I spent all day thinking about my first love

On the 12th of September 2011, I moved to the UK; this is the excuse I used this week to get down to the pub and drink a bit more than I should – really not that much, I’m such a good girl. This anniversary was also a perfect opportunity to ask some personal questions about my friends’ teenage years – unlike me, they were all underage back then, and for some of them by quite a margin…

So, not to seem too nosey, I offered my story about the 12th of September 6 years ago, the day I moved here – nothing exciting really, just sad instant soup and embarrassed little me as the neighbour’s accent proved too much to handle – and then, I proceeded to some thourough questioning.

Obviously, I got nothing crunchy –  I was utterly dissappointed – just normal teenage crap: too much video games, unstimulating classes and first girlfriends. But this last one caught my attention and got me thinking about my first love. Ah, it was not one special boy, but 4. When I was about 15, I fell in love with a band, I fell in love with Blur – the 90s got to me a bit late.

I loved how cool they were, the vibes of the songs, I loved how they made me feel, they were so different from all the bands I heard on the radio, they sounded so special – and really not French, which meant a lot to me back in my little village buried in the vineyards.

And so, I made the risky decision to revisit my first love. I say risky because you don’t want to taint the beautiful memories you have of long summer afternoons swaying to those songs or mediocre nights out that were made marginally better by Girls and Boys coming on.

So here are my 5 favourite Blur songs (and a link to a neat little Spotify playlist with a few more to accompany you while the ghost of love past is around). I’m happy to say they didn’t dissappoint me. I’m still in love with those songs. I spent the day thinking about my first love.

5 – Out of Time (Think Tank, 2003)

The bassline hooks you right from the beginning and the lyrics really play on your fear of time passing and all that kind of stuff, this is all I want from pop music.

4 – Death of a Party (Blur, 1997)

With those buzzing and distortion sounds going through the verses, it still sounds cool and different to me.

3 – You’re So Great (Blur, 1997)

This song is just so damn sweet and lovely.

2 – Sing (Leisure, 1991)

The hammered piano chords and the distant delivery of the vocals create a weirdly melancholic atmosphere.

1 – Swamp Song ( 13, 1998)

I still think this one sounds dirty, which is great to forget how bored you can get.