I nearly feel ashamed for sometimes forgetting that Blur is one of my favorite bands ever, just about the only band I was into really heavy in High School and still love to this day. Parklive is a live album of their supposed last concert ever (I think they've played a few of those before?) they played at the close of the London Olympics. Listening to this two hour set, I shudder to imagine being a part of the gigantic Hyde Park crowd, pulsing and swaying to the music, participating in a non-stop top of the throat singalong. I don't usually, I mean, I just about never hand myself over to the music at live shows, but this one would have snatched me right up. And for Rock Band Grad School: Study the setlist to this concert, the way it stays strong from beginning to end, pulling songs from their entire catalogue and escalates constantly to the cathartic final act (Song 2, No Distance Left to Run, Tender, and This is a Low) and triumphant encore (Sing, Under the Westway, End of a Century, For Tomorrow, the Universal.)
Typing that gives me chills. Sorry if that's geeky. If you love Blur the thought of it should give you chills too.
TNGHT — TNGHT EP
My favorite 16 minutes of music of the year. Not sure if TNGHT counts as dance music or instrumental hip hop or what, but I find myself never going a workday without giving these five songs a listen, pressing my earbuds into my ears as tightly as possible to try to pick up more of the seemingly bottomless bass found throughout. To me, these songs are absolute dancefloor fillers, songs to invent some crazy dance too, but also really good music to play at full volume while cruising to a Taco Bell. If only this record had been around when I was in High School. If only, if only, if only.
If you are at all inclined the tiniest bit to listen to music highly conducive for flashing lights and shuddering speakers, you just got to try this record. Please. Do it for yourself, for me.
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