Blur

This album was a true two-outcome hitter. Grand slams, or swinging so hard and missing you tear the muscle fibers from your bones as you shred whatever ligaments and tendons used to exist in peaceful harmony there. And no I’m not just talking about “Song 2”.

I was pleasantly surprised by this album. I assumed it was going to be all punk like ‘Song 2’, but it was Beattle-esque in my opinion.

One amazing song

That whole album was a blur in my ears!!! Not digging it at all...

Recognizable hits Circa Fifa 07 soundtrack has one of these songs, track #2 I think 🤔 It’s alright… again how are these top 1001 ? Biased af

Fun alternative rock from…..? 🥁 🥁 🥁 England! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🙄 They’re fun to listen to—fun energy. Kind of like the Pixies but English …. Their famous song 2.0 was a big hit at the time and rivaled Oasis in fandom and such… I remember watching a Netflix docu about how that song upended Oasis’s popularity and corner on the alternative scene. 🤷🏻‍♂️ I’d come back to this …eventually.

3.5 last track is a nice surprise

This album rules. Blur rules. Fun and cool and rock and roll.

I lived this album when it first came out. Although I've listened to my favourite tracks from it since, I've not listened to the whole things through. I listened to it in its entirety several times yesterday and reminded myself what a masterpiece it is!

Pulling my teeth

A couple good songs. Mostly not enjoyable though.

Meh. Didn't do much for me outside of the couple of classics on this. The deeper cuts felt very generic to me. Wasn't offensive either, though. Solid 3. Would not buy.

An interesting blend of alt pop, sensibilities, and unconventional creativity. I pressed play expecting to hear just another bland Offspring type of band. Instead, I heard elements of the Kinks, Bowie, and the Velvet Underground. A pleasant surprise.

zweite Hälfte hat mich nicht so abgeholt

It was okay. Good background music for life.

I somehow missed these guys during their heyday. Not bad.

I thought the first few songs were great and got my hopes up that this would be my first high rating, but then I got a bit bored and some songs I really hated (Country Sad Ballad Man and Essex Dogs).

i liked the second half better than the first.

i love when male singers r whiny and i cant tell what the hell theyre saying.

oasis did it better

pretty decent but nothing that blew me away, prob wouldn’t seek it out

Good album. You can hear the future Gorillaz poking their heads up occasionally

Maybe their 5th best album after Great Escape, Parklife, 13, and Think Tank.

Got bored after Song 2

Kinda 😴

I'm happy Blur chose to change their sound and influences to create something different. Similar to how Ratatat and LCD Soundsystem feed both into and out of Justice (I'm upping Justice's Cross [album 186] rating to 3.5), Pavement had a profound affect on Blur's sound as things got a bit looser and the band made some changes. Song 2 obviously stands out as one of those songs everyone knows but can't put a finger on. This definitely begins to bridge the original Blur content with what will eventually become the Gorillaz. 3.5

Bloated, but there is a lot of good alt rock here. Too bad they didn’t know what to cut.

Parklife was my first album on this project and I had never heard of Blur before but I really liked it. It was so fun. I get they were trying to get in on the grunge sound with this album but I didn't like it

So much better then Oasis

More sad boi music but song 2 slaps

The first two songs were alright. Rest of the album not so much.

i got what i expected from this one. doesn‘t mean i didn‘t like it, but i‘m not suprised

Look, it’s not that I don’t get it, I just genuinely do not like it.

I unironically love albums that can't decide what genre they are.

Didn't know the album but have heard Song2 a million times. So expectation was high, expected more of such. But unfortunately no, the others are not bad but different. It could have been a 5 with more Song2-songs but the rest is simply not special.

Blur always seemed like nondescript background music back in the 90s. Still hit me that way today, 2 + decades later.

Of course Song 2 is a classic, that's for sure and maybe the greatest song of the album, even tho there are some other songs that sound great but it didn't exactly shocked me. It's a cool album.

Olha achei mais ou menos. Tem umas faixas boas mais o álbum todo não me encantou não. Sei lá não curti muito.

Has a few hits and the band developed later to make more impact

Two good songs, nothing else.

Better than Modern Life in Rubbish but still boring. Plus, out of 1,001 albums, I got 2 Blur albums in 3 weeks, even more boring.

Great album. If you don't like it, maybe you should get your head checked

Some excellent tracks including a foray into some heavier American influences. Though this includes some bangers, they fail to carry the weight of an uneven collection of songs.

A well crafted album that is well worth a listen. However, there aren't any good singles that stand out during its play. It's not their finest work as it leaves me wanting to listen to other better Blur albums but it does scratch an itch after a full play through.

Great album. A definite insight to the world of albarn.

This is a great album. Heavier Blur, a grungy feel, great songwriting. The guitar playing is brilliant, with some trippy sounds that punctuate the songs perfectlly, making this arty as well as poppy and grungy. This is the sound of a successful band pushing the envelope in a new direction and sounding even better for it. The first 'side' is better than the second, ie. up to and including Death of a Party is all excellent. After that, it gets a bit flabby (Their subsequent album, '13', is more complete and has no flab at all.) Nonetheless, it's a great album, the first bunch of songs. (It might just be the order of the songs that makes it feel like it loses the plot a bit. Essex Dogs is an excellent way to finish, but the ones before drag a little.)

Några stora hits men jag tycker ändå att plattan inte håller fullt ut.

As meh as it was in 7th grade.

Ihan jees, mutta Gorillaz on parempi

Good album, enjoyed listening to it.

not a fan of blur

Wooooooo-hooooo! Overall: 6/10

Decent rock album. Enjoyed more than just Song #2. 3.5*

This was an album that closed the door on britpop as everyone came to think of it at the time. Whether you liked Brit Pop or not? There was no escaping the impact of this album. It closed the book on an entire genre. I truely that if Blur didn’t do this album then Radiohead doesn’t do ok computer.

Ультрахит Song 2. Как бы шифт от бритпоп к Америке? Хорошие песни в начале, сомнительные в конце. Лучшая песня - Song 2 (очень хотелось бы не быть нормис, что называется, но никак не получается!)

