Blur

britpop

Blur is an English rock band formed in London in 1988. The band consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album, Leisure (1991), incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing. Following a stylistic change influenced by English guitar pop groups such as the Kinks, Depeche Mode and Radiohead, Blur released Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995). As a result, the band helped to popularise the Britpop genre and achieved mass popularity in the UK, aided by a chart battle with rival band Oasis in 1995 dubbed The Battle of Britpop. Blur's self-titled fifth album (1997) saw another stylistic shift, influenced by the lo-fi styles of American indie rock groups, and became their third UK chart-topping album. Its single Song 2 brought the band mainstream success in the US for the first time. Their next album, 13 (1999) saw the band experimenting with electronic and gospel music, and featured more personal lyrics from Albarn. Their seventh album, Think Tank (2003), continued their experimentation with electronic sounds and was also shaped by Albarn's growing interest in hip hop and world music, featuring more minimal guitar work. Coxon left the band during early recording sessions for Think Tank, and Blur disbanded for several years after the end of the album's associated tour, with the members engaged in other projects. In 2009, Blur reunited with Coxon back in the band a...