August 29, 2012

Graham Coxon - A new album to be out in 2013

Graham Coxon has revealed that there will be a new solo album out some time next year. His latest, A+E, was his seventh solo work after leaving for Blur's Think Tank.

The guitarist posted several cryptic tweets on his official Twitter page with revealing pictures of various body parts. When someone asked, he said that these were hints as to the name of his new solo album. Given the short time of announcement, it is likely to say that the new record will be out some time in January or early 2013.

graham coxon arm, graham coxon glasses, graham coxon hands, graham coxon twitter
"Yes Clues" says the next mysterious tweet
graham coxon arm, a+e, graham coxon knees, graham coxon glasses, graham coxon hands, graham coxon twitter
Ankle ? Knees ? 
graham coxon fan, graham coxon fans, blur fan
Who's a Graham Coxon Fan ? 

For you Graham Coxon fans, this is exciting and great news. New album out soon in 2013! We all could do with something new. Since the Olympics closing ceremony and it's grand Blur gig, some may feel like it's a Blur slump after the climatic return. 
So here's the riddle:


If A+E = A Knee
Elbow / ankle = ?


Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE
Order the new Blur boxset HERE
Blur first ever 2012 gig-  Maida Vale gig full coverage HERE
Blur Exhibition review and photos HERE
Margate Gig (2012) review and pictures HERE
Rumours: Blur still play live after Hyde Park? HERE

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August 27, 2012

Damon Albarn hops abroad train for next big tour - Africa Express live

Damon Albarn's moving on after Blur, and he's moved on fast. The front-man literally jumped abroad a fast moving, speedy train and hired all his fellow musicians to create a massive Africa Express tour extravagance. Damon Albarn's Africa Express will be playing from September 3rd 2012 to September 8th 2012

Led by Damon, Africa Express brings together musicians from different cultures, genres and generations to break boundaries and offer a new perspective on Africa and its music.

africa express train, africa express tour, africa express damon albarn, train tour 2012, blur africa, damon albarn africa

Moreover, there's a train set involved in all this. And it's not unlike the train from the cover of Blur's 'Modern Life is Rubbish' album. Africa Express, the collective of African and Western musicians, is filling a moving train with many guest artists and collaborators and taking it on a musical adventure across mainland Britain this September, produced in association with the Barbican as part of London 2012 Festival.

Africa Express will become ‘The Africa Express’, departing London’s King’s Cross on 2nd September for a unique musical tour journey passing through England (Bristol, Cardiff and more), Scotland and Wales.

So what we all want to know is - Who's playing in this musical show? 

Damon Albarn, Tony Allen, Amadou & Mariam, Baaba Maal, Baloji, Carl BarĂ¢t, Bassekou Kouyate, Hatim Bensalha (H-Kayne), Afel Bocoum, Charli XCX, Toumani Diabate, Fatoumata Diawara, Nicolas Jaar, Jack Steadman (Bombay Bicycle Club), Jupiter & Okwess International, Kano, Krar Collective, Kyla La Grange

M1 (Dead Prez), M.anifest, Spoek Mathambo, John McClure (Reverend and the Makers), Noisettes, Nneka, The Temper Trap, Marques Toliver, Rokia TraorĂ©, The Very Best (Soundsystem), Rizzle Kicks and Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs 

Check out some scans (credits to Shelley) of Damon's recent Africa Express interview, dated August 26th 2012 from The Guardian, below.






Check out the times and dates for Africa Express, and buy your tickets here.


Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE
Order the new Blur boxset HERE
Blur first ever 2012 gig-  Maida Vale gig full coverage HERE
Blur Exhibition review and photos HERE
Margate Gig (2012) review and pictures HERE
Rumours: Blur still play live after Hyde Park? HERE

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August 25, 2012

Charting Britain's love affair with Blur (Special Story)


Britain and Blur – Falling In and Out of Love For 21 Years 

This guest post is by pop/ music culture blog Pop Lifer, who recently featured a 5-installment long tribute to Blur contribution to music and it's tumultuous relationship with Britain. 

