Damon Albarn & Graham Coxon
This Is A Low (Live at NME Awards)

THE REVIEW

A hug has sealed the definitive reconciliation within the group. The Blur will return live for the concert at "Hyde Park" this summer.

In the meantime, the two great friends, Damon and Graham, moved the audience at the "NME Awards 2009" with an acoustic version of "This is a low", a perfect choice that best displays the artistic souls of the two friends, where other excellent pieces from the Blur repertoire would not have done the same (and there are plenty of songs): indeed the balance between melody and experimentation sounds very good here. 

The unplugged version was also done very well, with Damon's organ managing to give a sense of modernity without recalling the arrangement of the original too much, and the cowbell finale was the cherry on top. Graham's guitar was also very beautiful. Some flaws in Albarn's voice and some footage that perhaps could have been better shot do not detract from the beauty of this performance.

"Battery in your leg" six years ago had not given a definitive farewell to Graham Coxon's departure from the band. We waited some time before seeing such a scene, where Graham managed to close with alcohol and make peace with his friend and friends.

If I think back to 2003, I felt the void of his absence; and while Simon Tong was able to play those pieces, it was clear that it was very different from before. Damon has grown in artistic stature, but seeing Graham by his side again is something different and reminds us of when the four friends played and faced the world together.

"Think Tank" was an album that worked perfectly despite Graham's absence. But that absence was still felt.

Now that the past is closed, I hope for a large-scale return of one of the best bands of the last decade. What do they have in store?