Blur prepare for big announcement on future plus exclusive Brits rehearsal footage

BLUR ALERT: Blur are set to appear in an exclusive NME feature piece to talk about their future. Speculations are that they're going to make a new album with producer William Orbit.

The news about Blur headlining the London Olympics 2012 Closing ceremony concert came on midnight yesterday, just a day before the Brit Awards at 8:00pm tonight at the O2 Arena.

Dave Rowntree tweeted a picture of Phil Daniels backstage at the Brits - they WILL be playing Parklife with Daniels doing the vocals.

Blur is set to perform, Girls and Boys, Song 2, Beetlebum and many other huge hits, and also from the Brit Awards twitter : "Exclusive! Outstanding Contribution winners @blurofficial will perform "Tender" (with 32-piece choir) on ITV2 at 10pm tonight"

See some scans of pictures here of Blur's NME magazine feature this week. It will feature an article, posters, exclusive pictures and talks about "new album plans".

Speculations for the NME announcement tomorrow is best summed up by dannn, a forum member, who said:

 My take on recent developments: 

• Blur are active again and that’s what we have been craving for years. 
• The new song sounds really good and a studio version may not be a piano based ballad and could well be in the same vein as For Tomorrow. 
• The gig is a unique opportunity for the band to be part of history. I am sure if it wasn’t for the Olympics they wouldn’t be going anywhere near Hyde Park. 
• Expect some intimate warm up gigs. 
• The intention at the Brits (and the Olympics gig) could be to put a line in the sand and celebrate the band’s past, whilst looking towards the future as Blur Mark II. I think the band have the desire to continue and produce new music, but I guess we’ll find out tonight / tomorrow.
We couldn't agree more - with William Orbit on board, what else can happen ? Here's our best guess -

- Under the Westway is the Record Day promo

- They're back "in full" as the article says

- Playing Olympics with some intimate warm up gigs

- Then possibly an album towards December with Orbit

Also, watch an exclusive Blur rehearsal video 2012 for the Brits below:



Read all about Blur's new album HERE and check out their newest song HERE and read our REVIEW HERE.

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Blur to headline London Olympics Closing Ceremony gig - 2012

BREAKING NEWS: Blur announced via their official Facebook page that they will be be headlining the Olympic Closing Ceremony gig in 2012, 12th August, at Hyde Park.

Graham Coxon tweeted some revealing information 15 minutes before their big announcement was due:

He said "Looking forward to the Brits tomorrow night... Should be well good! Oh and August..." implying that August will mean something big in the realm of Blur. And it is - Olympics! Representing Britain to the world!

The band is set to receive the Outstanding Contribution Award in the Brit Awards 2012. They will play a record-long 11 minute set, consisting of 5 songs. This was revealed by tweets and sources from the band's official social networking sites.

Blur also posted this picture of their band logo on stage at the Brits stage on their facebook page:

This is BIG NEWS! Blur's representing Britain's music scene yet again, for their big comeback, as Britain's top band! Watch Blur rehearse for Brits 2012 below:



We speculate that NME's announcement this week regarding Blur "in the studio" and all the William Orbit business (read about it in the News Archive section) will mean that all these events, plus the new Blur song that debuted yesterday, and the fact that Orbit is dropping hints means there WILL BE A NEW ALBUM ANNOUNCED SHORTLY. 

Stay tuned, we bring you the news as it comes. You heard it first on Blurballs.com.

Reserve tickets for London Olympics Live 2012 HERE 




Read all about Blur's new album HERE and check out their newest song HERE and read our REVIEW HERE.

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Blur debuts new song at Pre-Brits show - gig review

Blur - War Child 19th Feb 2012 
GIG REVIEW:

Blur has gone back to their old ways, old days and old looks - Graham Coxon sported a Leisure-esque hair cut with a thick mop of hair, and Damon Albarn wore a parklife-esque zip up, complete with stripes, and was clean-shaven and clean-cut, and stepped on stage way over scheduled time (due to 35 minute delays) and sang.