Inspired by Blur’s victory-lap appearance at Hyde Park two weeks ago – which showed the shabby official Olympic Closing Ceremony what a Symphony of British Music should sound like – the Pop Lifer blog has been running a series of blogs on the band, and Britain’s 21 year, on/off love affair with them. As two thirtysomethings whose teens and tweens were soundtracked by Blur, this is a subject close to our hearts and we’re grateful to the brilliant BlurBalls for a chance to share our own personal reflections.

Having charted the band’s tricky early years from “Leisure” time to near commercial oblivion  the double-edged sword of “Parklife” and “The Great Escape” and the fascinating final three albums, we now move onto what happened next.

“There were no rows” Graham Coxon said when he left Blur in 2002, in the middle of the troubled “Think Tank” recordings in Morocco. This was both magnaminous and unlikely, given the combustible personalities involved. Indeed, looking back on Blur’s career, it seems obvious that Blur have been in various states of war from the very beginning, that their career has been one long and confusing battle.

blur relationship, blur group pic, blur hyde park 2012, blur picture, blur band picture, blur group shot, blur damon albarnFirst there’d been the war for attention (achieved with “Leisure”) and then the war against irrelevance, commercial oblivion and the glam wrecking crew called Suede. Then came the war for total cultural ubiquity (achieved through “Parklife” and the Britpop area), which they won, and the war against Oasis, which they lost. Finally the war turned into a civil war, with their final three albums increasingly a fascinating tussle between the increasingly independent Coxon and Albarn, with the former finally exiting. 

After “Think Tank” the band staggered on for a while. The live shows were smaller than they had been – both Pop Lifer writers were present for one at Brixton Academy – and for all the joys this intimacy could create, the absence of Coxon left Blur looking like a maimed band.

Each of the members drifted on to new projects so disparate that it increasingly seemed like a miracle the band had ever managed to share the same stage at all. Damon’s Gorillaz provided enough commercial affirmation for even his ego, while other side projects like The Good, The Bad and The Queen found an outlet for his increasingly melancholic, reflective songwriting. Coxon seemed to enjoy his solo records as well as the smaller scale success that had escaped him in Blur, Dave showed a perverse interest in politics and Alex turned his attention to cheese, with some relish.

blur relationship, blur group pic, blur hyde park 2012, gorillaz bananaz, damon albarn banana, graham coxon banana, blur picture, blur band picture, blur group shot, blur damon albarn
Damon's goes onto creating the successful Gorillaz - and went Bananaz

And then something strange happened. Slowly but surely, music critics and fans alike began to wake up to the fact that there was a gaping, Blur-sized hole in British music. It became obvious that history was winning all of Blur’s wars for them, without them having to raise a finger or a pistol. Suede had long ago faded into a ghastly parody of themselves before calling it a day (and if Damon ever needed comfort during dark nights of the soul, Brett Anderson’s solo records would surely have brought the laughter back). 

As for Oasis, they had degenerated into such a generic, repetitive caricature that only the doggedly loyal didn’t want the Gallaghers to finally have an argument big enough to make them leave the rest of us alone.

But most of all, it was obvious that there was no other new band with half the depth and range that Blur could command at their best. Franz Ferdinand could do the choppy guitar pop with aplomb, but couldn’t make the leap to songs as complex and moving as “This Is A Low”, while the Kaiser Chiefs could provide the knees-up entertainment but were incapable of such effortless loveliness as “Out Of Time”. As for Kasabian, well, they had their place, but it wasn’t Blur’s.


noel gallagher damon albarn, damon albarn oasis, oasis blur, oasis blur war, noel gallagher hug, damon noel liam
Pals again - Brit Awards 2011 saw Noel and Damon mend their grudges

In 2009, after a few false starts, Blur again decided to give Britain what it wanted. Usually news of a band reforming is met with sneers, shrugs or cynicism – but Blur couldn’t be accused of needing the money, and the announcement of new live shows was met with a jubilation that may have surprised even Albarn. And so, for perhaps the first time in their career, the band lived up to expectations with ease.

