It’s very likely that you’re as sick as I am by now of just about every artist on the planet announcing that they will be releasing some kind of Christmas song or Christmas album or Christmas themed microwave meal.
Here is one that might actually be worth bothering with and I’m genuinely very excited about, possibly because it’s not got anything to do with Christmas other than the method of its release (all will be explained).
Since the beginning of December the band have been releasing free digital gifts to their fans via an interactive advent calendar. Videos of the band rehearsing (as can be seen atop this post), exclusive wallpapers, it’s all pretty cool stuff and worth checking out.
On the 24th day of the month, a video for a song on the album will be released, with the album being released a present to the fans on the following day.
The album was recorded in October and is to be titled The Fall. It was record on Damon’s iPad and how it’s going to sound is pretty much anyone’s guess.
Please visit the interactive advent calendar website to take a look at what the band are offering. It’s lovely to see more artists using the internet to interact with their fans in fun and intuitive ways, and Gorillaz really have done something exceptional here.
Spinner are reporting that Damon Albarn has dropped a hint that Blur might be reuniting for a second time.
“The band reformed in 2009 after years in the wilderness to play a number of large-scale shows and festival appearances, but at the time it was said to be their very last hurrah.
“But, as Sky News reports, frontman Damon Albarn has gone on record confirming that the Britpop band have since met up — and have discussed ‘doing something’ early next year.
“He said, ‘We did talk about doing something in January, something small, no career-based world domination ideas.’”
New Blur tracks are likely to continue appearing, as Damon Albarn pointed out in an interview with NME.com and the larger Musical Paper in general. Albarn said:
“I’m definitely going to do a few more of those seven-inches,” he explained. “I love the no pressure aspect.”
Despite calls from various corners that Blur should write and release new material and maybe even a proper album, Albarn cooled any real talk of a brand new full-length but still left a tasty dangler for all Blur fans:
“We can’t do it all the time. So I don’t want anyone to think there’s an album coming soon, it’s not possible, but we’ve got songs!”
Mr Damon is currently going through the touring process with Gorillaz, who yesterday announced a brief UK arena tour.
Since Damon Albarn and Jamie ‘Tank Girl’ Hewlett’s collaborative cartoon band Gorillaz were nice enough to give YouTube an exclusive on the video for their new track ‘Stylo’, YouTube have let their fictional bassist Murdoc Niccols curate a post on their Celebrity Playlist section. The mask slips a little bit, and Murdoc’s voice betrays him as an excitable 40 year old man, rather than a sharp-toothed ego-bass-maniac. Some of the videos are nice, like the clip from Jacques Cousteau’s ‘Silent World’, and others are revealing, like the dressing room rehearsal of “Hip Hop”, by Mos Def and my favourite colliery band/rap mashup group, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble (who you should definitely check out on dino-space here). Anyway, here’s the clip – and no, Charlie Bit Me isn’t on there, odd, considering the teeth thing.
In response to the disastrous earthquake in Haiti, a number of high profileevents have been organised to raise money for the relief effort. Damon Albarn, Blur frontman and Gorillaz creator has teamed up with Oxfam to offer his song-writing services in an eBay auction, the winner of which will win “a recording of a bespoke piece of music written by Damon Albarn. (Copyright Retained)…for their exclusive personal use (*subject to terms & conditions). * The winning bidder will need to sign a contract before receiving this piece of music”. Whether the music can be comercially exploited will be down to the terms of the contract, terms of which have not yet been publicised. The shadow of these limitations hasn’t discouraged bidders, who have already pushed the price up to £5,100 (the auction ends on the 2nd of Feb).
Massive Attack have confirmed that they will release their new EP on October 5th named ‘split the atom’.
The group have told the world that the EP will feature friends of theirs including Guy Garvey from Elbow and TV On The Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe. Massive attack will release their 5th album in February, which is intended to be a follow up to 2003′s 100th Window. Damon Albarn is also confirmed to be making a guest appearance on the new album.
