Universal Blur question

Will the reformed Brit-pop heroes call it a day or carry on to the end?

06 July 2009 - Will there be another Blur record? Should there be?

As the great Hyde Park clean up begins and we are left with just two more festival dates in their tour diary, the question is left hanging amid the onset tinnitus and discarded beer bottles.

We're left with the memory of a show that felt bracingly fresh and exciting for a gig that, on the surface could have been accused of being a teensy bit of a nostalgic indulgence.

Interestingly the crowd and the band seemed to be on different pages - the audience, surprisingly laddish and Friday-night drunk, definitely had an element of soaking in the 90's nostalgia, but the energy coming from the stage was anything but nostalgic or going through the motions.

Witness Graham Coxon playing on his back as the feedback drenched coda of Trimm Trabb literally bowls him off his feet; witness Damon Albarn wiping his eyes as the 55,000 strong crowd take up the chorus to Tender.

"They'll have an album or two more, definitely."
A fan

Sadly you get the impression much of tonight's audience wouldn't care either way if there was a new Blur record (the bafflement that greets, say, Death of a Party, or Advert tonight is testimony to that) - especially considering Damon and co's tendency to push their own musical horizons.

But if the enthusiasm and energy of the performance is any indicator, those four men could walk into a studio tomorrow and deliver something special.

Far more than a Brit-pop revival, to those engaged with the boys on stage this felt like the real thing; but if this is a goodbye, it's a glorious one.

Fans verdict

We asked the good gig-goers of Hyde Park their opinions on the future of Blur.

"I don’t think they’re going to go on any longer, I think they’re having a nice time."

"I think they’ve got a future ahead of them. Yeah, they’ll have an album or two more, definitely. He started crying at Glastonbury he was so pleased to be back together so they’re not going to split up without a big row and that big row they’ll write an album about and it will be a killer. It will be their Abbey Road."

"I hope it’s not a goodbye. They’ve definitely still got it. 10 years ago, 1995, we’re now in 2009, I thought they sounded exactly the same, absolutely brilliant."

"I would say Blur will always be in everyone’s hearts but to be honest I reckon this probably is the goodbye."

"There could be a future in it for them, but they’ve never struck me as the type of band that would rehash their former selves just for the money. I think their hearts have to be in it so we’ll see."

"I thought it was one of the best gigs of the summer. Blur have a future. I think Damon will never go out of style. He’s so emotional and I like that."

If you missed Blur at Glastonbury check it out here.

Mark Burrows