Fool's Day

Holy shit! That's really all I can say. After seven years, Blur have finally released a new single! While there's (sadly) no album behind the release of the new track, "Fool's Day," was released earlier today in a limited edition 7" vinyl single, limited to 1,000 pressings and only available in the UK in honor of Record Store Day.

But, because the powers that be and the band knew that such a limited pressing would lead to inferior pirated versions of the track, they've gone and released it for free on their website! All you have to do is give your name and e-mail and you can download an .mp3 or uncompressed .wav of the track.

I should warn you though, as of writing this, there seams to be something wrong with the .mp3 version. It cuts off at the 2:25 mark instead of going the full 3:27. So, your best bet for now is download the uncompressed .wav and then just convert it until there's a better solution.

As for how it sounds? Despite Damon Albarn's involvement in other bands since the 2003 release of Blur's Think Tank, "Fool's Day" still manages to sound undeniably like Blur, and not say, Gorillaz or The Good, The Bad, and The Queen. And what's even more great is that this is 4-piece Blur, and it's so so awesome to hear new music with Graham, Alex and Dave each adding their own signature part to Damon's unmistakable voice; the riff Graham plays to close the song out is worth it, even if the track is free.

I really can't express how awesome it is to hear new Blur. Seven years is a long time, and considering till just over a year ago the band wasn't even together, the fact that this song exists is almost unbelievable. Would I love to hear an entire new Blur album? Definitely! But if all we're left with is "Fool's Day," I'm still insanely satisfied.

Update for those not keen on downloading completely legal and free music, Parlophone has an embedable version:

Bernard Sumner answers my question!

I pooped a little... Joy Division/New Order/Bad Lieutenant guitarist (and frontman of the latter two bands) answered the second round of Q&A questions on Bad Lieutenant's website today, and guess whose question got answered? MINE!

Now, I wrote this question like... two months ago, and being a Blur fanboy I was a bit annoyed that Blur's bassist, Alex James, didn't get more than just a couple inclusions on some tracks, despite being a reason the band formed in the first place. Here's my question and the answer I got from Bernard Sumner:

"JDW: While I understand that Alex James only appears on a few tracks Never Cry Another Tear, and he wasn’t in the final band because of “distance issues,” but is there any chance of him getting a more central part in the future of Bad Lieutenant? It’s a shame that a talent like his gets over shadowed by fellow Blur-mates Damon and Graham, and it seemed when he finally got his own chance to shine, he was put in the backseat again.

BS: I think that’s a matter of perception. I see all the musicians in Blur with equal standing really. Obviously, the singer is going to get a bit more attention because he is doing something different to the others, is usually the focal point for the band and is usually the biggest c***. The guitarist always looks a bit clever because he’s got so many strings and apparently knows what to do with them. The drummer is the backbone of the band and is the real underrated one. Mmm … Bass players … mmm …"

Besides being surprised that he actually answered my question, I'm a little amused/annoyed at how he dodged the question, seeming having nothing to say about bass players in the end. Thanks Barney. I guess I can consider that our first interview...

Visit Bad Lieutenant's website for the original article.

No Distance Left To Run

Here's some awesome news, announced via trailer on their newly updated website, it seems that Blur will be releasing a documentary film about their reunion from this past summer, titled No Distance Left To Run, after their song of the same name. The trailer says "In Cinemas January 2010," assuming that means in UK theaters, but perhaps other international theaters will get screenings as well... I hope.



To say the least, I'm pretty excited, but I'm just really hoping that there will be a way I can see this in America. The last documentary Damon Albarn did was Bananaz, which nicely documented the Gorillaz first two albums. I'm thinking this is a completely unrelated project, but it'd be really fantastic if this got the same online distribution that that film had. Because right now I'm kind of giddy over that trailer...

UPDATE: From an official release on the band's Facebook:

"A feature length documentary film telling the story of blur is due for cinema release on January 19th. “No Distance Left to Run” is directed by 32 (Dylan Southern & Will Lovelace) and is a Pulse Films production.

