You Coxon!

In his most outspoken interview since leaving BLUR, GRAHAM COXON has told NME.COM that his relationship with his old band members has deteriorated so badly that he no longer regards them as his friends.

In an NME interview following our exclusive reports on the Blur split, Coxon claims that being told that he wasn't wanted in the studio by their management, rather than the band themselves, proves how badly things have deteriorated between him and Damon Albarn, Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree.

"They haven't particularly acted like my friends," he said. "I don't think they acted as friends would. I probably haven't for years. It's kind of good I don't have to pretend anymore. I think there was a lot of pretending to be friends. I remember Dave, years ago, said in a paper, 'If we weren't in a group together we wouldn't be fucking friends.' We were all (feigns hurt) 'Dave?!' But he's fucking right... in the end we were business partners. Basically. And that's the fucking truth. That's what Blur became as a band."

Coxon claims a lack of communication was integral to the demise. "It's hugely complicated," he said, "twelve years of all sorts of things. Honesty and communication are very important if you wanna keep a group healthy, and Blur never had that. Well, we were having fun, y'know, but it became work very quickly. It just does. You sign to a record company and it becomes work."

Coxon believes Blur's current "professional, commercial" approach to recording is the opposite of what he wants to do. He added: "I think they got more... serious about what Blur was in a more professional, commercial way, and I guess I don't have much respect for professional and commercial. Blur and me shifted. We were always shifting but perhaps that was one shift too far this time. Maybe they'll be brilliant without me, maybe they're at their greatest now! I don't think the story's over with them. They'll carry on. Personnel is now... secondary to what Blur is."

Bassist Alex James recently revealed that he plans to call Coxon.

For the full feature, see this week's NME, which is out now in London and tomorrow (October 16) nationwide.

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