TGTBTQ: Merrie Land Album Thread

[bugman]

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/featu ... re-w477652

damon ance again talked about GBQ

[Mark72]

from Rolling Stone....
It makes me wonder why you ever bother with bands.

Thankfully, I'm very lucky. I'm doing another record with the Good the Bad and the Queen. We're doing that in May. That's not GarageBand at all. That's just the four of us [Albarn, ex-Clash bassist Paul Simonon, former Verve keyboard player Simon Tong and Afrobeat drumming legend Tony Allen] playing live, straight on the floor.

It's not like I'm stuck in that [digital] world. I enjoy both worlds. I enjoy many worlds. And I'm equally comfortable in any of them.

So Damon is starting work on the new LP this month! Fantastic!!

[101reykjavik]

Cant wait to hear this.

[aldamasta]

Really is great news! I love that Damon doesn't limit himself to just electronic or acoustic, iPad or real instruments, solo or band, etc. Which of course always makes me think that there is surely a future for blur. And a good one at that, judging by how good TMW and Humanz are!

[munch]

He does like to distance himself from Blur

[Sledge Hammer]

He does like to distance himself from Blur

Yup....no respect for his legacy anymore

[rich]

He does like to distance himself from Blur

Yup....no respect for his legacy anymore

modern life is rubbish, eh
time to move on, ham sledger...

[Sledge Hammer]

He does like to distance himself from Blur

Yup....no respect for his legacy anymore

modern life is rubbish, eh
time to move on, ham sledger...

Blur did always move on and evolve, how must Graham feel when basically he seems to be last in line, even deleting his stuff from Gorillaz, Albarn/Coxon is the best thing Damon will ever do...and THATS A FACT!

Why The Good The Bad...next? he has Blur as a band who can do any genre. When did Damon put 100% into Blur with the original 4? 1999 a long time ago! because he certainly didn't put much into The Magic Whip, why cant he take 6 months and put 100% into Blur with Coxon/James/Rowntree?

[101reykjavik]

If I had to take a guess, it's because Damon is always looking to the next thing and spending six months on Blur won't cut it. If he spends six months writing / recording, the size of Blur's fan base then dictates a whole year of touring. So that's 1.5 years straight away. And that's a lot of touring and time away from family. I don't think he wants it that much any more. Can we be surprised? They're not lads in their 20s any more hungry to make it to number one or break a new market.

[idreamofpikas]

Blur did always move on and evolve, how must Graham feel when basically he seems to be last in line,

Graham is an adult, with his own career. He is not waiting around for Damon to play with him. Graham at one stage chose not to be a part of Blur and to have the freedom to do what he wanted outside of the band. He more than anyone would be OK with how Damon choses to spend his time.

Why The Good The Bad...next? he has Blur as a band who can do any genre. When did Damon put 100% into Blur with the original 4? 1999 a long time ago! because he certainly didn't put much into The Magic Whip, why cant he take 6 months and put 100% into Blur with Coxon/James/Rowntree?

Damon has only recently spent a whole year with them. He might want to spend it with others, and Dave and Alex might not be as invested in another 6 months to a year with Damon. If the other members of Blur are so desperate to work together then there is nothing in the world to stop them doing so.

And the truth is that the rhythm section of Blur are just not as passionate about music as Damon and Graham are. They have reasonably moved on to other things. Alex especially sees music for either fame or finance rather than passion. Perhaps Damon wants to do an album with other people who are as passionate as he is about music.

[KingLouieLouie76]

But I wonder if the project (since TG, TB, and TQ was merely just the album name) would go on a proper full-fledged tour themselves? I wonder if Simonon and Allen can endure such a chore. Also, they really to me only have a cult following through diehard Damon fans such as us.

I loved their first album. I've always ranked it second best (only to "Demon Days") as Damon's best side/solo effort, but the lapse between the albums also lessens the momentum they could have had to a certain degree.

[Mark72]

I think Damon's friendship with the band is just as important than making music with them. I hopeful for more blur in the future whether it's a E.P or album. But I'm so glad how productive Damon is year in year out. Long may it continue!

[KingLouieLouie76]

I think Damon's friendship with the band is just as important than making music with them. I hopeful for more blur in the future whether it's a E.P or album. But I'm so glad how productive Damon is year in year out. Long may it continue!

That's an excellent point... And who would ever thought (especially in the beginning of the Gorillaz) that Graham would fully embrace the Gorillaz enough to perform on one of their tracks both in the studio and live w/them? That proves how healthy Damon's relationship w/Graham is. It seems that Dave and Alex aren't completely receptive in committing full time w/Blur as well. I believe 2019 will be their year!

[aldamasta]

I think Damon's friendship with the band is just as important than making music with them. I hopeful for more blur in the future whether it's a E.P or album. But I'm so glad how productive Damon is year in year out. Long may it continue!

That's an excellent point... And who would ever thought (especially in the beginning of the Gorillaz) that Graham would fully embrace the Gorillaz enough to perform on one of their tracks both in the studio and live w/them? That proves how healthy Damon's relationship w/Graham is. It seems that Dave and Alex aren't completely receptive in committing full time w/Blur as well. I believe 2019 will be their year!

That's a really good point. From a purely outside perspective, it doesn't seem like Graham and Damon have had a relationship quite as healthy as their current one since back in the veeeery early days of blur. I think 2019 seems like a very plausible date too! I hope it isn't overshadowed by Damon's Malian opera, but he can usually balance bands and operas pretty well (Dr. Dee and blur in 2012, blur and wonder.land in 2015...)

Regardless, I think there is a future for blur, or at least certainly a musical future between Damon and Graham.

[tom_cas1]

With The Good, The Bad & The Queen they're almost a UK exclusive band. I know they played in the US in 2007 (a handful of tiny shows) and in Europe but the kind of band they are they could just limit a tour to the UK this time around and that's it. OR, of course, just release an album and not even play any shows. Anything is possible. So technically Damon wouldn't have to spend much time with them at all, if that's what people are worried about. If they just release an album and play zero shows I'll be just as happy. I've been dying to hear a second album since those rumours circulated in 2008(?).