Released in conjunction with their 2009 reunion, the double-disc career retrospective Midlife emphasizes Blur's early psychedelic grind -- halfway between Syd Barrett and shoegazing -- along with their post-Brit-pop indie makeover, giving somewhat short shrift to the band's pop prime, cutting out four of the band's big hits ("There's No Other Way," "Country House," "End of the Century," and "Charmless Man") in favor of album tracks that play into the thesis that Blur were as somber and serious a guitar band as Radiohead. Of course, Blur did rival Radiohead, recording some of the greatest guitar rock of the '90s, but that was only one facet of the band: they were also a bright, artful pop band, cleverly twisting '60s traditions and post-punk styles into the present. Elements of this Blur are evident in "Girls & Boys" and "Parklife," hits so big they couldn't be ignored, and while Midlife could have used a heavier dose of this side of Blur, there's not a bad track here, and the set also brings their glorious, epoch-creating single "Popscene" back into circulation, so Midlife has some considerable value.
Sure, Blur were at times all over the map, but this two-disc set actually accentuates the incongruities of their occasional diversity by odd selection choices, bizarre sequencing, and about as much focus as a shuffle button.
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Designed for casual listeners often only familiar with their singles, Midlife contains many of the hits whilst revealing what loyal fans will already know; Blur have many songs far removed from their radio-friendly formular.
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Traffic problems heading into the Glastonbury site on Wednesday (June 23) were the worst seen in years.A number of incidents on the roads in Somerset yesterday conspired to make the journey for many festival goers a misery.One listener on Steve Lamacq's Radio 2 show last night texted in to say he had travelled just five miles in three hours on the roads leading up to the festival site at Worthy...
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A double CD compilation record spanning Blurs mid-career material is set to be released this year. The album will consist of 25 tracks in total and will hit store shelves on June 15th. It's simply titled Midlife: A Beginners Guide To Blur.
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AOL/Spinner is streaming the following albums through Sunday, August 2, so listen while you can. • Blur, 'Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur' • Dodos, 'Tie to Die' (MP3) • St Helens, 'Heavy Profession' (MP3) • Yacht, 'See Mystery Lights'...
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Designed for casual listeners often only familiar with their singles, Midlife contains many of the hits whilst revealing what loyal fans will already know; Blur have many songs far removed from their radio-friendly formular.
More >
Traffic problems heading into the Glastonbury site on Wednesday (June 23) were the worst seen in years.A number of incidents on the roads in Somerset yesterday conspired to make the journey for many festival goers a misery.One listener on Steve Lamacq's Radio 2 show last night texted in to say he had travelled just five miles in three hours on the roads leading up to the festival site at Worthy...
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Sure, Blur were at times all over the map, but this two-disc set actually accentuates the incongruities of their occasional diversity by odd selection choices, bizarre sequencing, and about as much focus as a shuffle button.
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Blur is to release live albums of its shows at London's Hyde Park, which take place on July 2 and 3.Each of the performances, which are part of the Essex band's reunion tour that included a headline set at the Glastonbury Festival, will be available as both a double CD or via MP3.Click here for more.
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Oh no, this is horrible! This was posted on Blur's facebook so I guess it's real. I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY PUT TONY BLAIR ON IT!Top Row:So I guess that's a map of Essex? The sheep are for Country House, Milky from Coffee And TV, some sort of protest march I can't make out.Union Jack (Oh are they British?)Third Row:Lottery balls (I'm guessing they're for Could Be You?), Iraq war photo for Think Tank...
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I guess we all expected it, it just took Royal Cheesemaker Alex James to confirm it. Via BBC News:"Despite the rumours, bassist Alex James said they have not talked about "doing anything else whatsoever". Over the summer, Blur played a series of concerts including ones at London's Hyde Park and Glastonbury Festival. "That was what we said we'd do and we did it and it was great. It hasn't been m...
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Recently reformed British legends Blur have announced three more warm-up shows for the end of June which will mark the band's final shows until their massive gigs at Manchester's MEN Arena and London's Hyde Park. The band already had two warm-up shows in London and Colchester that almost immediately sold out so that probably says something about how quick you'll have to be to get yourself a tic...
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A double CD compilation record spanning Blurs mid-career material is set to be released this year. The album will consist of 25 tracks in total and will hit store shelves on June 15th. It's simply titled Midlife: A Beginners Guide To Blur.
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With two colossal gigs planned for the summer, the newly reunited Brit-pop kings Blur have designated the bands whose duty it will be to get the crowd in the "woo-ooo" mood. Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon and the two no one ever remembers without a trip to Wikipedia will perform on two consecutive nights (July 2-3, 2009) at Hyde Park in London.
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Blur have given their web-friendly London-based fans a chance to catch them playing live and a secret location tonight to celebrate the release of their new compilation album 'Midlife'. Graham Coxon started the commotion via (where else) his Twitter account.
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Beetlebum |
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| 2 Girls and Boys |
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| 3 For Tomorrow |
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| 4 Coffee and TV |
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| 5 Out of Time |
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| 6 Blue Jeans |
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| 7 Song 2 |
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| 8 Bugman |
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| 9 He Thought of Cars |
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| 10 Death of a Party |
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| 11 The Universal |
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| 12 Sing |
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| 13 This Is a Low |
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| 14 Tender |
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| 15 She's So High |
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| 16 Chemical World |
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| 17 Good Song |
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| 18 Parklife |
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| 19 Advert |
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| 20 Popseeme |
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| 21 Stereotypes |
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| 22 Trimm Trabb |
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| 23 Bad Head |
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| 24 Strange News from Another Star |
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| 25 Battery in Your Leg |
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Click to purchase…
© 2006-2009 Mog Inc. All Rights Reserved
 "Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur")
