As thousands gathered in the desert for the first time since last year’s epic two-weekend festival, so did Blur, who have been very selective with their live shows, but admitted they couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to play Coachella once again.

“We got a phone call at about 10 o’clock at night,” Blur’s DamonAlbarn said of getting the Coachella offer before bandmate, AlexJames added, “Which is not normally a good thing when it’s management calling at 10 o’clock at night.”

Albarn continued, “[They] were like, ‘Do you want to do Coachella this year? You have five minutes to decide.’ We were just like, ‘I know we said we weren’t going to do anything, but we’ll do one more.” Added James, “This was just a wonderful opportunity, the greatest show on earth. It’s the biggest festival on the planet — if I wasn’t here, I’d have FOMO.”

Playing the fest again, “It's completely different in a way and completely the same,” says Albarn. “When I think when we start playing again, it's just exactly the same as it was at the first for me,” Alex adds. “I think it's important not to think about it too much, really,” Damon says, especially when you're sort of carrying your past revue. You know, some of the songs we play are like 30 plus years old now.”

On the idea of feature films being made about the band, (an idea which appalls Albarn,) one being a documentary of the return of Blur, Alex explains, “It's eight years since we last did anything, you know. Even when we actually split up, it didn't take that long to kind of get it together. So, there was a certain amount of kind of jeopardy, potentially, at the beginning, like trying to make a new record at this stage of your career. Most bands don't even like each other 30 years in, let alone make a half-decent record. I suppose there was a lot to play for… if you like, the band it's a good watch. We filmed the shows at Wembley.”

“I never thought I'd love Wembley,” Damon adds. “First night was great, and then next day, I didn't want to do another gig. I really I was trying to find reasons to cancel it. I was sort of sitting in a hotel at Wembley Park… just watching all these people coming in, and it's like, ‘Well, I can't cancel that, and actually it was like maybe the best. It was weird. I was like, really not into going on stage -- and then I was on stage -- and it was one of the ones [you won't forget.]

Words by Monica Rivera Interview by Nicole Alvarez

As thousands gathered in the desert for the first time since last year’s epic two-weekend festival, so did Blur, who have been very selective with their live shows, but admitted they couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to play Coachella once again.
“We got a phone call at about 10 o’clock at night,” Blur’s Damon Albarn said of getting the Coachella offer before bandmate, Alex James added, “Which is not normally a good thing when it’s management calling at 10 o’clock at night.”
Albarn continued, “[They] were like, ‘Do you want to do Coachella this year? You have five minutes to decide.’ We were just like, ‘I know we said we weren’t going to do anything, but we’ll do one more.” Added James, “This was just a wonderful opportunity, the greatest show on earth. It’s the biggest festival on the planet — if I wasn’t here, I’d have FOMO.”
Playing the fest again, “It's completely different in a way and completely the same,” says Albarn. “When I think when we start playing again, it's just exactly the same as it was at the first for me,” Alex adds. “I think it's important not to think about it too much, really,” Damon says, especially when you're sort of carrying your past revue. You know, some of the songs we play are like 30 plus years old now.”
On the idea of feature films being made about the band, (an idea which appalls Albarn,) one being a documentary of the return of Blur, Alex explains, “It's eight years since we last did anything, you know. Even when we actually split up, it didn't take that long to kind of get it together. So, there was a certain amount of kind of jeopardy, potentially, at the beginning, like trying to make a new record at this stage of your career. Most bands don't even like each other 30 years in, let alone make a half-decent record. I suppose there was a lot to play for… if you like, the band it's a good watch. We filmed the shows at Wembley.”
“I never thought I'd love Wembley,” Damon adds. “First night was great, and then next day, I didn't want to do another gig. I really I was trying to find reasons to cancel it. I was sort of sitting in a hotel at Wembley Park… just watching all these people coming in, and it's like, ‘Well, I can't cancel that, and actually it was like maybe the best. It was weird. I was like, really not into going on stage -- and then I was on stage -- and it was one of the ones [you won't forget.]
Words by Monica Rivera Interview by Nicole Alvarez

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