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Damon Albarn

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Damon Albarn is an English musician, born in 1968 in London. His father was an artist and his mother a set designer, and at home they played blues, Indian ragas and African music. He learned guitar, piano and violin and wrote compositions at a young age. At school in Essex he met Graham Coxon. After a brief spell at drama school he went to study music at Goldsmiths College in London. There, in 1988, Albarn, Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree formed a band that was named Blur in 1990.

Music and breakthrough

After the debut Leisure in 1991 and long tours of America, Albarn drew more and more inspiration from British bands of the 1960s. This gave rise to Modern Life Is Rubbish, Parklife and The Great Escape. Blur became one of the big names of Britpop, with a famous rivalry with Oasis. After that the sound changed: on Blur, 13 and Think Tank, lo-fi, art rock, electronica and world music were added.

Influence

In 1998 Albarn started the virtual band Gorillaz with the comic artist Jamie Hewlett, with cartoon band members and music full of hip hop, electronica and world music. He also worked with musicians from Mali, founded Africa Express, played in The Good, the Bad & the Queen and wrote music for opera and theatre. As a solo artist he made, among other things, Everyday Robots. He is regarded as one of the most influential British musicians of his generation, precisely because he keeps trying something new.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Parklife by Blur. Notice the ironic, half-spoken verses and the singalong chorus: here Albarn plays with typically English imagery and humour.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Categories: Artists