Reviews (page 6 of 8)
Young Damon Alban really nailed this one, and apparently it's not even their biggest album, definitely makes me want to explore more. Reading about how Blur needed a hard image change so they pioneered Britpop is a wild story. Influences heard in many mid 00's indie and alt bands. I like how the sound transfers to the Gorillaz, who often take it one step further or odder
ya des bangers mais mid
I was initially unimpressed with this, but it grew on me as the album progressed. It's a strong Britpop album with a proper balance of the melodic and the snotty. For as smart as this was musically though, lyrically I found it to be fairly dumb. Fave Songs: Turn It Up, Sunday Sunday, Chemical World, Resigned, Oily Water
Pretty rocking Blur album
Southern swagger, but a bit samey..
A really fun listen with solid lyrics. Exactly what you’d expect from the title: plenty of well-deserved cynicism about life under colonial capitalism presented SO Britishly that it gets a little grating at times.
wasn’t sure what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised. quality modern day britpop. catchy. not bad at all. highlights: “advert”, “chemical world”, “villa rosie”.
Modern Life might be rubbish but I don't think this album is. I thought it was kind of chill and background and a lot more mellow than I expected blur to be. I liked it. Erica: I like his vocals in other stuff, but this wasn't bad.
Another one of those albums that I guess I liked but I don’t know why it’s on this list. Nothing stood out good or bad. If I was somewhere and it came on, I wouldn’t complain. But I’ll never seek it out, either.
Seems fine but nothing caught my attention
This album just made me reconsider my appreciation of Blur. I always had a hard time with those guys, some songs I really liked but for the most poart I always found their albums to be pointless. Much to my surprise, I really enjoyed that one. Maybe because it's pretty simple and goes straight to the point: making great power pop tunes.
Surprisingly ok. There might be one good Blur album out there after all!
Wow, this is now my favorite (and the only one I like) Blur album. This one contains nice songs, especially For Tomorrow or the beautiful Miss America. I wouldn't say it's one of the best albums ever, but it was worth a listen.
Was hoping for more from this, but it is very samey for the most part. The speeding up piano sample they use is some creepy fun though
Totally fine. Just a random walk in the 90s power pop world.
Enjoying this so far, not a bad album. Does feel a bit long
There's some good songs in there - but how can I rate something this long - over 2 hrs!
Meh
A bunch of solid songs with nothing really bringing them together as a cohesive whole. A shame, really, as I love the songwriting of Damon Albarn, and the group's performances, and the singles on here are outstanding. A decent record. A decent record
It's ok. didn't really get into it and not sure how much i digested it.
Kunne vært en 4er, men blir en 3er.
I don't know if I can stomach 2 hours of shitty British rock from a band that I already don't like that much. Of all the bands to get another entry on this list I was hoping Blur would not be one of them. I feel like Blur was just an experiment for Gorillaz to actually get a good start. The first track isn't bad... They have a really good knack for making great instrumental tracks that are utterly ruined by the lead singer. I'm really glad he got a lot less annoying/better at singing by the time he started Gorillaz. His voice is just not enjoyable to listen to. If they just didn't have any vocals these songs would be significantly better. Low 3/5 I guess. It is solely carried by the instrumental.
That's a pretty good cover. And this is a pretty good album. No standouts, but it seems like Blur's heart is in it. Might need to give this one another listen.
Album 21 of 1001 blur - Modern Life is Rubbish Favorite Track : For Tomorrow Rating : 3 / 5 British Indie Pop. I think I missed out on this on back in the early 90s. Grunge was about to make its move about the same time this came out. I feel that it probably got lost in the shuffle, as did many in this genre did. It was a good listed. While only the 1st track really stood out, there was nothing else about the rest that turned me off. Gave me some slight Squeeze vibes, but the comparison might not be fair to either. Not a waste of time.
OK
Very UK mod-ish in that late 80s/90s style giving respect to Kinks and the Who and also The Jam. I always liked this Blur album and although it doesn't get heard as much as the following celebrated albums it certainly stands up well in their discography.
Just an okay album from a mostly okay band. I don't understand why this needed to make the cut. Gorillaz is much more interesting and should've had more albums included than Blur.
Britpop. Ningún megahit. Ni fu ni fa.
In the 90's, Blur was always advertised to me as an Oasis or Radiohead level of good. And I was a massive Radiohead fan and I enjoyed Oasis as well, so I always assumed Blur would also be something that I enjoyed. But I just never got it. Song 2 was alright but nothing else really grabbed me. I gave up on them long ago and even with the Gorillaz, I love what's going on, but the music just didn't do it for me. Listening to this though may have changed that. It's not mind blowing or anything. But I REALLY enjoyed this record. It could just be my mood, but I am super glad this came up today and I will give their other albums a spin as a result.
Little to hate and little to love about this album
Ööööhh… yeah de e!!!!!
Felt it was pretty good but somewhat forgettable. Overall pleasant alt rock, catchy but not addictive. Low 3.
I come from a household where 'Blur is Shite', but this was alright.
Meh - wasn't bothered then, not bothered now
Nothing wrong with this album but for my money nothing to make it special either. Easy listening rock but no song stood out to me
Bättre än väntat!
Small bit annoying and repetitive at parts. Definitely some classic tunes and catchy songs but not as high quality or revolutionary as other projects by Damon albarn.
Some nice britpop.
