068 - Blur - Think Tank (2003) (with Kylie Wilson)

Jukebox Zeroes

As the 1990s came to a close, so too went the commercial viability of Britpop music. What was once a sales juggernaut in the UK and a well-regarded if obscure staple of alternative rock in the US gradually began to die out as musical tastes changed with the times. Blur, one of the biggest acts of this movement, took the opportunity to disappear for a little while, with lead singer Damon Albarn engaging in the highly successful collaboration Gorillaz, while the other members of the band explored other ventures.
Blur would eventually regroup to record a new album; Think Tank, which would see release in 2003, and dove headlong into experimentation, distancing themselves from their classic Britpop sound, and delving in areas of hip-hop, worldbeat, dub, and electronic fusion. Think Tank would be a critical boon for Blur, who received high praise for the record, but their commercial fortunes suffered, and interpersonal tensions with recording and touring that occured within Blur's ranks would taint the record for Albarn and company, who broke up shortly after.
To this day Think Tank has been dismissed by Albarn himself, and is regularly thought of as a lower-tier record in Blur's canon, but we're not so sure about that. On this episode of Jukebox Zeroes, Lilz and Pat welcome Kylie Wilson, the host of the ESC Pulse podcast, to the program. The three of them team up to attempt to find some solace in Think Tank's challenging listen.
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