Blur are making a big deal out of their return to recording, and rightfully so.

Set for release next week (April 28) The Magic Whip is the band's first new album in 12 years and so far, every track they have put forth sounds like classic Blur. Another new tune, "Ong Ong," has surfaced, and it surges along in classic Brit-pop style. In other words, Blur are shining here. Check it out above.

As for where Blur fit into today's music world, singer Damon Albarn has his own take on what he calls the "selfie generation."

"Look at music now. Does it say anything?," Albarn told the U.K. Sunday Times. "Young artists talk about themselves, not what’s happening out there. It’s the selfie generation. They’re talking platitudes. What are any of them saying? I don’t hear anything other than: 'This is how I feel.' Which is an important part of songwriting, but we’re talking in the context of the election – and they don’t have anything to do with it.”

It seems the recording of the new album was shrouded in secrecy according to guitarist Graham Coxon in an interview with Noisey. "I'd only just had that meeting with Damon, then we went across to the management and went into their secret glass room where no one can hear you say anything, to make this secret phone call to you," he said in conversation with producer Stephen Street, who added, "We were working on it, but we can't tell anyone. We had to keep it quiet for so long."

Coxon agreed. "Weird, cause even like friends of mine, I couldn't even tell them. Even Damon, he managed to keep it quiet, which is rare cause he gets excited and flippin' tells everyone."

Worst to First: Every Blur Album Ranked

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