Blur - The Ballad of Darren

Starts much stronger than it finishes.

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach

Plastic Beach's music and concept have aged scarily well over the years.

Damon Albarn - Everyday Robots

Damon Albarn's latest record may be slightly passionless and relentlessly dreary, but he delivers some stand-out songs throughout the tracklist here.

Blur- "The Puritan" & "Under the Westway"

There's no question about it: Blur is back! While it may be a while before Damon Albarn works to release another Gorillaz album, it's great that he's diversifying his repertoire with a solo album, production on that Bobby Womack album, and now these new tracks that are set for a 7" release in August.

Album titles and release dates aren't being discussed yet, but hopefully that's coming soon.

To talk about the two tracks individually, "the Puritan" has a quirky, fun beat that I'm sure most people are going to directly link to a Gorillaz tune or two. The fat, bouncy synths are a playful addition to the track, and Albarn's personality on the song is captivating as usual. "Under the Westway" is the show-stopping, though. A beautiful piano ballad that's structured in the same way more great piano ballads are structured. While Albarn and co. aren't afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves with this track, the track goes over well with some very dramatic choruses. I'd love to hear where these guys take it after this.

Bobby Womack- "The Bravest Man in the Universe"

Back in March, we received the news that soul veteran Bobby Womack would be releasing a new LP on June 11 in the U.K. and June 12 in the U.S via XL Recordings. Titled The Bravest Man in the Universe, the album was produced by Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz fame, with whom Womack has collaborated on 2010's Gorillaz record Plastic Beach, as well as its followup, The Fall. We've already heard "Please Forgive My Heart," and now we have our second taste of the album by way of the title track.

The song opens with Womack's characteristically impassioned vocals, which pair up with a lone string instrument to set the stage. The twist comes just after this, however, with the introduction of a modern, electronic production sound. With a groove that effectively complements Bobby's bold vocal delivery, the beat successfully combines Womack's traditionally soulful vocal approach with instrumentation that feels current and fresh, but all without coming across as over-produced.

Check out the track above via XL Recordings' YouTube channel.

Damon Albarn- “The Marvelous Dream”

A new song has emerged from Damon Albarn's concept album Dr. Dee, which is about John Dee who was an advisor to Elizabeth I. The song is pretty simple just a lightly strummed acoustic guitar and eventually some claps with background humming. Albarn's vocal delivery is pitched pretty impeccably making the story in the lyrics impactful. Simple as the visual accompaniment is, it is easy to lose yourself watching the traffic go by.

Dr. Dee is set to release May 7th via Parlophone