As far as I can tell, Blur's brand of britpop is rock-based. Heavy riffs, fast paced, and wild sounding. This is in contrast with their rival Oasis's brand, which I think is pop-based. I don't really want to pick a side, because both are the same: promising at some places but falls flat as a generic pop-rock instead. Britpop in general, it seems, likes to play safe.
Yes, Blur was big in BritPop, and yes, this album helped paved the way for that. But outside of the UK, no one really cared about this album or its singles. This album had one single in the top 100, and that was *only* in Britain. The album was certified Gold... again, only in Britain. The album reviews at the time of release thought it was a good album, not great. Retrospective reviews have been better... but only some. Some reviews still think it's a good, not great, album. It's not a bad album though. And for historical reasons I can see it being on the list of 1001 Albums You Must Hear before You Die, but their self-titled album would be a better choice in my opinion. The songs on here are good but not great, and I found myself wanting the album to be over so that I could listen to something better.
Britpop is not as gimmicky as I remember.
I found it a bit of a let down. The first song got me excited and started off real strong but the rest of the album was really mediocre.
Fun album. Catchy songs with elegance, even if Britpop still isn't for me. Modern Life is Rubbish overstays its welcome for a few tracks.
Yeah Blur are better than Oasis. That is all.
Well it was very Blurry throughout ! Thnk I prefer Gorillaz. It was OK so 3*
Its fine but i think i dont really get blur or something
De her fuckers var onde mod Nardwuar og synger legit "lalalala" ok nok bias, ægte lyt nu. Bare sådan lidt kedeligt, det giver mig ikke rigtigt noget. Hans stemme er også lidt whacky. Den anden halvdel er dog bedre og der bliver faktisk bragt noget frem. Sjove instrumenter bliver introduceret og det lyder ikke ligeså tamt som starten.
Pretty solid Brit-pop with a healthy dose of glam mixed in. Not bad, not special either.
Britpop, de jaren negentig, een licht verlangen naar de goeie ouwe jaren zestig, met een dikke laag ironie erover en dan alles met veel vervorming uit de versterkers laten knallen. Best leuk, maar niet alles in dit genre blijft even lang boeiend.
If this was half as long it would be great. Ballooned up to almost an hour, it’s just good. There’s not many songs that miss, but not many that really HIT either. Mostly, it’s a promising, early-career effort that, in hindsight, provides a blueprint and origin story of sorts for many of the band’s later, greater career works.
Not my favorite Blur album, but also never bad. I’m always inspired by their song structures and adventurous chords. I would have loved to have heard the Andy Partridge versions of these songs, which supposedly were demo recordings early in the process. It’s hard to rate this, knowing what the band will ultimately become, and how good it’s about to get, but I didn’t dislike it. I also love the super Britishness of bands like this and the Kinks… it’s a thing I’ve recently discovered through 1001. 3/5
Strengthened my belief that Blur wrote some outstanding songs but were a boring album band. It’s full of good lyrics and oh-so tunes. Very English but just not very interesting musically.
Heard it before?: No Enjoy it?: Yeah, just classic British rock which delivers strongly across the board Favourite song: Track 9 - Oily Water
Not worth 2 hr and 15 mins of my time
Enjoyable but nothing that really captured me.
This really did nothing for me. Much prefer Albarn's work with Gorillaz
This album contains the garage band, indie sound I so loved in the 90s. It’s a record that, if I had heard it then, would probably be an old favorite. Having heard it only once, i would probably rate the experience at a 2 with hopes of it becoming a 4 after repeated listens. But I don’t have time for all that now so a 3 it is.
I never listened to this one as much as Parklife or The Great Escape. I wonder why, as it's pretty similar, though maybe not quite as cooked. It also doesn't quite hit the highs of the other two albums. Good stuff in general, though I get a bit tired of their attitude as some of their lyrics are rather condescending. But their tunes are pretty good and I was surprised at how many I remembered. Blue Jeans, For Tomorrow, and Chemical World are standouts. As with Parklife, I'd trim maybe 1/4 of the album as it's all a bit much. (That's the problem with a lot of albums from the CD era. Not restricted to 42 minutes of music anymore, so let's fill up the disc!)
I like but I can't say I love. The album took a turn around Blue Jeans and by Resigned…I think I fell. Not quite a 4 for me but more than a 3.
One of the best 90s alt rock groups
I used to like this a lot more, but hearing it now it's kind of a bloated mess. There are some good songs, but the record is about 15 minutes too long.
The album was fun, not necessarily an attention-grabber or even an attention-seeker. Nothing noteworthy or profound on the first listen-through. These are all good things for the purposes of this review, though. The sound of the 1980s was ever so faint, with the predictable beats of the early 1990s when drums started getting really pop-style emerging throughout the listen. The vocals were still very much of the previous decade, but there was a sense of honesty that the 90s seemed to have brought out in its transition from the 80s. This is rather hard to explain, admittedly. Overall, the album is indicative of the trends from one decade to the next, maybe even a perfect blend of that. The appreciation for this album starts and ends there, however.
It was okay his accent was a bit too strong but whatevs. For Tomorrow and Chemical World were my favourites and some of the other ones weren’t too bad either. I liked the ending of Resigned. Pretty good album but got a bit boring after time.
It was aiiight. I really really enjoyed a few tracks but felt pretty neutral toward many others. Pressure on Julian was one of my top tracks. Also really dig the instrumentals on Chemical World.
BRITANNIA POPPIA ÄRSYTTÄÄ!!!... ei oikeesti ärsytä... hieno soundi.... indifferent with the album....