I enjoyed this, fun guitar pop. Could trim three songs tho for runtime.

Some Beatles and Bowie influence

Brit pop? Yay. Switched up stretched Britpop? Yep. I’m in.

hai okay ending my day with this album i guess... two songs in i'm enjoying it so far. but those are also the most popular songs on the album so i'm not sure how good the others are. i don't know how to feel about this album. i feel like it could be better but it could also be way way worse. stand out song: death of a party & strange news from another star. deep fucking lyrics. and i like the chords on strange news from another star its really good. actually i like strange news from another star a million times more. very good song. anyways i don't like the vocals but i like the music. thank you!

Albums like these make me wish I had a car so that I can drive down to the beach jamming to these

3.5

4.0

Some songs stood out more than others (Song 2, On Your Own) but overall the album was fine. Not sure if I'd re-listen to it.

Play FIFA Song...

Standard 90s throwback

test

There's some ok songs but most were not very good to my ears

I tried a couple of times to get through this album but I couldn’t do it.

Reminds me of High School

So we are putting one-hit-wonders on the list now? Oh wait, the are from London... Anyway, I actually enjoyed this album more then I though I would, but probably won't listen to again.

Song 2. Reat of music. I like both versions of Blur.

Pois a verade typical indie disco, sen máis non volvería escoitar

It's okay. I liked their Brit pop better but I'm old.

Uff, buena buenaaa 7/10 Me gustó la verdad, pero en fin, es que este señor es pa rezarle todos los días y darle las gracias por crear Gorillaz🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️

consiguió sacar mi lado alternativa emo soy indie y escucho música que tú nunca escucharías. lo volvería a escuchar. 7/10. canción fav: you are so great (porque además de alternativo, soy un romántico)

Great album, always love listening to this one.

vocals are awful. Sounds like these "musicians" are playing different songs at the same time; no flow, no balance, nothing cohesive in what I was willing to listen to. There isn't a Zero Star rating so I guess I'll have to go with 1 Star sadly

Not my favorite blur album, but there's a couple of gems.

Great album!

Interesting, not fully convincing. I like some of the songs very much tho

Very cool album overall. Would listen again for sure.

Loved the songs and much more refined then modern life is rubbish, cheers Damon

Receiving a 2nd blur album in under a week by this system kind of turned me off. They were a mediocre band that I guess is important as one member went on to the Gorillaz but this was a so-so album and not an all time great.

Super, vor allem der Beginn!

Nice.

So many solid amazing tunes on one record. Nice.

One song was good, rest was not my cup of tea

- Great bright guitar tone, catchy riffs - Distinct vocals - Good lyricism, even if it can become simple at times - Amazing opening track, followed by iconic lead single 'Song 2' - Strongly emotional ballads - Good variety of upbeat to mellow tracks - Lots of replay value, really fun to listen to - Great drums and bass instrumentation - Upbeat Brit-pop, 'summer' feeling - Iconic singles - Can be very experimental at times, not as poppy as some of their other work - I found myself not paying attention to the individual instruments, instead enjoying the track as a whole - This album already has a legacy which speaks for its greatness, containing Blur's most popular song and serving as one of the defining albums of the Brit-pop genre, making Blur a household name, partly because of their rivalry with the other mainstream Brit-pop band Oasis. However, I found myself enjoying this album much more than any of Oasis'. The upbeat guitar style, combined with Damon's iconic vocal style and lyricism, mixed with just enough experimental work to make this album really stand out in its space creates a truly enjoyable listening experience, something which I found myself replaying not just for the review - but out of enjoyment.

It was interesting. The lead singer has a very distinct voice. All in all not a bad album.

Not for me

El homónimo de Blur es un LP que hasta el día de hoy se escucha sumamente fresco. La mezcla entre Britpop y música alternativa estadounidense, fuertemente influenciada por la propuesta de los californianos Pavement, crea un disco radicalmente diferente al resto de la discografía de la banda de Albarn y Cox. En ocasiones denso, y en otras sumamente divertido, este es el primer trabajo que cimentó a Blur como una banda de culto, en comparación a sus enemigos Oasis, quienes solo alcanzaron el estatus de estrellas de rock de estadio.

Fine album. Not sure why it’s one of the 1001 to listen to though.

Classique de Blur, excellent album.

Half the songs are awesome. The other half are too much.

This was not my jam today. I don't mind Blur in general, but turned this album off just a few songs in.

Допао ми се 8/10

Not the best Blur album but some great tunes

Too long

Very grunge-like influenced mixed with Britpop and some electronic effects. Sounds very 90's. Next to Song 2, Beetlebum is the most stand-out track.

Song 2 goes hard but that might just be because it’s familiar to me. I found it an in between land of BritPop and Grunge that didn’t quite work for me.

Good album song 2 was familiar

I enjoyed the music and was glad to familiarize myself with some Blur songs other than Song 2, the only one that got any airplay

absolute banger

automatic 5 stars for having song 2 on this album

Did not like

Too front loaded There is a 5 version of this album hidden within this. Too long, middle sucks but On Your Own is soo good Scrapes a 4

Erstaunlich wie viel Einschlage die Stones und die Beatles auch hier haben. Plus: Radiohead

song 2 is the worst track on the record

Never heard of these guys before. I looked them up and followed the lyrics. Interesting, but won't be on my playlist.

Yikes

I liked listening to this album and really should have checked them out long ago. Like everyone in the entire world, I only knew of Song 2 and that's rather unfortunate because its not even the best song on this album. Death of a Party for the win. Will revisit.