The word’s “triumphant return” have become two of the most devalued in all music journalism, but they fit Blur’s 2009 Hyde Park shows like a glove. Over a 100,000 people flocked to the centre of London over two nights representing, if the clothes and hairstyles were anything to go by, fans from every Blur period. There were Fred Perryd Parklifers, sharply suited Modern Lifers, scruffily hip 13ers and even a few baggy old men of the Leisure class. If most were thirtysomethings whose teens and twenties had been soundtracked by Blur, there were also a huge contingent of kids who hadn’t been born when “There Is No Other Way” hit the top ten.


blur denmark, blur smukfest, smukfest 2012, blur relationship, blur group pic, blur hyde park 2012, blur picture, blur band picture, blur group shot, blur damon albarn
Damon Albarn in Denmark, August 2012, Smukfest warm up

The set list touched on every album they’d ever done, from “Leisure” through to “Think Tank”, saw a band finally unified. It showed a band who could happily indulge in the pop romp of “Parklife”, but also give space to the more esoteric “Oily Water”, who could all take their moments in the limelight for “Tender” or who could be a springboard for Albarn’s hyperactive frontmanship on “Girls And Boys”. It showed a band who could be scuzzily furious (“Popscene”) or shamelessly, utterly beautiful (“For Tomorrow”), and every shade in between. It revealed Britain’s most complex, most versatile, most beautiful band in short, as did this year’s Hyde Park reunion reunion, in spite of the now famous sound problems.

Looking back over their 21 years it seems obvious that even when Blur claimed to know exactly what they were doing and where they were going, they never really did. Or, even if they did, there were some of them didn’t want to go there. So the contradictory statements since the big Hyde Park show, with some members suggesting Blur are finally done and others suggesting that there might be a future after all, are entirely in keeping with the band’s restless, contradictory nature. So yes, there could be more shows and there could be another album. With this amazing band it really, really, really could happen… but it might not.

blur primrose hill, blur graffiti, blur for tomorrow, blur relationship, blur group pic, blur hyde park 2012, blur picture, blur band picture, blur group shot, blur damon albarn
It really, really could happen - Blur on Primrose Hill and it's (now removed) graffiti 

And if not, if Blur have no distance left to run, we still have something quite extraordinary: the Blur songbook. Because one other thing has become obvious. Blur have probably not produced a perfect album. Every one of them has been bedevilled by lapses into the obvious or the obstinate, glibness or grumpiness. 

But they do have, overall, one of the best, most glittering back catalogues in all of our pop history. They won the only war that has ever mattered, the one for greatness, and they have earnt our love.
The full version of blurblog 5, the final part in our blur marathon can be read hereblurblog 1, on Hyde Park and how Blur have become a central part of our pop life is hereblurblog 2 on the tricky early years is here , blurblog 3 on the triumph of Parklife, and the cracks beginning to reveal themselves in the Great Escape here and blurblog 4 on Blur to Think Tank here.


Graham Coxon to collaborate with Example in new album

NME Magazine writes:

Graham Coxon has teamed up with rapper Example on his new album. 

The guitarist features on four tracks on the rapper's forthcoming third album 'The Evolution Of Man' - scroll down to listen to first single 'Say Nothing', which will be released on September 16. 
Example met Coxon at a gig and asked him to feature on the record, which is due on November 18. "I met him at a War Child gig at Shepherd’s Bush Empire," he says. "Then I saw him at The Brits, and told my manager we needed to get him on the album. So I pitched my idea, then went to his house and played him the album. On some songs he just picked up his guitar and started freestyling. It was fucking amazing."

As well as 'Say Nothing', Coxon features on three more tracks – ' Crying Out For Help', ' Snakeskin', and the Zane Lowe-produced 'Blood From A Stone'. 

The rapper has also announced an arena tour for early 2013, which will kick off at Bournemouth's BIC on February 11, finishing at Manchester's MEN on March 1. 


Example will play: 

Bournemouth BIC (February 11)
Nottingham Capital FM Arena (12)
Liverpool Echo Arena (13)
Sheffield Motorpoint Arena (15)
Newcastle Metro Radio Arena (16)
Glasgow SECC (17)
Aberdeen AECC (18)
London Earls Court (23)
Cardiff Motorpoint Arena (25)
Brighton Centre (26)
Birmingham LG Arena (28)
Manchester Arena (March 1)


Looks like Graham Coxon is doing his own thing and trying new things, after Blur's summer shows.

Check out a new interview from FT Magazine by Graham Coxon here.

Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE
Order the new Blur boxset HERE
Blur first ever 2012 gig-  Maida Vale gig full coverage HERE
Blur Exhibition review and photos HERE
Margate Gig (2012) review and pictures HERE
Rumours: Blur still play live after Hyde Park? HERE

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August 22, 2012

Blur - Warm up at Denmark's Smukfest

On August 9th 2012, Blur played a warm up gig in Denmark, Skanderborg as part of their 2012 live shows. It's been a an exciting few weeks leading up to Blur's Hyde Park Olympics show, which closed this landmark London sporting event very successfully despite a little volume troubles.

After Blur's initial London gigs (first one being Maida Vale on August 2nd), Blur packed their bags and traveled to Denmark to visit their Denmark and neighbouring fans. According to many members of the audience, the Smukfest show was raw, visually bright and was an enjoyable experience.

It's time to catch up on this rare, "outside-UK" Blur warm up show which received little media attention.

Smukfest in pictures 





Credits to Morten Pape. More pictures here (link) 










The setlist for Blur at Smukfest 2012 was as follows:
  1. Girls & Boys 
  2. Tracy Jacks 
  3. Beetlebum 
  4. Out of Time 
  5. Young & Lovely 
  6. Caramel 
  7. Country House 
  8. Parklife 
  9. The Puritan 
  10. Popscene 
  11. Song 2 
  12. Tender 
  13. This Is a Low 
  14. Encore:
  15. Sing 
  16. Under The Westway 
  17. Intermission 
  18. For Tomorrow 
  19. The Universal 

The crowd's great, hyped up and excited. Catch up on this warm up gig below with footage of Damon Albarn crowd surfing, Beetlebum, Country House, Song 2, The Universal and more. Blur were on a roll that night!







Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE
Order the new Blur boxset HERE
Blur first ever 2012 gig-  Maida Vale gig full coverage HERE
Blur Exhibition review and photos HERE
Margate Gig (2012) review and pictures HERE
Rumours: Blur still play live after Hyde Park? HERE

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

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August 19, 2012

Broken (film) features Damon Albarn Soundtrack

Damon Albarn worked with director Rufus Norris on his new film 'Broken' (2012)'s soundtrack. The singer wrote the musical scores and instrumentals for this film, which details the story of a young girl in North London whose life changes after witnessing a violent attack.

The first piece of music in the movie trailer sounds a bit like something off Gorillaz's third album 'Plastic Beach' and definitely has a touch of Damon's signature melodies and beats.

The second piece of music is a nice rendition of Blur's fan club single 'Colours'. The single was released on August 2003 and seems to fit the movie's dark theme very well.

Watch the trailer for 'Broken' below.






Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE
Order the new Blur boxset HERE
Blur first ever 2012 gig-  Maida Vale gig full coverage HERE
Blur Exhibition review and photos HERE
Margate Gig (2012) review and pictures HERE
Rumours: Blur still play live after Hyde Park? 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.

Stay Tuned, leave us a comment below and Get The Latest Blur News delivered straight to you- BlurBalls is the most updated Blur fan site on the internet!


August 17, 2012

Top 10 things to check out -Blur Hyde Park Olympics 2012 Gig Special

Special Report - Post- Olympic Blur Craze: Top 10 things to do after Hyde Park 

Things to do after Blur's Hyde Park gig - this week, we sum up the top hottest, must-see, must-have Blur items and releases for the die hard fans / lucky fans who went / those who missed the performance , or anyone who's interested in getting a piece of post- Olympic music action (including ourselves over here at BlurBalls!):

1) Blur - Parklive (Live)

The digital audio release of Blur's massive, sold out Hyde Park gig on August 12th 2012. Just in the for the end of London's glorious Olympics event. Both fans who went and fans who didn't will be able to re-live the experience of one of the band's finest show. Physical CD plus DVD will be released in November. Highlights include Caramel (live) and Song 2 (live) - the latter replaced 'The Puritan' in an unexpected Damon decision.  

Get it here on iTunes store now. 


2) Hyde Park merchandise 

We're not advertising anything but personally, these new cool Blur shirts are very worth getting. They're beautiful, bold and represent Blur's Hyde Park 2012 gig. Makes great gifts, pyjamas, workout clothes, casual clothes, party outfits, jogging suit... and they're going to be great memorabilia for years to come. You can even get the Hyde Park poster in full large size to stick up your wall, or have it framed to add to your collection. We're loving the Hyde Park navy shirt most! 