Not too bad, a great variety of sounds, far better than parklife, but in the end, a bit of work to get through all of it.
HL: "For Tomorrow", "Star Shaped", "Blue Jeans", "Chemical World", "Turn it Up" Had to go thru the tracks the next morning to get the highlights, when I got a better appreciation for the melodies & different influences on display (the initial listen left me a bit cold, but I'm not sure why). Pretty sure my overall appreciation of Blur fluctuates with time; I thought their self-titled album was pretty great but I haven't felt a strong urge to return to it since. 3.5 January 8, 2023
Meh
Very British punk 80’s vibe. It has a distinct sound.
Começo do album é bom. O restante achei pretensioso demais
First song feels pretty funky, so far don’t hate it. Laaaalaaalaaalalalaaaaa - I love this part Making my head hurt a little tbh (chemical world)
Chemical water was my favorite but overall not a fan of this band actually
Rock alternativo
Better things are to come I think. It's pleasant enough but I don't think this should be here.
This is the most British album I've listened to in a long time. I can't say there's any song on it I'm excited to hear again. A lot of the recordings sounded like the epitome of recording quality and techniques I was taught in college.
For their second album, and breakout success, Blur made a transparent attempt to revitalise what the Kinks were doing in "Village Green Preservation Society", without quite the same humour or heart. On my first listen, "Modern Life is Rubbish" really didn't do a lot for me. But it's worth persevering to allow the best songs to float to the top of the "oily water": there are some gems here, albeit obscured by a performative indifference. On first hearing this album, my struggle was that it seemed relentless with Damon Albarn's smug and faintly condescending songwriting about stranded twentieth-century men and women trapped in "modern life." Most of the songs boast unorthodox chord progressions which are interesting at times and obnoxious at others, as though Albarn and co. are showing off at the expense of crafting good songs. Still, once I listened more and had got over wondering how each song was going to settle itself, I started to appreciate Blur's craft much more. "For Tomorrow", a last-minute addition to go out as a single, proves irresistible with its deceptively chirpy "la la la" refrain. "Chemical World" is a slow-growing anthem, even if it does sound like the Weasley twins on vocals. "Star Shaped", "Turn It Up" and "Villa Rosie" are my other honourable mentions, though my highlight of the whole album may just be "Intermission" at the end of "Chemical World". Surprising, refreshing and dramatic, it's a perfect interlude. For a second album, "Modern Life is Rubbish" is reasonably assured in taking risks but could perhaps have gone further. Despite the promise of genre experimentation and an expanded orchestra section, all too often we end up reverting to throwaway character studies ("Colin Zeal"), robotic punk-by-the-numbers ("Coping") or tuneless dirge ("Miss America"). The rest of the band are competent but not breathtaking: Graham Coxon proves himself a supple and versatile rhythm guitarist, while Dave Rowntree's drumming is rarely anything but seismic and intense. As a forty minute album, "Modern Life Is Rubbish" could have been truly special. As it is, it's just pretty good- but knowing the heights Albarn would later reach, both with Blur and the far superior Gorillaz, makes it a worthwhile curio.
I did not listened a lot to Blur before and I mainly know them from "song 2". I really like their sound, but this album didn't convince me.
Maybe a bit too poppy, maybe a bit too long, but it’s all quite clever.
Nice to learn some more songs by Blur than just song 2, Not really my favourite songs ever or anything but they do sound pretty fun
Opens really strong and has some great songs. Just a few too many dull moments for it too be 4 stars. Great listen though!
Modern Life Is Rubbish is weird because it's a Blur album without pretty much anything Blur were well-known for. It's alright, good in places and forgettable in others, preferable to lots of stuff we've had but really average in general. Just gets a 3.
Not their best, but not bad. I didn't buy this when it came out, possibly as a result of their rather twattish public personas at the time.
I love Blur. But of all their albums, this is my least favourite. It's the album before Parklife (which is an absolute riot), and a looong way from 13 (which I think is Blur's pinnacle). Still a good listen and cuts along nicely - but nothing outstanding, which is a shame because a lot of Blur's output really is.
Bit dated and a bit gobby, but gets better as it goes on. I didn't appreciate the context to it: despite it being their second album, Blur were far from being on the up at the time. Bit of a drag in places, but a few great tracks. Prime cuts: Star Shaped, Chemical World
Some good musical moments which they have ruined. Maybe on purpose?
Not bad, little bit all over the place
meh
Reminded me of Bowie a little at the start in a weird way. The ending songs had a lot going on. Overall it was fine.
Very blur
Early Brit pop from a bad that is mostly known in North America for one song that isn’t on this album. Musically strong with British influences, lyrically thought worth repeated listen
Buena sucesión de canciones con el característico estilo del pop británico. Ritmos sencillos, estribillos pegadizos y canciones alegres. Muy de escuchar a ratos
Perusjeekkisblurri
It's a pretty tight album, I found myself expecting more from it though. It's got that British edge to it at times and also has some beauty in melodies here and there. The singer has a great voice that is so memorable. I really liked "Star Shaped". Like a lot of their songs, the singers voice has this "mocking" sort of tone but it sounds great in this track. The break in this with the acoustic guitar and synth is one of my favorite parts on the record. I kind of felt like I wanted more from the record, which is surprising given that it's 2 hours and 18 minutes long. Maybe it needed to not be spread so far?
Good ol’ Britpop. Probably the best Blur album. The influences of the Kinks and Small Faces are strong with this one. The album is a bit too long tho. Not bad at all.
