Damon Albarn says he always had a sense he wasn’t ‘just English’

Blur singer has been given Icelandic citizenship

Blur singer Damon Albarn has said he always had a feeling he wasn’t “just English”.

The Brit Award winner, whose new solo album is out tomorrow (12 November), was granted Icelandic citizenship last year.

Albarn talked about his ancestry in an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music, saying: “It’s a deep one because my mum’s family is originally from Denmark.”

Albarn also discussed visiting the country for the first time: “When I went to Iceland, the first time, it was as a result of a recurring childhood dream of levitating over black sand, but they had no geography to it.”

He continued: “Obviously it could have been New Zealand and we’d be having an entirely different conversation now, but I’m glad that it was Iceland that I identified with.”

Albarn also discussed an upcoming Gorillaz film which is being made with Netflix: “It’s really exciting to do that. It’s something we’ve been wanting to do for a very long time.”

The “Song 2” musician then detailed what it was like working with the streaming service: “It’s just extraordinary to see how ubiquitous they are now. They just seem like they’re a good creative team, you know?”

Damon Albarn in artwork for his new album (Linda Brownlee)

Albarn’s third solo album - The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows - received a three star review from The Independent’s Roisin O’Connor. She describes it as having “wonderful moments” but also not easy “to fathom”.