I hope we can keep doing it this way - making music and art that are pure products of our influences while not really having to let the whole celebrity side of it get in the way. Then maybe more virtual bands will come out and do the same thing.

When Damon was 9 he moved to Turkey for three months before settling in Aldham Essex outside Colchester in an area described by Albarn as "one of those burgeoning Thatcher experiments where they were building loads of small estates". All the shows were well received; The Guardian's music critic Alexis Petridis gave their performance at Goldsmiths college a full five stars and wrote that "Blur's music seems to have potentiated by the passing of years. Following the worldwide success of Oasis' (What's the Story) Morning Glory? the media quipped that "[Blur] wound up winning the battle but losing the war.

After studying Drama and playing in short lived synth pop outfit Two's a Crowd Albarn formed a band with Coxon which after various incarnations evolved into Blur with additional members Alex James and Dave Rowntree. Mid 1990s releases Modern Life Is Rubbish Parklife and The Great Escape helped Blur to achieve mass popularity in the UK spearheading the Britpop movement. Gorillaz are cited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the Most Successful Virtual Band.