Damon Albarn has written a new song especially for Sunday’s (28 Oct 2007) “Plague Songs” event being held at London’s Barbican centre.

Acts performing at the event include Imogen Heap, Kenny Anderson (King Creosote), Rufus Wainwright and many more. The show is being curated by David Coulter who was the musical director on Monkey: Journey To The West.

It is still to be confirmed whether Damon will actually perform at the event. For more info and tickets, visit the Barbican website.

Via blur.co.uk

Damon Albarn won the Q Inspiration Award at the Q Awards held in London. The award was presented to Damon by Zane Lowe and Kano. View Damon’s acceptance speech here.

Other winners this year include Paul McCartney, Ian Brown and Kylie Minogue. Tony Wilson was awarded the Q Hero.

The full list of winners can be found at the Q Awards website.

Gorillaz are to release their second collection of rarities and b-sides in the UK on the 5th November through Parlophone and in the US the next day via Virgin.

The D-Sides double disc album features 22 tracks from the Demon Days era also features remixes of Gorillaz songs from DFA, Hot Chip, Jamie T and Soulwax. The band’s first b-sides album, G-Sides, was released in 2001.

CD1
1. 68 State
2. People
3. Hongkongaton
4. We are Happy Landfill
5. Hong Kong
6. Highway (Under Construction)
7. Rockit
8. Bill Murray
9. The Swagga
10. Murdoc is God
11. Spitting Out the Demons
12. Don’t Get Lost in Heaven (Original Demo Version)
13. Stop the Dams

CD2
1. DARE (DFA Remix)
2. Feel Good Inc (Stanton Warriors Remix)
3. Kids With Guns ( Jamie T’s Turns To Monsters Mix)
4. DARE (Soulwax Remix)
5. Kids With Guns (Hot Chip Remix)
6. El Manana (Metronomy Remix)
7. DARE (Junior Sanchez Remix)
8. Dirty Harry (Schtung Chinese New Years Remix)
9. Kids With Guns (Quiet Village Remix)

Pre-order from Amazon.co.uk now.

Damon Albarn has made a rare public reference to his former band Blur, during his indie rock supergroup The Good, The Bad and the Queen’s headlining set at Latitude Festival tonight (July 14).

With the recently reported news that the original line up of Blur are due to reconvene in the studio for the first time since 1999, Damon Albarn took the opportunity to reference their classic single, “Song 2″ while introducing The Good, The Bad & The Queen song, “A Soldier’s Tale“.

“I met a squaddie who’d been in Iraq,” he told the Obelisk arena audience at Latitude.

“He told me that they used to play ‘Song 2‘ before… you know” –the suggestion being before they went into combat — “so I guess this is for him.”

The Good, The Bad & The Queen - featuring Clash member Paul Simonon, played their debut album in its entirety, closing the second night of this year’s sell-out Latitude festival.

via Uncut

Damon Albarn has criticised Kaiser Chiefs in the strongest possible terms - by comparing their new album to Blur’s famously underwhelming 1995 record The Great Escape. The singer said: “I’ve made two bad records. The first record [Leisure], which is awful, and The Great Escape, which was messy.

“The Kaiser Chiefs’ new record (Yours Truly, Angry Mob) sounds a bit like The Great Escape in that it sounds a bit empty. Sometimes records are like that if you try too hard to repeat your success.”

It’s quite a change of heart for Albarn. Two years ago he was so moved by a Kaiser Chiefs gig at Leeds Metropolitan University he burst into tears (”I think it was a compliment,” said Kaisers drummer Nick Hodgson at the time).

Kaiser Chiefs - who Liam Gallagher once unfairly dismissed as “a bad Blur” - have made no secret of the debt they owe Albarn and co. What’s more, Ricky Wilson and Damon Albarn have hung out together several times (they even went together to watch ex-Blur guitarist Graham Coxon’s solo gig at South By Southwest in Texas last year).

We wonder if the atmosphere might be a bit more frosty the next time they meet…

via Q4music