Releases

Blur record new material for Record Store Day

By | Published on Monday 12 April 2010

There will be many exclusive and exciting releases made available through independent record stores on Record Store Day this weekend, but I think it’s fairly safe to say that there’s one release that will gain more attention than the rest. The four members of Blur recently went into the studio together for the first time since 2002 and recorded two new songs, which will be released as a seven inch single this Saturday.

As with all Record Store Day releases, the single will only be made available in physical form and will only be available for one day. In fact, given that the single will be limited to 1000 copies, I wouldn’t expect it to be around for more than an hour at best.

Explaining the decision to record the single, Damon Albarn said: “We want independent record stores to continue – they’re an important part of our musical culture. Music is a simple way for Blur to show our support and I hope people like it”.

Spencer Hickman, who coordinates Record Store Day in the UK, and is London record shop Rough Trade East’s store manager, told BBC 6music: “Blur went into the studio a couple of weeks ago. It’s so close to the wire – it’s literally two weeks from being recorded to turnaround to being in shops. I’ve no idea how they’re going to get into shops. But we’re confident that they will. They obviously think the track is good enough to release, which is exciting in itself, especially as nobody had any inkling that they’d gone back into the studio. For bands of that stature to do something like that for record store day can only help us grow”.

The Blur single will come out as part of a series of exclusive Record Store Day releases from EMI’s Parlophone, which will also include material from The Beatles, The Pet Shop Boys, Lily Allen, Bat For Lashes and Hot Chip, amongst others.



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