I definitely dig brit pop and shoegaze. As one of the flagship bands I'm a big fan off Blur. Love their overall discography but in a vacuum none of their albums blow me away. Blur self titled is a solid entry, but at 14 songs and 56 mins is a little threadbare by the end. 3.0 stars would gaze again

In view of the current post-punk revival, this album sounds surprisingly modern

Genre: Rock Instruments: 3/5 Modern Translation: 3/5 Dance Potential: 1/5 Listening Location: during data analysis and commute to work Favourite Song: none Made me feel: was too distracted by the album to work while listening. Found it too “yelly” and left me feeling like I had pent-up energy to use when I was done.

quite forgettable you could say it was a blur

Background music

Moments of brilliance but nothing too special. Really liked the heaviness and interesting sonic quality splattered across the album. Didn't so much love the insincerity in the lyrics. Self-pitying super-successful rock stars has always been a sore spot for me and I think there is a bit of that here, albeit more abstract than Bon Jovi, Metallica or Bob Seger. All in all though an enjoyable listen if not slightly contrived, like most of Blur's stuff, but well executed.

album has a good variety of songs; creative

i am incredibly grateful for blur because of their contribution to the music world in the form of "song 2," which by itself is fine but covered by big time rush for the absolute banger that is "windows down". but as for the album, it's overdone britpop, the vocals are uninteresting, the music itself is unoriginal. why are we here?

In terms of the over-saturation of Britpop on this project, this was better than a lot of it has been. But even this grew old as the album went on. I liked the diverse, gritty, lo-fi sound that is present here. Parts of the album seemed clearly inspired by 90s Britpop kings such as Oasis, whereas other parts of the album definitely seemed to pave a unique path. Each song was pretty unique in comparison to the others, too. So yeah, in any case, I thought this was an okay album.

To me Blur is a greatest hits band. They’re good and do the trick for a lot of people but they’re too much of a student band. I like Damon a lot, especially his work outside of Blur. I like Graham a lot, his solo work is fantastic. To say this is an album I have to hear before I die than I’m assuming so where down the line I’m going to have to hear Parklife and Modern Life Is Rubbish as well because they blow this album out of that giant pond between America and England. I have to assume this album is on here to appeal to Americans without passing an album from Blur. Beetlebum is amazing. For me this album is solid but far from their best effort and certainly not something I would push on anyone to listen to before they leave Earth. 4/10 ⭐️⭐️

Great

i forgot that Damon Albarn is the frontman for Blur. i am actually usually a huge fan of his music, but he gets 1 star because of the shady shit he said about Taylor Swift. i will only pirate his music from now on.

"Song 2" sehr guter Track. Macht spaß. Rest des Albums war auch nicht schlecht, aber kein Track, der noch richtig hervor sticht.

Great BritPop, the originators. 4 stars.

Undeniably Blur - great riffs, interesting lyrics, eclectic mix of eccentric songs... Great to hear and one that's already in the collection

Yyy

Definitely prefer their Britpop sound but this is a worthwhile listen. I recognize Song 2 from Lego Rock Band lmao

An unfriendly and slightly strange album; the Pavement influence is pretty clear. It’s interesting to see their style filtered through more of an indie rock approach, but I don’t know if I enjoy it too much. Opens really strong before getting hazy and kinda boring. Best song: Beetlebum

Wow, each track in this album is a banger. Blur really went all out for their eponymous album.

90s Britrock, the one song everyone knows stands out (Song 2, they're not exactly waxing poetic with titles here), the rest is all album filler noise.

listened - 2:10

Everything but "song 2" feels like album filler. Would I dig this album out, just to hear "song 2" for two minutes and two seconds? Probably not.

One of those bands that I immediately recognized the name but couldn’t recall their music. Enjoyed some songs. Others I could have done without… like the last one. What was that? Might listen to it again someday…. But probably won’t.

solid background noise? could i write poetry to this? n

One good song. The rest was okay-ish at best.

Insert Oasis joke here

Blur is more of a greatest hits band for me, but this is still a solid album.

Touches of Beatles, The Fall, Bowie, and even Pulp. And you can hear the beginning of Gorrilaz. The MOR riff, the You're so Great vocal melody, and "Good Morning Lethargy" have been bouncing through my head for almost 30 years.

Blur had a battle with everyone in the 90's. Whilst Oasis did their thing without care, Blur wanted to win over the critics and the fans. No doubt for me that they were the better band with a greater range, as evidenced by this banger. Beetlebum sets the scene for some classic 90s alternative music, Song II is throw away hit but there is depth in the rest of the album. Can't believe Gorrillaz are the better regarded band for some - Blur is where it's at.

Purty good.

This was pretty good and it has the woohoo song. Still, there’s something about it that kept me from fully getting into it. Maybe I’m just exhausted from all the Brit pop so I’m not going to hold that against it too much. Also really liked You’re So Great. Torn but I’ll go with a light 4.

Had vaguely heard of them but never listened before. Solid rock album I’d probably listen to again

Better than I expected. Had no idea that the name of the second song (which I knew) was Song #2. Still think Oasis is the much better band of these 2!

I get why Blur was considered more tenintellectual/sophisticated than Oasis after listening to this album. However, there were very few memorable Melodie’s. It’s clearly based in rock tradition but brings in more contemporary sounds (like in “Death of A Party”). I Loved the beginning of “On Your Own”. “Theme From Retro” reminds me of “I want you (she’s so heavy)”. The final track was a slog to get through.

Meh - inte särskilt intressant åt något håll egentligen.

I sure am glad that hour of my music listening is over 👎

Not reaching the heights of Parklife, but even heroin-infused versions Albarn and Coxon are pretty damn good.

While still sounding rather British, Blur distances themselves from the UK and glances toward the US. A bold move that doesn’t quite pay off.

A couple great songs at the beginning, then it kind of trails off into mediocrity.

"Song 2" is iconic but there's some other hits on it like "Look Inside America". Though it was pretty forgettable honestly but didn't mind it.

This went downhill fast. I knew the first two songs and they weren't too bad after a long time since I last heard them. Everything else sucked and just dragged on and on until I lost any waning interest I ever had. I think my take away from this album was "affected". It sounded like a band who had lost any direction they might have once had and were desperately trying to reinvent themselves as alt-rock indie music, but just going through the motions and pretending to be something they definitely never were. Fake music that I didn't enjoy in the slightest. After I read that the band did Song 2 as a joke that went wrong, it dawned on me that the one track I actually half-enjoyed was also fake.

