Blur is wasting no time getting their reunion in full swing. Just days after announcing their new album The Ballad of Darren, which is out July 21, and releasing the lead single, the band has played their first live show in years. The band performed an intimate set at the Colchester Arts Center in Colchester, England earlier tonight (May 19). Tonight’s outing marks the first time Blur has played a full set since 2015 and the first time they’ve performed in any capacity since they played a three-song acoustic set in 2019. The band is using this inmate setting to gear up for their upcoming tour of the UK and Europe this summer. Standing on top of a brand-new album and a mountain of anticipation, Blur crafted a setlist that dusted off old favorites and introduced new tracks.
Blur kicked things off with the live debut of “St. Charles Square”, which is set to be featured on their upcoming LP. The band also played the freshly released single “The Narcissist” for the first time and even reached back to their 1993 album, Modern Life Is Rubbish, to perform the b-side “Villa Rosie” for the first time ever. Blur also pulled out “Chemical World” from the ‘93 LP for the first time since 2009 and later performed “Oily Water” for the first time since 2012. The rest of the setlist was split up between classics and B-sides from Blur’s extensive catalog, you can check out the full setlist below.
After piecing together an astounding setlist for their first full live performance in 8 years, Blur has its sights on the rest of the UK and Europe. The band now has two dates set at the legendary Wembley Stadium in London on July 8 and 9. Blur will be performing at festivals like Primavera Sound in Spain during July and will then travel to places like Dublin, Norway, and France for this stint on the road. You can check out the full list of dates and see footage from their comeback performance at the Colchester Arts Center below:
05/21 – Eastbourne, UK @ Eastbourne Winter Gardens
05/26 – Wolverhampton, UK @ The Halls
05/28 – Newcastle, UK @ O2 City Hall
06/01 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
06/08 – Madrid, ES @ Primavera Sound
06/10 – Porto, PT @ Primavera Porto
06/24 – Dublin, IE @ Malahide Castle
06/27 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome
06/30 – Roskilde, DK @ Roskilde Festival
07/06 – Hérouville-Saint-Clair, FR @ Beauregard Festival
07/08 – London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
07/09 – London, UK @ Wembley Stadium
07/14 – Brittany, FR @ Vieilles Charrues Festival
07/22 – Lucca, IT @ Lucca Summer Festival
08/08 – Lokeren, BE @ Lokerse Feesten
08/10 – Oslo, NO @ Øya Festival
08/11 – Gothenburg, SE @ Way Out West Festival
08/13 – Helsinki, FI @ Flow Festival
08/19 – Tokyo, JP @ Summer Sonic
08/20 – Osaka, JP @ Summer Sonic
11/21 – Bogota, CO @ Movistar Arena
