LONDON --- Recording Blur's first new album in eight years has been "exciting and emotional," bassist Alex James said, as the band prepares for a series of gigs this summer where fans will get to hear their new tunes. Blur, who exploded onto the British music scene in the early 1990s with hits like "Girls & Boys" and "Parklife," surprised fans on Thursday, May 18, by announcing their ninth studio album, "The Ballad of Darren," which will be released on July 21. The first track "The Narcissist" is already out. "What's incredible about this record is it just does feel like we've just sort of picked up where we left off. It just feels really relaxed and not trying too hard and...Keep on reading: Blur’s Alex James on making new album: ‘It’s exciting and emotional’