I recently looked at a hip-hop classic, Illmatic by Nas, and of course I managed to relate it to some indie and dance music. An obvious reference would be Gorillaz, with its genre-bending collaborations from rappers to Syrian orchestras, and I thought I would look at them for this reason. However, before that I thought I would go back to the rock roots of Damon Albarn (the mastermind behind Gorillaz and Blur) with two Blur albums.

Blur’s third album, 1994’s Parklife, features the most famous Britpop era sound of the band. Extremely British and catchy, but with biting cynicism underneath and the crunchy, angular guitars of Graham Coxon. I would put “To The End” after “London Loves,” but apart from that it’s pretty perfect to me. Special shoutout to “Trouble in the Message Centre” and “Clover Over Dover” – the guitar in the latter is sublime.

Their fifth album, 1997’s Blur features a more experimental and raw sound compared to their Britpop era, inspired by American indie acts like Pavement. Features the massive single “Song 2,” Beatles-esque “Beetlebum,” proto-Gorillaz dance of “On Your Own,” quirky fun of “Movin’ On” and the eerie reggae of “Death of a Party.”

I do find the noisy guitar in the post-chorus of “M.O.R.” pretty annoying to my ears, and would turn the volume down during that part and fade out at the end. I also find the way Coxon sings “light” on the chorus of “You’re So Great” annoying and would turn up and down! Finally, not a fan of the overly grungy “I’m Just a Killer for Your Love” and the bizarre “Essex Dogs” does go on. Would play the punk stomper “Chinese Bombs” again too as it’s too short! Overall, a more experimental yet still energetic and catchy release.

Overall, that’s what I think Blur do so well. They can become quite Radiohead-esque yet never forget the ability to write a deliriously catchy pop tune. I also called the article Blackpool Pier Music as the Britpop era of the band with Parklife makes me think of a seaside town like that – amusements, ice cream, all of it. Mainly as an underrated Damon project I will look at in the future has that vibe, but in a much different way… See you then.