Visit Blur's official shop here. 


3) Admire the #BlurHydePark2012 photo stream 

Very worth checking out - as fans watched live that day, they tweeted and posted pictures on Instagram, and the tag "#blurhydepark2012" automatically added their posts to a beautiful stream of images on Blur's official site. Just load the page and watch endless Blur images pop out everywhere... literally Blur heaven right here. Plus for fans who didn't go, you can easily re-live the gig by vicarious experience. Hey, better than nothing right ? 

Jump to the Blur Hyde Park photostream here.  


4) Watch snippets on Youtube

Since the physical Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park 2012) CD isn't released until November, we have to rely on our number one source: Youtube. This user (click here) has several well-recorded tracks including 'Tender' , "Girls and Boys' and 'Country House' which you can view. Alternatively, you can just do a simple search. And since we try to make Blur things simpler for you...

Click here to watch Blur at Hyde Park (Youtube) 


5) Get a piece of actual Hyde Park memorabilia - Milky Carton and Posters

No one knows what goes on in ebay after gigs - except that the occasional seller (who attends gigs and doesn't know any Blur song, or thinks the lead singer is called "Damien" and is wondering why there aren't any Gorillaz songs being played) and fans who put stuff up for sale.

The Hyde Park gig has some surprises - a milky carton was given out as live memorabilia for the audience.

It's the one from 'Coffee and TV' and measures 9 inch by 4 inches! One of them appeared on ebay - and it is indeed very cute. Belongs to any collector's desk, so bid when prices are still low. We're also guessing there will be more rare things on ebay soon - especially as Blur cools down their engines.

Check out the milk carton on ebay now.


6) Blur Hyde Park 2012 Image Gallery 


Feast your eyes on this set of high quality, high resolution professional Blur pictures - there's lots more circulating around the internet but 'Blur Peru''s  album is by far the most comprehensive and fullest one out there. 

Did we mention how the boys are looking better and better recently? Highlights include Damon screaming on top of his lungs and Alex James looking cool.  The kings of Britpop are 'Young and Lovely' again. 

View HQ Blur Hyde Park Photos here 
View NME's Blur gallery here.


7) Reviews, Reviews and More Reviews 

Lots of reviews of the Blur Hyde Park 2012 Closing Ceremony gig. Recommended reviews to read include: 


8) Download the audio and Damon's interview before the show 

In our review, we have cool pictures, fun facts, videos and audio download links (also in 'Downloads' section) available for the show all in one neat summary. Plus you get to hear Damon Albarn talk about Korean pop music, Japanese pop music and British pop music. Straight from the pop star's mouth. How interesting. 

Check out our previous review on Blur's Hyde Park Olympics gig. 


9) How much did Blur get paid for the London Olympics Hyde Park gig ? 

So how much exactly did Damon Albarn and the gang earn this time? Millions ? Thousands of pounds? Or was it much more? We read it, we know the answer. But now it is your turn to find out. The topic made the news on several online sources, and is quite an interesting (and rather unexpected) insight. 

Snoop in on how much Blur earned this time here.  


What's next for Blur ? 


10) Put Blur on shuffle 


Lastly, go back and listen to Blur's catalogue of songs, b-sides and other tracks again. They're going to sound better than ever with the recent remastered CDs and the new memories, sounds, experiences and aftertastes of Blur's memorable Hyde Park Olympics gig. 

If it is indeed Blur's last gig ever, as rumoured, then it's well worth going through our list and re-live this wonderful gig the band has brought to us. It has been a blur and there's a lot of new Blur material to swallow, not including the recent Blur: 21 unreleased tracks and remasters! 

Go - and complete these 10 Blur post-Olympic tasks. 



Brought to you by Blurballs - August 17th 2012 



Order the new Blur: Parklife (Live at Hyde Park CD / DVD) HERE
Order the new Blur boxset HERE
Blur first ever 2012 gig-  Maida Vale gig full coverage HERE
Blur Exhibition review and photos HERE
Margate Gig (2012) review and pictures HERE
Rumours: Blur still play live after Hyde Park? 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.

Stay Tuned, leave us a comment below and Get The Latest Blur News delivered straight to you- BlurBalls is the most updated Blur fan site on the internet!


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