13

Six albums into their envious career, Blur have finally found a sound to match their name. I'm sure the name initially came from the donut- stuffed mouth of Virgin A&R; reps who feared selling a band called "Seymour" to the Teens UK. "Blur" fits the mold of the monosyllabic, schwa- voweled noun system of Brit-rock nomenclature-- Pulp, Bush, Lush, Suede. Now, after nearly a decade, Blur have grown comfortable with their image and talents. From now on, it's their mission to make ears and speakers uncomfortable. With producer William Orbit spreading gobs of digital fuzz, guitar wash, and deep- space bleeps in heavy strokes with William De Kooning- esque glee, the tracks on 13 bounce between studio walls, planets, and effects pedals until slowly unraveling and releasing with mercurian flashes and cherubic keyboard. It all... well... blurs. Pitchfork 9.1

Artist: Blur
Title: 13
Label: Food
Cat #: Foodlpx29
Year: 1999
Format: 180 Gram 2xLP + Download