Blur "rabidly pro" internet

Blur say they are happy their new album was leaked to the internet prior to its release, claiming they may have done it themselves had somebody else not beaten them to it.

Speaking recently to London radio station XFM, lead singer Damon Albarn said that online piracy of 'Think Tank' had made the band's return to the live arena that little bit easier.

"The gigs are going down really well," he said, "helped by the fact that [the album has] been on the internet for two months and everybody knows all the words to every song, which is weird."

He continued: "The idea of playing a totally 'cold' gig doesn't really exist anymore as everyone has all the music they want to hand."

"I'm rabidly pro the internet and as many people hearing our albums as possible," added drummer Dave Rowntree. "If it hadn't been leaked by someone we probably would've leaked it ourselves."

However, Albarn revealed that the official version of the album - which is released in the UK on May 5 - will feature a hidden track not yet available online.

"We do have an extra track on the album that you can't get on the internet," he said. "Not to fool the leaks, that never crossed our minds, we just put it there 'cause we thought it was so 'out there' that it had to be hidden.

He explained: "It's not at the end of the album, you have to rewind from track one to track zero.

"It's a spoken word and features someone we were associated with a few years ago, which may give you a clue. But it's very, very different. Very much a three in the morning thing."

Blur's latest single, 'Out Of Time', debuted at No.5 in the UK singles chart last weekend. A second single, 'Crazy Beat', is due to be released next month.

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