Colchester’s finest ‘Blur’ are to headline their first-ever Wembley show on 8 July 2023 for an epic, long-awaited reunion to celebrate their 35th anniversary. The globally successful band are to be supported by British rapper Slowthai, acclaimed pop musician Self Esteem and electro-pop duo Jockstrap, and long-time fans are buzzing from the news of our local group’s reunion, having not performed since 2015.

 

The band was named Blur in 1989, however, little know that it was originally formed in 1988, previously called ‘Seymour’ after J.D.Salinger’s novel. Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon met in their teen years at Stanway School, having later met Dave Rowntree also from Colchester - Alex James was the only member to have grown up elsewhere (in Bournemouth). Our now city being the roots of such famous and influential musicians (I’m sure many readers even have closer connections to the members) is something to be hugely proud of. Colchester is a city of great culture, that we must continue to embrace.

 

When announcing the news, Albarn said - "We really love playing these songs and thought it's about time we did it again." He went on to say “Blur live shows are always amazing for me. A nice guitar and an amp turned right up and loads of smiling faces." Coxon said that he’s "really looking forward to playing with my Blur brothers again and revisiting all those great songs". Whether you’re a fan of the earlier works or continue to like the tunes of their latest album ‘The Magic Whip’ (2015), many of us are thrilled to know that we have the rare opportunity to hear them live again next summer.

 

And Blur aren’t the only Britpop band getting back together again to perform in 2023 - the Sheffield rock band Pulp will be having their first performance in 10 years! It seems that post-covid many bands have felt that they’ve wanted to perform again, due to our loss of large public gatherings. Concerts provide a great sense of togetherness, under the same love of music - our universal language. We’re greatly lucky to now have many opportunities to experience it once more - there is much to look forward to in the near future!