been awarded a record four Brits, Parklife had sold a million records and new single ‘Country House’ had won a much-publicised chart battle with rivals Oasis.

But within months, relationships within the band and Albarn’s personal life had begun to fray. Blur’s subsequent change of direction, a new relationship and subsequent fatherhood, and a trip with Oxfam to Mali were to mark the beginning of an artistic renaissance that was to see Albarn emerge as one of the most critically-lauded musicians in the world. Gorillaz, a cartoon concept band, were to sell more than Blur ever did, while The Good, The Bad and The Queen – a song-cycle about London – confirmed Albarn owed as much to William Blake as to David Bowie.

England Damon Albarn and the Art of Melancholy, England Damon Albarn and the Art of Melancholy Dylan Moore, Dylan Moore, author Dylan Moore, Blur book, Bit of a Blur, Damon Albarn biography, britpop bookIn the summer of 2012, Damon Albarn appeared in his own Dr Dee, an English Opera, and travelled around Britain on a train called the Africa Express. At Hyde Park, Blur returned to the stage, closing the London Olympics with songs that still capture the unique atmosphere of a nation that has never quite been sure what to think of itself.

Framed by the events of England’s glorious summer, what Albarn has called ‘the golden twilight’ of Queen Elizabeth II, England, Damon Albarn & The Art of Melancholy traces the decline of the English seaside town and the disappearance of the village green, documents the boredom, binge-drinking and violence of suburban commuter-belt towns, explores the layered histories of London’s music halls and examines how even Albarn’s globetrotting sojourns – to Iceland, America, China and Mali – always seem to evoke a very English melancholy.

The book is available on Amazon (US) (UK) on Amazon's Kindle Store, Kindle Fire, Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle, iPad, iPhone and Android. 

An exclusive interview with the author talking about why and how he was inspired to write the Blur book will be available soon. 


May 4, 2013

The Life of Blur: New Blur Biography by Martin Powers

A new Blur biography titled 'The Life of Blur' by Martin Power will be available in bookstores and online in June 10th 2013. 

Blur book description


'The Life of Blur' is about.  According to the book description, it "delves into every detail of Blur's pock-marked history, also shedding new light on the group's various solo activities, including Damon Albarn's experiments with Gorillaz and Graham Coxon's one man assault on the indie charts".

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The book will also feature new interviews with Blur's collaborators, Britpop rivals and friends, as well a detailed biography of the four members of Blur and their Britpop years, which were spent playing in crammed London bars, huge stadiums and rooftops. There are also going to be rare photographs and a full up-to-date discography up until 2013. It may well be the definitive biography of one of the UK's biggest bands.

Which Blur book do you own?
  

The book's author is known for writing a line of biographies for celebrities and musicians, including renowned talents such as Queen, Jeff Beck, Manic Street Preachers and Aerosmith.

Hence, the book will be most suitable for casual fans, new fans or the reader who wants as much information about Blur as possible. There hasn't been an updated Blur book covering the band post-1999.

Check out the other Blur books ('Bit of a Blur', 'Damon Albarn', 'All Things Great...') from the past below.

 

Order 'The Life of Blur'- Pre-order 'The Life of Blur' by Martin Power on Amazon by visiting the page below - only £16.96.




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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