Prick Tunes: Blur "Ambulance" and "Me, White Noise"

It may seem weird to many, but my favorite Blur album is probably Think Tank, which given Graham Coxon's virtually non-existent presence on the album could arguably disqualify it as being considered a Blur album despite the name of the band on the cover. Whether Coxon was on the record or not, it was great and clearly the next step for the band after the stellar 13. 

Blur, Banksy-approved

The odd thing for me is that I had remembered Think Tank being fairly well received critically but would never have thought that it charted particularly well stateside. Contrary to my perception, however, it was the highest charting Blur release. That was not at all what I expected when I was looking the album up on Wikipedia. I suppose the popularity could have been bolstered in part by the popularity of Damon Albarn's other project, Gorillaz, but aside from hearing "Crazy Beat" (my least favorite song on the album by far*) in commercials, it never felt like Think Tank had the suction that say Parklife or Blur had.

*Really, the only thing about the album that I would change would be to scrub the Norman Cook from the record entirely, as the two tracks he produced on the album are the two that don't jive with the rest of the album.

All that being said, I do love Think Tank, and now that I'm dusting it off, I think I may be embarking upon a Think Tank renaissance. What better way to kick said revival off than by throwing in what might just be my favorite song off the album, "Ambulance," the proper album opener.

Now I say 'proper album opener' here because I just found out today that there is actually a pregap hidden track on the album, which kind of blew my mind. I am not sure how I never stumbled across this information, but I'm going to chalk it up to chance. Regardless, for those of whom this is also a revelation, here is "Me, White Noise" put over a British ballroom dancing programme. 

The Queue Continuum: Exit Through The Gift Shop

Sorry I've been so absent here. The start of baseball season sort of messes up my schedule for a few weeks until I can reacclimate/make myself care less about the Royals. Here's some catching up. I'll try to get another entry queued up for Friday, as well.

Available on Blu-ray as well

While it is hard to suss out whether or not this film is operating on the level or not, the message still comes through loud and clear: The art world is a messed up place.


Regardless of whether or not you buy the premise that to movie is operating under, the fact remains that the awful, awful crap that Mr. Brainwash produced sold for a veritable assload of cash based solely on the hype that they successfully built up around a nonsensical show lacking in theme, taste, and restraint.

Even if you elect to believe that Banksy was really punking the Establishment, the film is ultimately a compelling one, and given his and Shepard Fairey's involvement there is at least a little prominent insight into the street art movement.

If this isn't near the top of your queue, it should be. That's where John De Lancie would want it to be.