Actually owned this one back in the day. Not perfect, but still pretty great. Damon Albarn is still a dreamboat.

3.6

A little more melancholy than their earlier albums, and Britpop in general. Sometimes that works, like Death of a Party, and sometimes it doesn’t, like I’m Just a Killer for Your Love. A couple of great upbeat songs sprinkled in (Beetlebum, On Your Own). And a cutting take on American culture from the Brits, Look Inside America. Song 2 is there also, woohoo.

Listened to this while playing Paperback Adventures with my partner. We lost. Well, I knew one song on this album...but if you grew up when I did, it would be impossible not to know Song 2. So how was the rest of the album? Meh. It kinda overstayed its welcome a bit.

It’s pretty clear that Blur was trying to capture the alt-rock audience with a harder-driving sound, but it leads to a disjointed album. Song 2 is a good example and sounds like the last days of all-day music videos on MTV.

Iets te experiementele Indie muziek. Beetlebum en Song 2 prima nummers.

By no means the best Blur album, the change in style to appeal to American audiences is not an improvement to my ear, though perhaps better than just releasing the same old stuff I suppose

Eh

Some decent songs, some not-so-decent songs. I appreciate the melodic variety here, but it can be a bit too overblown for me.

Disappointed with this one. Expected a lot more, not really worth listening to past second song (song 2)

I remember buying this from Sanity Cannon Hill after seeing it had Song 2 on it and then happily discovering that Beetlebum was an absolute tune as well - it verges on perfection as a car sing along. Unfortunately I never really connected with the rest of the album and nothing changed after these most recent couple of listens. I also misjudged where this fell in their discography - I thought for sure it was one of their first releases so it was weird to hear that it's actually their fifth. To me it makes way more sense as pre-Parklife release. The Blur/Oasis rivalry is still such an interesting phenomenon - despite my lack of connection with these tracks I still find it difficult to fathom why or how anyone could claim Oasis as superior; at least Blur always kept things innovative (if somewhat challenging) and varied in sound and style. Five stars for Song 2.

Just an incredible album, second best of them for me, right after The Great Escape

This was my first exposure beyond Song 2, and I enjoyed myself. Roughly half the songs are too noisy / dissonant for me, but the ones that don't have weird buzzing in the background are exactly my shit. Good individual songs, even if the album as a whole isn't entirely for me.

In the emo alt rock BritPop 90s war, Oasis is the clear winner. This was ok though.

Prior to today, I think the only Blur song I had heard before was Song 2. There has been quite a few Gorillaz songs that I really like, so I was pretty excited to finally check out Blur's music. Overall I quite enjoyed this, and I will probably check out some more of Blur's music after this.

1. beetlebum - 0 2. zong 2 - 3 3. country zad - 1.5 4. mor - 1 5. on your ouun - 0 6. theme from retro - 0 7. youre zo great - 1.5 8. death of a party - 1.5 9. chineze bombz - 1 10. im juzt a killer - 1.5 11. look inzide america - 1 12. ztrange neuuz - 1 13. moving on - 0 14. ezzez dogz - 1

Bit of a Blur to be honest. I like how you can hear Damon gearing up for the Gorillaz stuff in this one.

Quirky and very British and 90's. Song 2 is ok, but very much overplayed. Lyrically quite strong but I think Leisure is a much better album.

Thoughts before listening: I never really paid much attention to the brit pop bands of the 90s even those that got a lot of press such as Blur. I think this album has Song 2 on it which is a great 90s alt rock single, but most of this album will be new to me. I generally like what I've heard from Blur so I'm sure I'll enjoy this. Review: So this also has Beetlebum on it....and I do love that song. That plus Song 2 make for a pretty great and iconic 90s 1 - 2 punch to start the album out. I am not hearing much else that is drawing me in though. It is all perfectly fine alt-rock, but I don't really get the hype. I am sure if I listened to Blur back in the day I would have massive nostalgia for this album (like I did with the Offspring), but without that reference point this is coming up a bit flat for me. There are some songs that I enjoy like Country Sad Ballad Man, MOR, On Your Own, and the punk sounding Chinese Bombs, but nothing that reaches the heights of those first 2 songs. Those will be the only ones going on the playlist.

Good

Ah Damon thanks!

song # 2 needs to die.

i feel like. there's some songs on here i realized i Really enjoy... i've listened to this album before but never that attentively and i feel like the reason is because the back half starts to kinda drag. the good parts are great, but the rest of it kinda ... well... blurs together... into a low-fi drone with a british guy saying something to me. and that's okay.

This album surprised me! I think one of Blur's strengths are that they're great at drawing clear inspiration from other artists and still maintaining a clear voice. Half the songs on this album made me think, "Oh hold on, this sounds just like _____", but those songs were still very strong on their own. I think that's hard to do! A lot of surprising influences in this one but man, I don't think a single song fell flat! I already really like Blur on a song-by-song basis but I was expecting to only like about half of these (including the ones I already knew and love, Beetlebum and Song 2). But yeah, I'll definitely continue spending time with this album in the future. Some of these really blew me away, like "Theme From Retro" (which really sounded like something off of Blondie's Automerican). A strong 4 for me!

Awesome 90s alternative rock. This flew under my radar but there are a handful of songs I recognized. Just a good combination of angst and rock.

The album starts off promising with some energetic songs including that, Song 2, which I didn't realize was by Blur. You hear that song at pretty much every sporting event as a way of pumping up fans and it's a good solid song. I must admit beyond the first handful of songs, it becomes a blur (sorry!) and loses it's stream towards the end and was a bit of a struggle to get through. Otherwise, a decent listen and apart from a few songs I probably won't be spinning this often.

Unlike the famous Father Ted sketch... I've always liked Blur and Oaisis. I really liked a lot of the guitar work on this album, it was a bit less of a brit pop endeavour for Blur... but it didn't really pull it off for me, so I found this album very middle of the road, nothing stand out.

