Blur – On Your Own Review

This is where the fork in the road for Damon Albarn began. He has since cited On Your Own as one of the earliest Gorillaz songs. A track which featured on Blur’s self-titled album, but a piece of work which would inform his artistic direction. The James Hewlett collaborations to follow, the vice-like grip the group still has in animated form on the public, is monumental. Where On Your Own may remain a Blur song through and through, it is only right of Albarn to consider this a Gorillaz piece. There is a raging heart to it which overlaps the best bits of Blur and the boundary-pushing charms of Gorillaz. The once boundary-pushing charm, that is, as the group has not detailed anything of real power or authority since 2010. Blur, on the other hand, goes from strength to strength. Part of their vibrant style and longevity is found in this song.  

Though Albarn may see this as a precursor to Gorillaz, the guitar work from Graham Coxon is indistinguishable from the established Blur sound. His step into grunge and punk rock territory can be heard throughout the self-titled release, but it becomes a defining part of On Your Own. There is a feedback style, a desire to leave the notes hanging around for that second or two longer than expected, which links back to the early days of Leisure. What Albarn hears in On Your Own which embodies the creative spirit of Gorillaz, is relatively confusing. On Your Own remains a tame effort from Blur, a song which feels too obsessed with the narrow and simple-sounding instrumental structure. Guitar work from Coxon here, while inspired by the right places, sounds of the times and relatively unremarkable. An Oasis-level riff. Memorable, but not at all interesting. Still, the production effort is more than likely what Albarn means when it comes to comparing this to a Gorillaz work.  

Three songs from Peel Acres serve as the B-sides to this effort from Blur. These songs now feature on Bustin’ + Dronin’, and they stand up well enough. Popscene is a menacing number; again, the focus on what Coxon brings to the group outshines everything else, even the song it is meant to be promoting. On Your Own just feels a tad lifeless from a band where instrumental chemistry and experimentation were everything. To hear them reject the fundamentals of what makes them an entertaining group is a difficult listen. Those Peel Acres performances are well worth a listen, though. Just take a listen to Song 2. Nothing short of monumental. This captures the live style of Blur, something they still held at those Wembley shows in 2023.  

That high is popped once more with a return of On Your Own. Where some may wonder if the song improves in a live environment, the sad fact is, it does not. It still sounds underwhelmed, reliant on the tech touch-ups which would define Gorillaz. The live version highlights Albarn’s point more than anything. It does not overhaul the song. A little throwback to the Leisure days from Albarn’s guitar work, an overwhelmed inclusion which makes Alex Jamesa and Dave Rowntree feel absent from the mix, and a relatively straight-shooting performance from Albarn. It isn’t all that mesmerising, though it is far from terrible. A middle of the road run from Blur, a rare drop-off in the quality we have come to expect from the group.