Photo: WENN.com
Damon Albarn has claimed that new Blur album The Magic Whip is a "proper Blur album" and revealed that their last album had some "real stinkers on it".
Speaking to Radio 1's Zane Lowe, Albarn said that the album was announced so suddenly because it had only just been finished. "We finished mixing last Friday and we literally mastered it yesterday," Albarn told Zane Lowe. "The reason that we've kept it secret is because we didn't have a record until yesterday!"
He compared the record to Think Tank, which was recorded without the guiding hand of Graham Coxon. "It's... got some real stinkers on it - there's some bollocks on there," he said before adding that The Magic Whip is a "proper Blur album".
"There was an element of making amends with the guys but the fact [is] that I thought there was good music there and it's a duty to deal with it," he went on.
Listen to 'Go Out' by Blur below
Blur announced yesterday that they will yet again headline London's Hyde Park for the fourth time."We're going to play Hyde Park. One more time," Albarn said at a press conference yesterday. "The reason why we're going to play is this [the new album]. I wouldn't be doing this if there weren't new songs to play."
He added: "There's not going to be just one show", but admitted there were no further dates confirmed as yet.
As previously reported, the Band's first album in 12 years the band's will be released on 27 April. The album has been in gestation for some time - it began during a break in touring in 2013 in Kowloon Hong Kong. Now after those early demos were worked on by Graham Coxon and Stephen Street and lyrics from Damon Albarn had been added, it can finally be released.
The full tracklisting is:
Lonesome Street
New World Towers
Go Out
Ice Cream Man
Thought I Was a Spaceman
I Broadcast My Terracotta Heart
There are Too Many of Us
Ghost Ship
Pyongyang
Ong Ong
Mirror Ball
The Magic Whip will be available as a digital download, on CD and as a 2-disc vinyl set.
The band are also set to headline 20 June 2015 as part of Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park. Tickets go on general sale at 9am on 27 February. For tickets and more information click here.
