Modern Life Is Rubbish is the second studio album by the English alternative rock band Blur, released in May 1993. Although their debut album Leisure (1991) had been commercially successful, Blur faced a severe media backlash soon after its release, and fell out of public favour. After the group returned from an unsuccessful tour of the United States, poorly received live performances and the rising popularity of rival band Suede further diminished Blur's status in the UK.
Modern Life Is Rubbish
The steam locomotive Mallard, the subject of the album's cover.
Blur were an English rock band formed in London in 1988. The band consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bass guitarist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album, Leisure (1991), incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegaze. Following a stylistic change influenced by English guitar pop groups such as the Kinks, the Beatles and XTC, Blur released the albums Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995). As a result, the band helped to popularise the Britpop genre and achieved mass popularity in the UK, aided by a widely publicised chart battle with rival band Oasis in 1995 dubbed "The Battle of Britpop".
Blur at Wembley Stadium in 2023. From left to right: Graham Coxon, Damon Albarn, Dave Rowntree and Alex James
Blur at the Roskilde Festival, 1999
Coxon (left) and Albarn (right) on stage at the Newcastle Academy in June 2009
Blur, "The Ballad Of Darren" Album Playback Show at Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith, Tuesday 25 July 2023