All I really know of Blur is WOOOO HOOOO! This album was fine - I did have to get the book out to tell me why I needed to hear it (FYI it didn't convince me).
Ihan ok, mutta en mitenkään erityisesti tykänny. Jos pitäis valita lempparikappaleet niin For tomorrow ja Blue jeans.
Ihan kuunneltava, mutta ei tästä jäänyt ihan kauheesti mieleen, vaikka palasin joihinki kappaleisiin parikin kertaa. Kuuntelin vähän aikaa sitten Blurrilta toisen albumin (Parklife), ja vaikka se oli osin jo ennestään tuttu, niin myös moni niistä aiemmin tuntemattomista kappaleista tuntui jäävän paremmin heti mieleen. Tällä albumilla sellasia kappaleita oli ehkä jossain määrin For Tomorrow, Oily Water ja Turn It Up.
Beatles but bad
3,5
Essential if not a bit superfluous BritPop.
it's good background music. 3.5/5
not bad
Alright
Background noise at work, was decent but didn't pay too much attention to it.
not bad 3
The critics who put this list together must really like blur! Familiar blur chord progressions, quite liked advert but no other standout songs.
Thought it was decent but I enjoy their later albums more.
Not as good as parklife imo but it's ok.
Slow british pop
Þetta kærulausa britpop er alltaf skemmtilegt.
Think I may have brought this back n the day not aged that great tbh
A bit risky calling modern life rubbish when putting an album like this. I mean it's alright but it's also a bit rubbish - sorry, had to do it. I mean it's not impressive and somehow all British alt rock sounds the same. 6/10.
Interesting... this project has exposed me to a lot of bands I've never heard of. These guys are pretty good, not necessarily my jam, and some of the other albums I found better at first listen.
This was really close to the kind of music I like to listen to, but none of the songs really grabbed me. Not a bad album. My favourite song was For Tomorrow.
Jams were good and I liked the overall theme. Relevant in even today's age.
Didnt know Blur had an album without Song 2 on it.
Solid album
i don't want to like it but it's not that bad
Early 90's rejection of American cultural imperialism produced this album when they were essentially Kinks 2.0. The sound of beans on toast, football, tea and copious amounts of booze and drugs. The good songs are really good, the bad just kind of dirft off into the background. Best Tracks: Star Shaped; Chemical World; Turn It Up
The music was good, I think the album could've been shaved down a few songs. 3.5/5
Great album. Standouts: For Tomorrow, Advert, Chemical World/Intermission Many other really good songs on here as well. 3.5/5
"Song 2" was the only Blur song I was familiar with before listening to this album, so my biggest exposure to Damon Albarn's music is his stuff with Gorillaz (which I enjoy quite a bit). I knew this album would be nothing like that stylistically, but I was expecting something similar with regard to creativity. Instead, I got a middle-of-the-road pop rock album. If you'll forgive the pun, the entire album kinda blurred together, with the exception of "Advert" and maybe "Coping." It was fine, but I'm not in a rush to listen to it again. I'll stick with Gorillaz. Giving it a generous three stars.
Seems like a completely average album to me. Why this is a "must listen" album is a total mystery to me.
Indie rock, 1993. Chill record with a really well balanced tracklist which flows perfectly during the whole LP. Unfortunately there isn't a hit "Song 2" (Blur), "Girls & Boys" (Parklife) or "Coffee and TV" (13), but this album is still pleasant and peaceful.
Bri'ish, not a bad listen
Some great rock songs
2quirky4me
Good nostalgia and some songs I remember. Not stacked with classics. Enjoyed For Tomorrow, Villa Rosie.
Why did I find this a bit of a slog.. took me like 3-4 goes to get through and I'm sorry so say I didn't absolutely love it, like I had expected to. Not that I am a huge Blur fan, but naturally like the hits. I didn't really like the singing style in these ones - found it a bit irritating. Some were more fun that others... Luke says its his fave Blur album. Perhaps I don't have the nostalgia of the pop punk hey day
Preferred it to the one before, fewer bangers but more consistent. And I'll repeat what I said for the last album: I very much like Damon Albarn but I have never forgiven Blur as a whole for bullying Nardwuar in his interview with them in 2003. They stole his hat.
Pretty average album. Good, not great nothing very memorable either. Deluxe edition seems overkill for a lot of average tracks. Probably was better than average for the time but didn't age that well. Ok. Not great
Legalzinho e pa
Modern Life is Rubbish is the second album that I have reviewed for Blur for this list, and I've listened to many singles from the band. I generally like Blur and their front man, Damon Albarn. This album was fine. Other than "Turn It Up", the rest of the album was new to me. "Turn It Up" and "Coping" were the two tracks I enjoyed the most. A couple tracks on the album got a "meh" reaction from me, and the rest were "good". This album lands solidly on 3.5 stars, but I'm not sure whether I should round up or down. I'm not sure what would call me back for a second listen.
Not as good as their later albums but clearly a sign of things to come.
Alright sound, but didn’t grab my attention.
Damon can write a good pop tune, but his voice can be a tad wearingover the course of a whole album.
Interesting enough, I guess, but nothing really exceptional. A bit overwrought.
Ces mecs-là se prennent clairement pour les Dexys Midnight Runners et ce n'est pas pour me plaire.
Nouvelle tentative de Robert de sauver sa peau, seulement cela ne prend pas, nous osmmes toujorus à la recherche d'un album 4 étoiles. Je suis actuellement en route vers le domicile de Robert pour l'exécuter publiquement.
