Damon Albarn Performs ‘Song 2’ Without Blur for the First Time
Damon Albarn has been out on the road in support of his solo album, Everyday Robots and on Monday night he treated fans in Boston to a rendition of Blur‘s 1997 hit, “Song 2.” As Pitchfork reports, a rep for Albarn confirmed it was the first time the musician has performed “Song 2” without Blur (though he recently led a packed pub through a rowdy, rousing rendition of “Parklife”). Forgive us, but: Woo hoo!
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Check out a fan-shot clip of the performance above, which starts with Albarn asking, “Are we doing this?” While a sizable chunk of the crowd seems to know what’s in store from the opening drum beat, the ripple spreads when the track’s guitar riff comes in and then all sorts of mayhem breaks loose the second that first elated declaration drops. The clip is fittingly shaky and grainy, but blaming the videographer for jumping around during “Song 2” is just ludicrous.
Albarn’s solo debut, Everyday Robots, comes on the heels of a Blur reunion, which touched down in the U.S. during last year’s Coachella. Even after 20 years of playing Blur, Gorillaz and a number of other groups, the thought of a solo album had never crossed Albarn’s mind until he was prompted by XL Recordings owner Richard Russell.
“I don’t think I’m that kind of person, really,” Albarn explained during a recent chat with Rolling Stone. “I mean, with the exception of two or three little bits in songs, I’ve written everything that I’ve ever performed, so I’ve never really needed to get out on my own to express myself. I’ve never done a solo record because it didn’t seem necessary. But this clearly is a very personal record, and so that, I suppose, was the challenge for me. It was like, ‘How do I make a record that really is a solo record?'”
Albarn’s North American trek wraps up this weekend with a set at Bonnaroo, after which he’ll head to Europe for a string of dates this July.