These two musicians, only one half of Blur, looked the part -the seemed like they were ready to perform and give us some tunes from the Britpop era, or at least, their signature songs about all things British, London and little Britain.

The piano was rolled in, and Graham's guitar was checked several times. Then the two appeared on stage and said a few words; Damon was at his piano, and Graham stood in the center of the stage, where he and Damon exchanged looks, smiled at each other and began. All throughout the performances, smiles were exchanged, and the two seemed to really have renewed their friendship after a long time hiatus.

Alex James watched from the balcony above, hidden in the blue hazy spotlights and the generally dim seating area. The atmosphere was great, but hushed, somehow it seems like we're all waiting for something to happen.

The "War Child" sign shone at the background. Damon and Graham sang, with Damon doing the leads, and Graham doing backups. Some of the tunes sounded a little off, but for the most part, it was enjoyable purely because of the two presence on stage. There was a moment when Graham's voice slipped and he played a wrong chord - but then everything went smoothly afterwards.

We filmed all 3 songs that they performed on stage - they were on there a mere 15 minutes or so, and performed 3 acoustic songs, one of them a brand new track called "Under the Westway". The track is melodic, with no bass and drums it sounds almost like a ballad. Fans cheered and Damon sang.

Shortly after their third and final song - the new track "Under the Westway", Damon and Graham cleared the stage fast - ran and scooted away. Fans shouted "Encore" but soon it was time for the next act. They left the stage like a bullet speeding away.

Overall: 3.5 / 5 stars - for the short performance time but kudos for the new track. 

Listen to all three performances below:







Download the track HERE (right click, save as) *credit to Marcia 

Read all about Blur's new album HERE and find out who's producing the album HERE and check out the other rumours and articles reported by us HERE, HERE and HERE. 

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Blur debuts new song Under The Westway in War Child Gig - Feb 2012

Blur's Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon has debuted their new song "Under the Westway" at the War Child Charity Gig just an hour ago, 19th February 2012. The song was written "a few weeks ago". You can listen below to this acoustic number, filmed by Blurballs live at the stage:



We've filmed the video and it also cut it so its just audio. It will be up shortly. Watch and share the  FULL LIVE PERFORMANCE!

The song's very similar to Fool's Day in style, and the main topic is the scenery whilst travelling back under the Westway in London, probably inspired by Damon's travels to and fro the city. He sings about the skies, the clouds, and the colours, and talks about the pollution and his feelings to a special somebody.

"It's got a lot of words, not as many as Ed Sheeran" said Damon Albarn, "It's got a lot of words. I'll try to remember all of them", as he smiled at Coxon from across the piano.

Graham and Damon performed 3 songs in total for the Pre-Brits gig - Graham looked like something out of Leisure, with his big uncut hair, and Damon was clean shaven and clean-cut, wearing a parklife-esque zip up.  The setlist are as follows:

1) He Thought of Cars (The Great Escape) 

2) Strange News from Another Star (from Blur)

3) Under the Westway - New song! 

Blur recently revealed they will be working on a new album, enlisting William Orbit (who produced their 1999 album "13") on board. The War Child gig only featured the guitarist and the singer, but not Alex James (bassist) or Dave Rowntree (drummer).

Blur will perform live again in the Brit Awards 2012 - stay tuned for that!

It was a great gig, full of promise for something new from the Britpop mega-band. Blur have a long-standing relationship with Warchild, contributing the track Eine Kleine Lift Musik to the charity’s legendary 1993 album Help.

A special shout out to Katie and Hannah and their awesome dad for dropping me off after the exciting night of music, exchanges, sprints, chases and close encounters (wink wink).

Download the track HERE (right click, save as) *credit to Marcia 

Read all about Blur's new album HERE and find out who's producing the album HERE and check out the other rumours and articles reported by us HERE, HERE and HERE. 

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