Not as good as Parklife Cover art 3/5
3 parce que trop long mais quand même mieux que l'autre album éponyme la
It’s fine. Nothing special.
I'm not even sure what I want to say. It started off with a bang. I really liked For Tomorrow. The rest of the album, however, just catches me off guard. It's not bad, but I can't find myself listening again when I'm getting my face slapped every second half of each song when Blur decides to go really hard on the music. The intermission in Chemical World is insanity. You're starting to feel it but Blur does not let you absorb any of it. They just keep going and have the climax be its end. Genuinely surprised. Highlights: For Tomorrow, Colin Zeal, Sunday Sunday, Villa Rosie
Classic. But I find it draggy at times.
Never heard it in detail before this but tunes out it’s quite nice, I mean, it did not turn into my favorite Blur record but now I like it more
Enjoyable. I see more of their influences having listened to 300 albums of old rock now due to this project.
6/10 Best song - For Tomorrow
nem sei se ouvi
Blur just isn't my favorite. There's some cool songwriting here, but I don't care for their sound.
Always been more of an Oasis man. This album has not changed that
Boring
Jamais écouté du Blur, je les ai toujours mélangé avec oasis J'appréhendais mais je suis agréablement surpris. Très influencé early pink floyd dans les mélodie de voix, c'est pas linéaire, il se passe des choses dans l'instrumentation, les effets, la réalisation, la bass est pas plate elle a sa propre ligne et ne fait pas juste doubler la guit genre. Si je m'attendais à entendre du hautbois?? Pas du tout😆 J'ai catché plus tard dans l'album que c'était le dude de Gorillaz... je ne les mélangerai plus avec oasis. Ah ! pis oily water : karkwa n'écoutais pas juste du radiohead finalement😅 (blague j'aimais bien Karkwa quand même)
Pas mauvais, mais rien de mémorable après ma première écoute. Du bon rock Britannique. J'aime bien la pochette. Probablement que si j'avais eu mi-vingtaine à la sortie de cet album, c'est quelque chose que j'aurais acheté. Je vais sûrement y revenir puisque j'aime bien les projets de Damon Albarn et je ne connaissais pas cet album de Blur.
I guess this is "British Pop Punk?" Not awful, but not much memorable here either. Another middle of the road offering.
Phew! That was long. Good, but too much I think
This album is a bit of mixed bag for me. As already noted, the effort to emulate the Kinks and bands like the Who are obvious. Some really good songs (For Tomorrow, Blue Jeans, Star Shaped) but also some misses. It seems like they are trying to pay homage to 60's/70's pop=rock but also trying to make some inroads into being a solid Brit Pop band. Some good guitar licks and good hooks but still not quite hitting the mark for me. Similar feeling I get from Oasis. 3 out of 5.
Blur draws thematic and melodic inspiration from The Village Green Preservation Society, casting themselves as modern successors to the Kinks' particular backward-looking approach to pop. "For Tomorrow" is a particularly smart homage. While I can appreciate the Ray Davies worship and feeling inspired by his songwriting, this record lands more like a well-studied tribute than personal evolution/expression. I can appreciate Damon Albarn's obvious talent, but I don't often find his work resonates with me on much of an emotional level. This record also does not justify its nearly hourlong run-time. Trim 3-4 of the weakest ones (Resigned, etc) and you would be left with a more impactful set of songs. Fave tracks: For Tomorrow, Star Shaped, Blue Jeans
Pretty good. 3/5
Great, but surprisingly dated already.
Not as good as that other Blur album, but Chemical World is great. 6.5/10.
Blur’s 2nd album. Very Blur. But v average vs Parklife…
Good album with good songs in it, just not all were good and there were 1 or 2 not good songs, still had a couple great ones
Its okay but not my fav
I've really never listened to a full Blur album before. Not bad.
3.5* Favorite songs: Oily Water, Miss America
initial thoughts: feels very nostalgic for I time I can appreciate, but was no present for. they have the psychedelic british pop rock sound on lock fav. off album: blue jeans or chemical world
4th February 2022 Listened throughout the day before going out in the evening to see Jackass with sav and Steve. Enjoyed parts of this, Damon Albarn drawls his way through with some nice nods to the whimsy of some classic UK rock (Who, Queen etc)
Actually kind of good.
“An energised, infectious romp around contemporary little England, by way of an exuberant trawl through a highly-coloured patchwork of its pop past.”
Was ok
Meh.
B side is so much better than A. Like its not even the same album. Still an eh album. Very forgettable
For me a typical britpop record, some uptempo songs which are nice and some whiney ballads. I like other blur albums better
Modern Life Is Rubbish is the second album of brit pop band Blur. Some regard it as their first masterpiece. I'm not one of them. I listened to it over ten times in my life and still can't remember an individual song. So I don't understand why it's on this list. Blur has made better albums that are not on it.