It gets 4 for Song 2, the rest is decent but not that noteworthy.

very good album i vibed the whole way through

Even though I recognized one song (Song 2), it’s not a song that I’d at as a favorite and the rest of the album isn’t something I’d consider re-listening to.

Song 2 is an all timer but the rest of the album is ok

My mates who did albums were all Team Oasis. The first two tracks are pretty stella hits. I don't think I've ever heard the rest of the album. And I quite like Blur. It's feels a lot more Coxon. It's fuzzier and grimier than you'd expect.

I have to revisit this

1. Beetlebum - instantly forgettable. 2. Song 2. Yeah! Classic quiet-loud grunge format, nonsense lyrics, all about the vibe, too short and classic because of that. 3. Country Sad Ballad Man. Slow string scrape at the beginning reminiscent of a front porch hammock. Silly falsetto vocal amusing. Goes to a very silly place. Fun. 4. M.O.R. Call and harmony response - nice bit of borrowing from Beach Boys/Motown/Do-wap. Good dance track. 5. On Your Own. Filler. 6. Theme from Retro - half-baked idea, could be a song one day. 7. You're So Great. Acoustic cardigan-swinger that goes heavy, nice. 8. Death of a Party - can hear Gorillaz coming in this one. 9. Chinese Bombs - BOSH! Proper punk track. 10. I'm Just a Killer for your Love. I'm a sucker for this head-nodding, foot tapping tempo. Not a fan of the one-note bass in this track. Nice bit of wah in the interlude. 11. Look Inside America. reminiscent of House in the Country. 12. Strange News from Another Star. Nice vibe, bit Bowie - Cold-War Generation blues. 13. Movin' On.Good ol' Rock track - could be Stones. Funky ending. 14. Essex Dogs. Artsy Fartsy. Soundtrack track - not an album track. Filler. Faves: 2, 7 & 12. I'll give it a 3, but I mean 3.5

This is a fantastic album for the first eight tracks! But I don't really care for the last six tracks apart from "Movin On". Some Killer, some filler, then! Full disclosure: I've listened to this plenty before so just skimmed through the tracks. The best Blur album, if anyone is interested, is "Modern Life is Rubbish" which is ALL killer and, if you include "Pop Scene" on the extended version, some extra killer too.

Not sure why this one passed me by at the time. Interesting change in direction. Knew the hits off this album already (are all Blur hits the ones where they are sarcastic or a comedy take on another genre of song) but the rest is a good mix of Pavement inspired sound mixed with Albarn’s interesting music craft. Would go back to and listen again.

Like wearing a Swatch watch in the wrong decade

Oh hey its that gorillaz guy

Hmmmm questionable. Bit too much for me. definitely not my style oops. Some songs are okay but medium. Most bearable song: Theme From the Retro

It was okay. Beetlebum was kinda interesting, Song no 2. Is a song you've heard everywhere before in short bursts and listening to it for a longer time is... not much better.

Love a bit of Blur. While it might not have as many catchy hits as some of the others, with exception of The Banger that is song 2, it has more depth. It's a really good album and given the lack of nuance in the scoring system, vs other things I've given a 4 to, this gets a...

Still listen to a couple of these today - but the rest of it does feel a bit dated to be fair. Perfect time capsule of that era though.

I surprisingly enjoyed listening to this more than I thought I would. A few interesting tracks.

The average Blur album, couple of good tunes, and a few more I instantly forgot.

Not as good as Parklife, The Great Escape or 13, but still pretty good in its own right. It has classics like Song 2 and Beetlebum, but not much else that is massively memorable.

I really wanted to enjoy this one more but all I can say is "it was ok". Solid 3 at best.

Meh. This album wasn't bad, but I really see no reason to return to it. Some highlights for me: Song 2 is of course classic and I wouldn't be surprised if that single track is the only reason the album is on this list. Thanks Nissan and Toyota for popularizing the song. Death of a party sounds like it channels Bowie and is kind of cool—gothic vocals, good guitar distortion and percussion. I'm Just a Killer for Your Love has a nice funk line, but the rest falls apart. The Black Keys seem to dial in that distortion noise better in twenty years. Essex Dogs was kind of cool.

So I know that "real music fans" like Blur for all their songs other than "Song 2"...but I just can't get into them. I guess I'm basic. 2.5.

I have always been a fan of this record, but it has been a long time and it was nice to spend some time with an old friend.

A fun rock album that would be good in most settings

I was excited for this one but found it underwhelming. Vocals are atrocious in places and he has a good voice.

3,5

Good stuff, love to hear that 2nd song and learn where it comes from

Allez, faisons un petit crime de lèse-Damon Albarn : Blur c'est sympathique mais ça n'a rien d'incroyable. J'ai bien aimé /Death of the party/ et les chansons que je connais déjà, mais on n'est pas sur du showstopper.

Better than I thought!

Пацаны напердели от души 7/10

A classic, but never my favorite

Super interesting. I’ve never really checked Blur out, but now I feel compelled to dig deeper.

1. She's a guuuun 2. Iconic 3. Troche nudniejsza, ale fajna zabawa z wokalem. Koncowka dojebana :) 4. Ta mi sie nie podoba, troche taka sweet usa rockowa 5. Nie dla mnie 6. Intro swietne, spoookyyy ❤️ podoba mi sie klimat, organy? 7. Taka pitu pitu, moze byc, tylka nie urywa 8. Bardzo podobaja mi soe dzwoeki tutaj i ta spoookyyijność :) ale chcialam cos więcej 9. Zmiana rytmu me gusta, energiczna, ale za krótka 10. Fajna, nóżka aż sama się rusza 11. Nie dla mnie, za wesoła linia melodyczna, plus o woodym Allenie legendarnym pedofilu, not so cool 12. Troche mi (tak minimalnie) przypomina forest the cure, fajne, outro przyjemne dla ucha 13. Na pewno co jest powtarzalne dla tego albumu jest konstrukcja piosenek z powtarzającym się wielokrotnie refrenem i wolniejszymyi zwrotkami ta nuta taks ok 14. Intro aaaaa!!!!! Gadana piosenka, dobre zakończenie, ale imo triche niespójne do albumu

Song2

Great 80s pop.

