Released: 2023
Genres: Baroque Pop, Alternative Rock
The Musiquarium’s The Ballad of Darren Review Score: 7 out of 10
Coming close to a decade after The Magic Whip, Blur is back with help of producer James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, The Last Shadow Puppets) on a baroque album that can be described as somewhat similar to Arctic Monkeys’ The Car from the previous year (which James Ford also produced), mixed with Blur’s britpop sensibilities.
The album consists of dramatic slow songs (The Ballad and Russian Strings) and low tempo rockers (Barbaric, The Narcissist), but there’s still a quick detour to the sound of vintage Blur on a track like St. Charles Square, which features some excellent Graham Coxon guitar playing.
My biggest gripe with The Ballad of Darren is Damon Albarn, who sounds like he’s struggling to stay awake throughout the album. The vocals themselves are mostly fine, but Albarn sounds so sleepy, like he’d rather be anywhere but here, but then again, his latest Gorillaz album was rather drab too.
The Ballad of Darren is an album that features lush instrumentation and production, but is a much slower album compared to Blur’s earlier works, so if you’re the type of Arctic Monkeys fan who hated The Car, then you might not like this either, but if you can get past Damon Albarn’s drowsy performance, then you’re in for a fairly rewarding listen and one of Blur’s most unique projects yet.
For credit breakdowns and historic release details, view Blur on Discogs.
Back to the 2023 Album Guide or the Blur Reviews page.
Written by Brett Nippard
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