I enjoyed this time with 90s Britpop. It didn't seem to get played in the US then as much as it deserved. I definitely would like to spend more time with Blur, and I think my appreciation would grow. I definitely enjoyed its connection to classic British pop.
bored
Tepid Brit pop
First time listening to Blur proper. Not bad for what it is but definitely too long for its own good.
zaten aantal leuke dingen tussen maar i kvoelde hem niet
Toffe listen maar niet iets waar ik direct terug naar ga komen
This snotty Junior Kinks album is pretty great, you know.
maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but at least we've moved on from indie and Britpop
Very disappointed. Have listened to quite a lot of Blur but mostly Parklife onward. Was surprised on how unremarkable all this sounded. 2.5/5
another enjoyable but not stand out album by Blur, song do get into my head though. 3.3
I think this got an extra star merely in comparison with the last blur album we had (we had one right?) which I remember being not nearly as listenable. For all I know I gave that one three stars too though. 🤷♀️
The first britpop album from Blur, though not their debut album. By the time Leisure came out in 1990, Blur was already late to the niche and dwindling "Baggy" or "Madchester" scene (see: The Stone Roses). As such, Blur's debut did poorly, along with live shows and touring. Down, out, and discouraged, the band regrouped for a new sound and image inspired by the success of Suede. This would be the band's first of many contributions to the brand new genre of britpop. It is explicitly riff-driven pop. Pretty good songs but only the opening track is worth opining about for the most part.
Not my favorite
a blend of sex pistols and the smiths that works well in some places, but falls quite short in others
Very care free
6/10
6/10
Classic rock album, Fav songs Chemical World, Blue Jeans, For Tomorrow
3.5 Stars. Pretty dynamic pop rock record with really nice melodies throughout the album. The songwriting is really strong in this album; the lyrics reflect social satires and commentary on his "hatred" for life, as the title suggests. The album is an hour long, and the second half does fall off a bit for me. Favorite tracks: For Tomorrow, Colin Zeal, Star Shaped, Sunday Sunday, Villa Rosie.
Chemical world is a banger but cant save the whole album
Nicht meine Blut-Phase
I was hoping for a bit more out of this one, especially after my exposure to britpop earlier on the list. It's not bad, and Sunday Sunday was giving me Supergrass vibes(I Should Coco which came out 2 years later than this album), which I really liked. But, overall as an album I found it a bit uninspiring and homogeneous. Might be my favorite album cover though!
Ok. I preferred the great escape
Blur to long but not that bad
Solid
I've been interested in checking out more Blur for a while because British TV shows have led me to believe that the band was much more popular in the UK. I thought it was fine, but didn't love the style.
This is not one of the Blur albums that I had previously listened to start to finish. I knew the singles and they hold up. I enjoyed the tracks that were new to me but, it was a week ago that I listened to this record, and I have already forgotten them all.
listened 3 out of 5 - mix bag
Helt ok
3/5 enormous album, but didn't make the cut.
I liked this marginally more than Parklife, but it has the same issue where parts of it sound like they were intentionally designed to be obnoxious. 6/10
It's hard to explain, but however this album and "Parklife" have just 1 year of difference, this album is far away from the quality that I got listening to "Parklife". The album itself is fun. They have a lot of good experimentation and the songs are fine.
it was okay!!!! i struggle a bit with this side of damon albarns work. but was good!!!
It's good, has essence of gorillaz, no hits on this album tho
3.5
This Blur album didn’t do as much for me as the other. Damn. Still ok though.
This was the album before Blur got good. It's all a bit derivative. A pound shop Ray Davies.
At least double the last album... more like 3.2 - 3.5
Very XTC. Way too long. Decent. 6/10
Brit pop has always been fun to me. Grew up through the explosion, so listened to a lot of Blur pre-Song 2 infamy. This one is alright. Fairly straightforward, nothing pushing the boundaries like Parklife did, which is still one of my favourite Blur tracks. Enjoyable to listen to. Nostalgic for me.
Meandering
Rocks more than I remember, is absolutely bursting with ideas. Def announced them as a major band, albeit an almost alienatingly british band, but is overlong and not as great as their albums eventually get despite having some excellent canonical highlights
Por fin un album dentro de mi círculo de comfort (hace rato que no tocaba uno). 3/5
I’m starting to wonder if there are any good albums on this list.
Eh, this album is okay. Nothing great, nothing terrible. A couple of tracks stand out. My favorite is the second half of Chemical World.
It's ok, but a bit forgettable. Nothing really notable that stands out, but nothing bad about it either, easy to listen to.
Some nice songs but very generic indie. Nothing particularly interesting.
some good tunes on this like for tomorrow, advert, colin zeal, star shaped, and blue jeans... the rest left a bit to be desired though. i'm definitely gonna check out the rest of their discography soon.
Never heard of blur but enjoyed the album. Gave me the shins vibes at points
Creo que está bien, pero no sé, algo no me convence de este estilo de música. :(
Favourite Songs: Pressure on Julian & SundaySunday
prefer later Blur, this is not quite there yet
Super 90s uk alt rock album
Nog zeker niet zo goed als de latere albums en nog teveel jengelende Brit-pop, maar prima aan te horen.
Geweldige stem, maar ze moeten hier hun vorm nog een beetje vinden.
Sounds of a time, some of the lesser known tracks were nice surprises.
Some good stuff. The vocals kind of wear on me a little.
TRAIN! Enjoy the sound in general, but nothing stands out as one of the top 1001 albums to listen to before you die. Maybe this is an example of the Britpop genre in general. Hidden tracks were a cool bit, especially with Intermission being in Baby Driver (which it fit well). Would be happy to have these tracks come on the radio or a shuffle playlist but wouldnt seek them out. 3.5 but rounding down
Signs of things to come but this is no classic
I was really excited to listen to this. Don’t know much about Blur, but always hoped they were a slightly more roc version of the Stone Roses - a band I really like. There are moments here, but wasn’t the supercool nugget I was hoping for. That said, I’ll likely dive more deeply into the Blur catalog when I get a chance.
