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The Comeback Kings

'Blur have done the comeback because of a genuine desire by their fans to get back out there...'



Comebacks
are always a risky affair: the returning artist(s) face the possibility of
besmirching a reputation or, as John Squire memorably dubbed it when denying
The Stone Roses' reformation reports, ‘desecrat[ing] the grave.’

      

Every year, it seems, has a big
act getting back together after years of speculations, denials and catfights;  from the good (Pixies), the bad (Guns N’
Roses) to the so-so (The Verve).  You can
see why they do it; there’s a massive demand from still ardent fans, it’ll
boost record sales and, of course, they will get paid an absolute shitload of
cash for doing so.  Musical romantics may
shirk at the idea of the bands getting back together for anything other than ‘the
music’, but to this end I would point you in the direction of the reports that
surfaced about The Libertines, with two albums and about 90 minutes worth of
headline-worthy material (tops), being offered 2 million of the Queens to
headline Reading and Leeds this year. 
Obviously you have to take these figures with a pinch of salt, but the
fact they are even being bandied around displays that there is serious wonga to
be made in the re-hashing of old memories.





So what has made the recent Blur
reunion so refreshing has been the genuine air that has surrounded it from the
start.  No-one’s suggesting that Damon
and co weren’t handsomely repaid for their time, but anyone that saw his tears
at Glastonbury or the inter-band affection and between-song banter at the Hyde
Park gigs could have little doubt that here was a band that got back together
for the right reasons.



One wonders whether this can be
traced back to the crowd who, despite reports, were fantastic and united at
Hyde Park (at least on the Friday) with crowds of strangers hugging, dancing and
laughing together in a thoroughly festival-like manner.  The only people to disrupt this were the ubiquitous
groups of Twatty Lads who can’t drink 5 pints without asserting their
masculinity by pushing each other around, and no doubt there will be far more
of these for Oasis on Saturday so no complaints there.  What was generally apparent was a real desire
to have Blur back, and the theory could go that this has filtered back to Blur
and, as such, they have done the comeback because of a genuine desire by their fans to get back out there.

        

Regardless of half-baked
theories, they put on a fantastic show-surely the gig of the summer- as well as
performing the set of this years
Glastonbury, one to possibly rank up there with Pulp in ’95, Radiohead in ’97 and
Macca in 2004.  Time will tell if it will
endure so readily in the hearts and minds of Somerset’s finest, but it is
virtually unheard of for everyone who
went to the festival to cite the same performance as their personal highlight, as
seemed to be the case this year.

      

They are being understandably
cagey about the possibility of recording new material, but after the ecstatic reaction
to their return it is surely only a matter of time.  Frankly, if they put half the heart into the
recording that they did into these gigs its going to be pretty ace.

Posted In Comment, Jul 07 2009. Words - David

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