Once again, interesting to hear a classic. Otherwise, I didn't find it very interesting.

J'aime beaucoup, sauf les bruits de crissements dans certaines musiques, ça fait mal aux oreilles x) Surtout Song 2, je la connaissais déjà et je la trouve satisfaisante :) Les autres je ne les écouterais pas toujours mais j'aime bien l'énergie !

Sympa, j'aime bien la voix de Damon Albarn mais je préfère Gorillaz

I had heard really good things about this but beyond Song 2 this fell a little flat. I like the sound of it all, and it feels like they’re having fun in the studio, but it’s missing that spark.

Really good wtf lol. Tapers off at the end tho

Some good songs for an indie disco.

This could be vastly improved by sheer subtraction. I invite you to join me in considering Blur a pretty great 8 track 34 minute album, rather than than the 56 minute sprawl that it actually is. Track listing (rating 4.0): Beetlebum Country Sad Ballad Man M.O.R. On Your Own You're so Great Death of a Party Look Inside America Movin' On Actual rating: 3.4

Go figure, another britpop album that I love. It's funny, I had been listening to Muswell Hillbillies and laughing at how the Kinks made a country album that was the most British thing in the world. Then I get fed this album. Hadn't really considered Blur, sure, they and this album are responsible for the most played song ever in garage and basement teenage bands worldwide of all time, but what else? Well, I still don't know what else but what I do know that this venture into Indie emo alt industrial noise rock was a successful one

Its just not that good. Song 2 is great ofcourse

Enjoyed it

This is some mopey 90s music. Except for that one song.

Mostly lows except for the classic Song 2.

Good album. I had no idea "Song 2" was by Blur or even on this album.

I like Blur! But.. the tail end of this album feels very off. There are some enjoyable bits. But a lot of it is just unsettling.

Pretty good album. Didn't feel like there was a consistent "theme" or maybe I wasn't listening close enough. I have a lot of Nostalgia with Song2 because I was 3 or 4 when I first heard it and it blew my mind at the time. It was in the Fifa: Road to World Cup 98 game and my brother and I played it a bunch! ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2igfndqKnmk )It gave me one of my intros to stuff with distortion and that classic RAT pedal sound! Standouts: * Song 2 * You're so great * Strange News from Another Star (Got some Gorillaz vibes with this one) The opposite of a standout and a song that gave me weird vibes: Essex Dogs 3.5/5 but rounding up to a 4

great album! Its like if Gorillaz stayed in rock, Damon Albarns lyrics are fantastic. its a shame only Blur was the worldwide hit, so many good songs, I'm glad this one popped up.

Loved it! Gorillaz minus the hip hop. Damon Albarn is such a unique musical mind.

Great Listen. Essex Dogs was the breakout track for this one. 4/5

I prefer the earlier more cheerful britpop albums, but this one has Song 2 and Beetlebum of course

Verry old school my parents would listen to that but nice gitaar and drums

The opening two tracks can only make up for so much of the offense the remaing tracks caused my ears.

it was ok

Song 2 makes the album great but it starts to fall off for me later down the track list

7.5/10

They won the battle but lost the war. What a strange thing britpop was. Sure Noel Gallagher could write songs and Graham Coxon could on Occassion match him - song 2 is a rightful classic. And the standout on this album. They mostly evade lasting success in America and australia for that matter. But this is a good document of a time in which its first pioneers - the spice girls - are the only band which is still culturally relevant. 2.5. Rounded to 3mainly because of song 2. Maybe song 2 should knock it to 4.

I never listen tot he actual album. a surpise to find the first track on the album a homage to Beetles (admitedlhy, if it werent for this lits I'd barely know the Beetles). Woo hoo for song 2. but the rest ? it is bitish shite rock whine... and some gjuitar noise.

Interesting that around the time this album was released, Albarn was having a drug buddy relationship with Justine Frischmann of Elastica. I was a big Elastica fan, but really thought Blur were neither here nor there. Until I heard Song 2. For me, that song was one of the highlights of the 90’s. Apart from that & the single Beetlebum/On Your Own, which spent a lot of time on my jukebox, I’d never heard this album before. It’s a decent listen (I love the Bowie-influenced Strange News From Another Star), although I don’t think it compares with the best of Oasis.

I never really understood the cult of Blur. Some great singles, but over-rated albums. It's a British thing, isn't it? Maybe you had to be doing coke in Camden in the 90s with the Britpop crew to really _get_ it. And I don't know why they have THREE albums on the 1001 list. I found the Parklife album far too Anglo-centric for this Australian listener. I just didn't get it. But the increase influence of Amercian indie rock on this next record and more immediate and aggressive production style makes it more palatable in my opinion. That said, there's not too many songs to write home about, except for Song 2, which is an absolute banger and far and away the best track they ever released. I happened to be in U.K. around the time it was released, and it was everywhere. I could immediately sense that this was a track for the ages, and bought the 7" from a record store in North London somewhere. I still keep it in my DJ crate; crowds go bananas when you play it, even to this day. I wonder if this album would be more listenable if they pared all the songs down to a fat-free 2 minutes like this track? Maybe much better than the versions here, which are typically over 4 minutes. And when they geta bit 'experimental' towards the back half of the album, I just want to jam a fork in my ear. It's aimless and not very enlightening. This is a 2.5 star album for me, and it is growing on me a bit after a few listens. it's my favourite Blur album of the three I have listened to for this project, although that the constant over praise from the British music press still annoys me. Rounded up for Song 2.

A couple of the songs here are fun, but this album is a mess. It feels like they just said 'let's do a 'punk' one now'; 'Oh, now let's do Sonic Youth'. The only thread through this is Damon's mockney warbling. It's pop music - please stop pretending it's anything more. Yes, especially you, Mr Albarn.