Always been a big Gorillaz guy, but never got into Blur other "Song 2" of course. I didn't dislike anything here but I also never really fully got into it. Really solid catchy alternative songs, and I liked the fact they made this as a stick it to Americanization album. I could see the heart of that Gorillaz "lets play a bunch of styles and see what sticks," ethos. They had some songs that were a little punk, some straight forward rock, and the circus/vaudeville interstitial tracks. Pretty solid album through and through, but if I want Damon Albarn I'll be sticking to Gorillaz.
eh it's fine. I think I'll be ok only associating Blur with Song 2 and nothing else
I liked it.
Desde que empieza con "For tomorrow" está claro el sonido Blur. También me ha gustado "Colin Zeal". Interesante y lo volveré a escuchar seguro.
Album correct, je vois la tendance brit pop et aussi un peu rock. 3.15
Nothing really stood out, but in general found some good vibes. Just not my scene. Felt very much like Proto Arctic-Monkeys, which makes sense. Not something I'd put on again by choice, but I respect the influence Blur, and Damon Albarn in particular has had especially with projects like Gorillaz after Blur.
Ja cool, aber länger als n Tarantino Film - 3
Blur es de los grupos de britpop que me agradaban, sin embargo en mi opinión mejoraron muchísimo cuando se alejaron del estilo y comenzaron a hacer música en otros estilos e incluso a experimentar (incluso sin tomar en cuenta que todo lo que Damon Albarn hizo en Blur palidece comparado a todo lo que subió al hacer Gorillaz). Incluso de los discos francos de britpop que tienen Parklife es el que se me hace mucho superior al resto y que, seguramente, se encuentra en esta lista. Esto me lleva a cierta reflexión sobre esos sesgos raros de esta lista en cuanto a que, o va a haber demasiados discos de Blur, o se va a centrar en poner algún par centrados a britpop y se va a ignorar cosas como el disco 13 o Think Tank que son mucho más interesantes. Hablando de este disco propiamente, creo es un disco que pocas personas recuerdan realmente (de entrada yo no recordaba el 80% de las canciones a pesar de haberlo tenido en algún momento en mis listas hace años). Nos presenta un pop rock medio psicodélico que hay que decirlo y es muy notorio... es básicamente una copia del sonido de los Kinks. En cuanto a letras lamentándose de la vida moderna cual buen britpop, hablando en varias canciones de esos puntos y costumbres hartamente británicos que a veces cuadran y uno se puede relacionar y a veces simplemente son demasiado locales. En realidad siento que el disco no tiene mucho sobresaliente, pero sí es agradable de escuchar y las canciones terminan siendo buenas. Lo que también es muy cierto es que con una duración de una hora se siente un poco largo y seguro que se podía recortar digamos al menos a 40-45 y se sentiría mucho mejor. Muy buen disco pero en mi opinión para nada un clásico como para estar aquí.
strange that this made the list. i didnt recognise any songs
Agradable escuchar de nuevo tan rápido Britpop y del bueno, no es ni por asomo el mejor disco de Blur pero ya se comienza a notar el cambio que van a tener. Damon Albarn tuvo que evolucionar mucho durante Blur para llegar a crear lo que es Gorillaz
Decent Album, Very 90's and while not jaw dropping by any means it was an easy listening album and i listened to both cds and thought they were okay
Mix between chill cruising rock music and psychedelic sounding jams. Overall pretty happy and positive vibes.
It was no Song #2, but I enjoyed parts of it
Not too bad. The album is consistently decent throughout, with a few worthwhile standouts, including the album's opener, 'For Tomorrow'. That said, I wouldn't be listening to this album again anytime soon.
3.5; great 90s alt rock, bit of psych in there. good fun
British Pop? Mir gefällt der Gesang nicht. Nicht die Qualität, sondern die Energie. Britischer Humor in musikalischer Form? Dafür hör ich wahrscheinlich keine Musik und bin wahrscheinlich gerade (wenn überhaupt irgendwann) nicht in der Stimmung. Ich hör später nochmal weiter. Nee, immer noch abgetan. Musikalisch weiterhin gut, aber der Flair der Stimmen stört mich.
Album was good. Really liked the guitar (electric guitar?) riff on Pressure on Julian.
Decent album, starts out very strong the first third or quarter but then slows down and ends up being 15-20 minutes too long
great piece of 90s britpop, little bit longwinded though but the highlights are great
Pretty decent Britpop album, "Star Shaped" is very catchy but some of the songs end up being just okay
eh
As said previously, I think my mood influences how receptive I am to listening. Blur wouldn't be my choice of band but this album may grow on me if I were to give it a couple of plays. 2.9/5
A truer sentence has never been uttered since
Not a huge Damon albarn fan but this one was heavy enough that I was digging it at times
Nifty tunes. I liked the guitar work and the casual feel of it all. 3.5
I thought this album was perfectly fine. It did seem pretty derivative of some other British rock bands I've heard before. I liked how the album was themed and I thought the lyrics were pretty clever.
neat album, but honestly, it was a blur
I've heard some later blur so this could be interesting. Thoughts: it's really.... English? Like they seem determined to capture the full spectrum of "British rock sounds" from song to song. Some of it sounds beatles-y or maybe the kinks, some queen, the Smiths introspective kinda style, couple of quaint interlude type arrangements from English prog, alt rock like Oasis made huge a few years later, etc. And the lyrics/vocals are hamming it up. It's not too bad though, can't fault the songwriting. Honestly this is a nice one-off listen but it's a bit too English for me to listen to again, it reminds me of summers where you need a jacket. 3/5.
