Interview with Damon, July issue of Q

"The audience in Scotland are very passionate about music. If it's a passionate audience and a nice day, that's the perfect combination," purrs Damon Albarn. This year Blur are co-headlining on the Saturday with Stereophonics (a mutually satisfying formula, assure the T In The Park organisers), and hoping for good weather. Last year they battled it out at Glastonbury on the Saturday night, playing a bolshie, sublime set that was considered one the festival's saving graces. Yet Blur were rumoured to be unhappy with the proceedings. Last December Alex James told Q that Glastonbury was "horrible" and that Michael Eavis could "suck my dick". Is it true that he hates festivals?
"No, we wouldn't be doing it otherwise," Albarn insists. "He was pissed off at Glastonbury last year, but then so was everyone. It was like the Somme. I think it was pretty good, considering what we were up against."
T In The Park will be the first major outing for the new album 13, and the mood will be dictated by its blend of urban blues and Graham Coxon's psychedelic intensity. There's something unfettered about Blur's set, as if in playing live they lose the self-consciousness of the studio and become the band they have always wanted to be.
"Absolutely," Albarn agrees. "Our records have got closer to that feeling we've always managed to bring on stage, so now there's less of a distinction between the two."
His attitude towards his own stage performance has also changed: "I concentrate more on my singing, less on my antics. The songs demand more respect, less jauntiness."
This is one of the few Blur dates this year, and there won't be another on its scale.Are they backing away from the mainstream?
"We're not touring, but we're not backing away from anything," snorts Albarn.
"We're all in our thirties and we feel comfortable where we are. This record's not a retreat, just a change. And if we get our sound right, it should be great." With it's easy-going atmosphere and light police presence, T In The Park should prove an appropriate location to test out 13's complex, stoner-friendly vibes. The festival has been going for six years, having moved from Glasgow to Balado, Kinross. This year over 45,000 people will attend. Some of them may even feel supportive towards the stereotypically Southern Blur.