By far the most interesting of all the Blur albums. It killed off Britpop (hurrah!) and turned towards smack instead. Happy, happy, joy, joy. Damon's voice sounds great, especially on Beetlebum. I had to skip Song 2. There's only so many times you can tolerate the grunge piss take. There's some killer melodies with On Your Own. It gets dark with Death of a Party. I sniggered at Essex Dogs. Not a lot has changed.

It's ok.

First 2 songs were good, maybe 1 or 2 more. Couldn't hold my attention.

El classico

Really liked Beetleburn, did not really listen attentively to the rest of this album. Would love to revisit it at some point when I'm more in the mood for this type of rock.

An alternative album I really liked!

Gorillaz > blur > the good the bad and the queen

Some great songs, at times all over the place and other moments somewhat... Off. Had to skip some songs while enjoyed others or only part of songs

Always amazing.

Really nice blocked guitar play. Texts get repetitive from time to time. Overall music with thought and heart, not much to complain about. Even the long-ish instrumentals keep a good variety.

Ok album and it is ok only because of the 2 decent songs otherwise this is complete trash. You know which 2 songs I am talking about.

I just can't get into this album. I feel like this is what 60's Brit Pop's natural evolution would be and I hate Brit pop. Song 2 is a bizarre outlier on this album.

An album that I've tried to get into since appreciating Song 2 as a kid. It's still hard to get through, but I'm glad I made it to Essex Dogs this time - I think it may be my favorite song on the album.

Having only known 'song 2', this very long album was also surprisingly wide ranging as well, spanning quite the variety of sonic textures. Most often though, I got hints of Gorillaz

Such a good Gorillaz album. I love everything Damon gets his hands on. 10/10

Good album. Started off strong.

Good solid album - first half is excellent but it kind of tapers in interest towards the end but still overall fun.

An ok album not my favourite Blur offering. Look Inside America and Your So Great the outstanding tracks on the album which contains a lot of experimental pieces, which may take a couple of listens to appreciated fully?

Dit is zo'n muziekreviewer darling heb ik het idee. Moet zeggen dat Blur heel erg in het rijtje valt van "ik ken ze wel, maar niet echt eigenlijk" Tot ik bij song 2 belandde, dit ken ik wel! Benieuwd naar de rest van het album, aan de Spotify streams te zien is dit album een voorbeeld van 1 hit en verder valt het wel mee qua populariteit. God, dit is zo erge britpop weer. Ik ben een beetje britpop moe, mag dat? Het klinkt prima, maar het is gewoon een beetje saai naar mijn mening. Het hele album is gewoon nogal meh. Het is britse pop, er gebeurt naar mijn mening niet zo veel en ik kan gewoon niet begrijpen waarom dit album nou perse op de 1001 lijst moet staan tussen alle andere albums die ongeveer hetzelfde klinken. Maar goed, misschien ligt dat aan mijn beperkte muzieksmaak. FAVO: Song 2, On your own

Song 2 is een klassieker, maar verder is me niets bijgebleven van dit album, het is niet helemaal waardeloos, maar vrij matig

Absolutely gold

This album was good. Their song “Song 2” is very popular. The style of their music is cool; just not necessarily my style.

Not quite good. 1.5

3/5 close but no

Only 1001 albums on this list from the entire history of recorded music and two are Blur? Sure, Jan. Song 2 slaps, but the people who made this list need to check themselves. I kept on thinking the last song would end, but it never did. It was 8 minutes long. Rating 2 stars.

This is the album I think of when I think of Blur, but not because of Song 2. I really enjoy the more serious/intense and less playful energy on this album than on their earlier releases. Beetlebum is an iconic song and a great start to the album. I can't not play along to the guitar riff in my head when the chorus kicks in. The last two songs are a little slow, though, and lead me to take off one star.

Never been a huge fan

Doesn't sound like the blur I know. In a good way though. Fun rock album that can be left on loop. 3.75/4

song 2 still great, other songs fine

Boring song? No worries, just put an echo on it.

I've never listened to this album (except the one song. You know the one.) I was pleasantly surprised. I assumed it was going to be a brit pop slog like a lot of the other albums on this list, but it's just the slightest hint edgier than some. Like when your white girlfriend says the carbonara you made was spicy because it has black pepper in it. Favorite tracks: M.O.R., Death of a Party, Movin' On

Happy acoustic, Beatles-esque beetle bum, 90s cool.

A solid collection of 90’s grunge tunes. On my side quest to get some background info on the band, I found out that this was Blur’s official departure from making mainstream-aimed pop-rock, and that really comes across in the sorta rebellious and carefree sound of the record, and how the songs jump from style to style while maintaining a roughness around the edges. The album sorta reached a lull for me around the midpoint, but the songs really pick up steam in the final stretch. I will say though that the lead singer’s voice isn’t always easy on the ears, though I guess people don’t really go to slacker rock or grunge for immaculate vocals anyway lol. Fav tracks: Beetlebum, Country Sad Ballad Man, Strange News from Another Star, Movin’ On

Song 2 is great but Damon Albarn is much better suited in Gorillaz.

