Blur Colchester gig: Who are Blur and what is city connection?

So, if you are wondering who Blur are and what their link to Colchester is we’ve got you covered.

Blur’s history is deeply rooted in Colchester.

Who are Blur and how did they begin? 

Frontman Damon Albarn met guitarist Graham Coxon during his days at The Stanway School.

They formed Blur with Alex James and Dave Rowntree whilst studying together at Goldsmith's College, London.

Originally known as ‘Seymour' they performed at venues across the town, later moving to London and changing their name to Blur in the process.

The group performed live for the first time at the East Anglian Railway Museum in Chappel.

In 2009 the museum was presented with the Performing Right Society’s first plaque to commemorate the fact one of Britpop’s biggest bands started there.

A plaque commemorating the group Blur's first performance together was unveiled at the East Anglian Railway Museum, Chappel

Albums, awards and rivalries 

In the Britpop years they had an intense rivalry with Oasis.

Their albums have included debut Leisure, Modern Life Is Rubbish, Parklife, The Great Escape and the self titled Blur.

The band has won numerous Brit awards including British group, British album and British single in 1995.

In 1996 they won British video of the year and were awarded the outstanding contribution to music award in 2012.

There were also wins at the GQ awards, NME awards and Q Awards.

By the early 2000s the band members had started to pursue other projects with Coxon releasing solo albums and Albarn dedicating time to band Gorillaz.

Over the years they have done a number of reunions with Wembley their latest.

Ahead of the gig they will perform three warm up shows including one in Colchester.

Growing up in Colchester 

Albarn, 54, who grew up in Aldham, said his days spent as an outsider as a child and teenager spurred him on to success.

He spoke about his life on the Changes podcast hosted by DJ Annie Macmanus.

Albarn, 53, admitted he was a “shy and insecure” child.

Albarn, who grew up in Aldham and went to Stanway school, rose to fame as part of Blur. Picture: Ian West/PA

He said: “I probably came across sometimes as a bit difficult and odd. You kind of need that sort of weirdness to stand out.

“I used to get bullied at school a lot. My parents never had any sympathy for me, ever. Never. They would just say ‘it's your fault’. They said ‘you bring it on yourself’.

“It was very good for me. I'm really glad that they were like that in a sense.”

Albarn and his family moved to rural north Essex when he was ten.

Albarn took part in school productions and got his ear pierced which he says encouraged his bullies.