Early arrivals at the Hollywood Bowl might have been surprised by the sparse crowd for Blur on Tuesday night, but once the Britpop forefathers took the stage, the venue filled up as if by magic. And when the band emerged, Damon Albarn was almost immediately met with records to sign and hands to hold. Smiling at his dedicated fans, gold tooth and all, Albarn and Co. opened the set with “Go Out” from the new album “The Magic Whip.” The venue was sent into quick frenzy for “There’s No Other Way” as Blur proved themselves to be renewed and restored to the passionate time-defying band fans hoped for. While the show was quite star-studded (Beck, Alex Turner, Tony Kanal stopped by, to name a few), nobody could quite take their eyes off the group who still remained as musically taut as they were in their heyday. Drummer Dave Rowntree kept solid foundation as Albarn bounded around the stage tossing water on fans and bandmates and even walked onto the walkway behind the pit to a sea of raised arms. There was a true appreciation from the band to be playing such a famous venue now decorated with bright lights and giant ice cream cones. Blur were certainly able to satiate their crowd of long-lasting devotees with a reel of favorites. Guitarist Graham Coxon shone during sing-along “Coffee & TV” and the immediately-recognizable “Beetlebum.” Both Coxon and bassist Alex James remained fairly focused during the performance as Albarn took reins as seasoned and charismatic front man. The emotional high of the evening came from requisite tear-jerker “Tender,” which was followed by Albarn singing the lyrics, “Please don’t vote for Trump. He’s such a chump. Please don’t vote for Trump.” Comedian Fred Armisen joined the band for a more local adaptation of “Parklife” and the entirety of the Bowl was quick to join in on every single “woo-hoo” of “Song 2,” which Albarn introduced with a story about not being recognized by airport officials. They closed their main set with “This Is A Low” and then returned for a four-song encore including the final sweaty romp of “Girls & Boys” and, with a supplementary horn section, “The Universal,” which hit in all the right places. As emotionally drained patrons shuffled out of the venue, their ears continued ringing with the lyrics “It really really really could happen.” And on this night, it really did.

Shot for BUZZBANDS.LA

BLUR were opened by Courtney Barnett