Filmed throughout the band’s 2009 rehearsals and acclaimed summer tour, No Distance Left To Run finds all four members of blur together for the first time in nine years. With previously unseen archive material alongside new interviews and reportage, the film recounts the highs and lows of a very British band from the late 80’s to their headline return at Glastonbury and Hyde Park. The result is a musing on Englishness and identity and a portrait of friendship and resolution. "

So the film is not just about the reunion, but about the band's entire career (which I hope doesn't just end here). But at least the title of the release says "NO DISTANCE LEFT TO RUN
OPENS IN CINEMAS WORLDWIDE IN JANUARY 19TH 2010" Which pretty much means I thankfully should be able to find it playing somewhere in America come January.

Blur join LEGO Rock Band

Damnit, why did my favorite band have to go and mix with my favorite childhood toy?!

Announced via Rolling Stone, the Brit-pop pioneers will be appearing in full mini-fig form as part of LEGO Rock Band, joining both Iggy Pop and David Bowie as LEGO-tized musicians for the game.

I have to say, I'm suprised, pleased, and somewhat distraught over the band's inclusion. One, they only reunited this year, and subsequently said they wouldn't be doing anything more. Two, compared to Iggy Pop and David Bowie, they don't exactly have the same impact on the music industry. And then there's the fact that their only song in the game is the over-played and un-Blur like track, "Song 2". Otherwise, I definitely can see the resemblance, more so in Alex James.

LEGO Rock Band releases this November.

21st Century Breakdown?

Green Day is slowly releasing more info on their upcoming album, 21st Century Breakdown, set for release in May 2009. While I can I say I was a big fan of the band in their earlier days, I can't even bear to listen to 2004's American Idiot. Call me stubborn, but there's just something about 40 year old emo men that rubs me the wrong way. However, there was some redemption when the band's garage rock side project, Foxboro Hot Tubs, released their debut album, Stop Drop and Roll!!! last year, which I'll admit to having really liked.

Anyways, onto something I found peculiar. The recently released album art of 21st Century Breakdown reminded me of one of my favorite albums, Blur's 2003 release, Think Tank. Take a look:

See a resemblance?

I mean, sure, it's not a blatant rip off or anything. But the black and white, stenciled graffiti of the Green Day album clearly takes inspiration from artist, Banksy's signature style. Banksy being the artist who designed the art for Blur's album cover. However, after researching, I found out the Green Day cover was designed by another graffiti artist, Sixten, who is also known for using stencils in his work.

They say copying is the best form of flattery, so be it. Being as I have every other Green Day album, I assume I am obligated to purchase 21st Century Breakdown when it releases this May; be sure to look out for a review some time then.

Blur to play at Hyde Park: July 3rd, 2009

NME.com has gotten the first video interview with Blur since the announcement of their reunion. And now they have announced the date and location for their first show:

July 3rd, 2009 at Hyde Park in London.

Parlophone has their own version of the interview on YouTube:


I have to say, it's a really great site to see all four of these guys back together. But it's especially great to see Graham Coxon back with the group (after his departure during the recording of 2003's Think Tank). As to what this means for Coxon's seventh solo record is unknown, but perhaps being dropped from his label had something to do with his willingness to reunite.

Be sure to check out NME's Blur page for the latest news on the band, as there are plenty of written articles on the event.

Blur, including Coxon, are reuniting

3:00 AM is never too late (or too early?) for Blur news! Even if it may be a few days late ... NME reports that the groups' front man, Damon Albarn, stated before the playing of his Chinese opera, Monkey: Journey to the West, that:

"Blur are certainly going to rehearse and see if we're into it,"

This statement comes just a month after Albarn stated that he and guitarist Graham Coxon had rekindled their relationship, stating that a Blur reunion was a possibility. That article can also be found at NME.com

I really hope this works out, I can't tell you how much I've been waiting for new material after 2003's virtually Coxon-less, Think Tank. Especially with EMI dropping Coxon before his seventh solo album, I've been going through Blur withdrawal. Don't get me wrong, as a fan of Oasis as well, it's nice to see that the 'Brit-pop' thing is still going strong; I just want to hear new material from the other side of the battlefield.

Best of Blur, now on YouTube

The decently good folks over at Parlophone have gone and posted all 22 videos from Blur's The Best of DVD. Hey, they even went and added us to their Friends List! Here's a hand picked video from the list, it is one of my favorite Blur songs and videos, "Coffee & TV", from their 1999 album, 13.

It's interesting how this sort of foreshadowed Graham Coxon's (the one in glasses) leaving of the band; at least his solo stuff ain't bad.

Check of the full Blur Playlist or view Parlophone's page.