1. Album Title and Cover Art: The album's self-titled nature and the stark, minimalist cover art, featuring just the band's name in bold letters, reflects the band's desire to present a more mature and stripped-down version of themselves compared to their previous albums. 2. Musical Diversity: "Blur" is a testament to the band's willingness to evolve and explore new musical territories. While their previous albums, such as "Parklife" and "Modern Life Is Rubbish," had a distinctly Britpop sound, this album showcases a wide range of influences, including elements of art rock, electronic, and American indie rock. The album marks the band's departure from their purely Britpop identity, embracing a more global and alternative sound. 3. Songwriting and Lyrics: Damon Albarn's songwriting on this album is top-notch. The lyrics delve into themes of disillusionment, urban life, and personal introspection. "Beetlebum" explores addiction, "Death of a Party" reflects on the disillusionment of youth, and "Strange News from Another Star" is hauntingly beautiful. Albarn's ability to write evocative and thought-provoking lyrics is a standout feature of this album. 4. Standout Tracks: "Song 2": Arguably the most well-known song on the album, it's a high-energy rock anthem with infectious "woo-hoo" chants that became an anthem of the era. "Beetlebum": A melancholic and introspective track that kicks off the album with a slow, almost dream-like quality. "The Universal": A beautiful and grandiose song that captures the essence of the album with its orchestral arrangement and reflective lyrics. 5. Production: The album was produced by Stephen Street, who had previously worked with the band on their earlier albums. His production on "Blur" is exceptional, helping the band experiment with a variety of instruments and sounds while maintaining a cohesive sound. 6. Impact and Legacy: "Blur" was a critical and commercial success and solidified the band's place in music history. It showcased their artistic growth and willingness to take risks, which was appreciated by both fans and critics. It also set the stage for their later work, like "13" and "Think Tank," where they continued to push musical boundaries. In conclusion, "Blur" is a seminal album in the band's discography and a key moment in the 1990s Britpop movement. Its musical diversity, introspective lyrics, and willingness to break free from the constraints of a genre make it a classic that still resonates with audiences today. It's an album that showcases the band's artistic evolution and willingness to experiment, making it a must-listen for any music enthusiast.

Song2/5

<3

Eh.

Banger

Maybe I wasn't in the mood for it? Anyway, the second part was a tad bit better. Song 2 will be a classic always, other than that, this was all just a blur.

8/10

It's tough to rate this one. I've never been a huge Blur fan outside of their big singles, but it seemed like this was supposed to be the point where they branched out from the brit-pop sound to experiment a bit more, and you can hear that pretty clearly. It does make the album feel a bit disorganised, but also not that much of a chore to listen to even with it being nearly an hour. Only had the chance to give it one listen, but i will come back to it in the future. Feels like an album that will really benefit from more listens to let all the different ideas and sounds sink in.

Fun fact: Disney World queue lines are not the best place to attempt serious album listening. Don't worry, I came back to it later. Album #8. Unfortunately, I've never quite caught the Blur virus beyond their few ocean-crossing singles, which I will admit to loving wholeheartedly. Yes, even "Song 2". There was a chance of this completely winning me over, but it's difficult for me to holistically appreciate it outside of the context of the overall discography. Blur is a good album, but you can hear that it's an experiment, even if "Beetlebum" puts a foot confidently forward in the intended direction. Plus, it's still jarring to hear Albarn singing on a track that isn't remotely connected to Gorillaz. It's like seeing young adult photographs of one of your parents. Some moments and ideas popped out of the mix, but I'm not cultured enough to appreciate this yet.

Lovely stuff

Previous to this recommendation, I only know this artist/album for "Song 2". Currently incomplete listen (at track 7 - "You're So Great"). Very moody, and not really my jam. I feel as though this album only made it to this prestige solely on the merit of "Song 2", which isn't all that far-fetched considering the song's ubiquity, and we are considering the most influential albums here, not necessarily the best. As I write - Track 8 "Death of a Party" is a little bit better than some of the last couple of tracks. We'll see if the second half is enough to lead to me to give the album better than 2 stars. *Morgan Freeman Voice* : The second half, indeed, was not good enough to rate the album over 2 stars.

Ehh, I'm over Britpop. Song 2 still catchy, though.

waffled a lot between 4 and 5 but at the end of the day Essex Dogs clinched it

“Beetlebum” was a catchy song to start on. “Song 2” is a dumb name for a song even if it is the sEConD sOnG oF tHe aLBuM. SO F*CKIN BRITISH. “You’re so Great” was not so great. I wish this album went by in a BLUR but at this point I still have seven songs to go. Why are there SO MANY??? The last song “Essex Dogs” was just 8 minutes of Damon whispering sweet nothings into my ears. Would not recommend to a friend. 2/10.

Started out great. Song 2 slaps so hard. I noticed it had the same riff of the Nirvana song Smells Like Team Spirit which is one of the slim few songs from them I like. Other than that, none of the other songs really spoke to me. Most of the songs were just pretty okay. “Chinese Bombs” felt really out of place. Distortions don’t work for me if it’s the entire song. Good thing it was a short. Overall it was fine. I’m not really big into 90s indie rock. 6/10

Man it's just not very good now is it? The first two songs are leagues above the rest and they aren't very amazing either. Half of these songs are playing incorrect notes on purpose and I guess I'm supposed to think it's artsy? Stop with the Blur.

The best part about Blur is that they died to give us the Gorillaz. One song would end and I had already completely forgotten it. If you look up the definition of ‘generic’ it just says Blur. Once again these songs are way too damn long. I waited for a hidden banger but alas, said banger never came. I don’t like Song 2. I don’t like this album. If held at gunpoint and told to pick my favorite song from this album, I would die. 2/10

I still have a hard time knowing the singer of Blur is the singer of The Gorillas. This album is better than I expected. Song 2 is like a fight for your right to party in that it's a hit but isn't really what the band is like. They sound way more like pulp on a few songs than I would've expected but they are contemporaries. Not a bad album, it makes me wonder if they ever did anything interesting on later albums as they grew.

Beatles opening track, not bad. Never been a fan of song 2. I find the tempo annoying. We got a jaw harp. I'm in the 4th track MOR and thinking is the point of every song to try and be a little annoying. Maybe I'm in a mood. You're so Great is a little more stripped down. Death of a Party felt more mature and put together. Chinease Bombs a punk track, quick and simple. Works. I'm just a killer for your love - you can feel the link to the Gorillaz here Look inside America had a nice arrangement, some unnecessary bits. I picked the wrong time of day to listen to this and I have a head cold. This mostly made me feel old because I felt annoyed.

The music did not do anything for me, would rather be listening to the Gorillaz.

Liked it a lot. Will listen again

This album is alright. Nothing too bad or great that stands out or is ground breaking. I'm not opposed to listening to it but I also don't think I'll be searching it out again for a relisten any time soon. Solid 3 out of 5.

Great alternative rock album from Gorillaz's Damon Albarn!

Stop giving me absolute mid euro rock. Song 2 is just ok. The rest I literally skipped through.