It's possible to hear in this album the craziness present in the modern world (specially in "Oily Water" and "Chemical World").
These guys make Oasis and The Verve sound revolutionary in comparison. Really bad vocals, forgettable songs, and vanilla arrangements combine for a poor listening experience. Modern life may be rubbish, but these guys are bollocks. Low 2/5
Not rubbish, but not that great either.
The singing is rubbish
Not feeling this one at all
I like their later albums, but this one just never really hits for me.
one christmas (years ago) i was so bored that i listened through blur's entire discography and i was not super impressed. this album feels, idk, a bit bloated? the best thing to come of it might be the "modern life is rubbish" tshirts. it's fine. it's just not for me. i'm sure it was a great experience if you were english in the 90s.
I put this on in the background while working around the house. It plays very long but strangely nothing really got my attention too much, and I didn’t hear anything so bad that i wanted to be over either. If anything, i kind of liked the last track. 2.5/5
I always want to like these guys more than what ends up happening. Same situation here. The listening starts out with good intentions, only to end up being disappointed. I can get behind their conscious choice to go all classic Brit/Kinks feel, but it kinda stops there. The album plays way too long, and I don’t remember a single song.
Apparently I know very little about blur. I think I wanted to like this more than I did but found it kind of boring and at times annoying. Pressure on Julian was not enjoyable. I struggled to get through the album and had to do it in multiple sittings. Didn’t feel like something I’d go back to, so rounding down for those reasons. 2.5
I always preferred Oasis as a kid, and it's good to know I still find Blur comparatively boring.
gorillaz > blur
In my view far behind Oasis and the rest of the British pop rockers.
brutal lang & nicht mit memorable. gibt paar songs die gut sind aber all in all nicht meine. varianz sehr hoch tho
Suitable title, poor man's Village Green or Arthur
First three songs are pretty good but this fourth one is quite grating and annoying i cant lie. It's quite basic British pop music i cant lie. Ok chemical world kinda hits. Yep this song is really freaking good. oily water is nice and funky. Boi coping like broootal black pill 💀 amirite guys? Overall a pretty solid albums with good parts but also lots of boring songs which drag down the albums overall quality.
do the makers of this really like british people or something... goofy i've already heard enough britpop to last my whole life
I am getting tired of British rock on this list, but I still decided to give this one a fair shot. Unfortunately, they do nothing that interests me or sets them apart from all the other British rockers here. I'm not too picky and as long as the album entertains me, I will come back to it. Modern Life is Rubbish is just too bland for me to want to revisit. On the bright side, nothing here is too offensive on the ears.
Weirdly have never heard this, and it's not quite what I expected: ostentatiously British, noisy, and unfocused... I didn't finish listening.
Etherial, lush in parts. I guess there's someone for everyone out there. So there is that. Favourite track: Miss America
p716. 1993. 2 stars. The alternative to Oasis's 90s revival of Brit rock, with an infusion of ideas and tunes stolen from The Kinks and The Jam. It's OK, but very derivative. Multiple points deducted for Damon Albarn - can't stand his voice, and at the end of the day he's an ex-art school middle class twat from Colchester, pretending to be a working class cockney. Poor life choice.
Definitely not what I was expecting given what "Song 2" sounds like. Joke's on me I guess since I've now learned that that song was meant as a more of a parody. I have to say that this album wasn't great. Nothing stood out and it had it's weird moments.
Näh
There's nothing at all wrong with this album, but I find myself totally bored and stopping after 3 songs. It took me forever to run through it once, and I don't see myself getting through a second time to figure out what is going on. I like plenty of Damon Albarn's music, so I can't really explain it.
Tätä ei oo tullut kuunneltua, Blurin tämän jälkeistä tuotantoa kyllä. Tämä oli hivenen tylsä levy biisi materiaaliltaan. Ei jäänyt mikään biisi mieleen.
Kui album hakkas, siis ma arvasin, et kuulan Gabrieli-aegset Genesisi. Aga see polnud üldse nii hea. Igasugust veidrust on siin plaadil ja enamik sellest ei istu. Mul on raske sellele isegi 3 anda, sest mulle tõesti ei jäänud midagi siit kõrvu. Võibolla 90ndate inimestele selline kõla istus, sest see oli uudne. Aga mulle tundub see pigem mõttetu. 2.4/5
Honestly I might not even finish this one today, it drags a bit. I love the album art but that's about all I do like about this album, not as memorable as the one I got before from them, so perhaps 2 stars here, not complete garbage either
I do not get the hype over this band from this list maker. My list would not have any of their albums.
<The obligatory diatribe about Robert Dimery putting really mid britpop from the '90s on the list by default>
Boring
There is nothing on this album that makes me want to listen to more Blur
The album started off pretty good... but then the britpop reared it's ugly head. And don't get me wrong, it's pretty good britpop, but "good britpop" is also an oxymoron. So because of the britpop, and the sheer length of the album, I was feeling quite... resigned... at the end.
If this album, not even Blur's best Britpop sounding album, is on this list then I'm certain that this won't be the last time I hear them in 1001
it's okay
Første gang jeg virkelig har syntes de lyder som Oasis. Ikke et kompliment
Lidt banger-flad imo
This album is also a bit rubbish.
Wow, long and boring. I thought I would love it after the first song, but alas