Alex James says Britpop was less a genre than a moment in time, one shaped by British songwriting traditions and a reaction to changing rock culture. Speaking to Noise11 ahead of the 2026 Australian Britpop Classical tour, the Blur bassist reflected on how the movement emerged and why its music continues to resonate decades later.
by Paul Cashmere
As Alex James prepares to bring Britpop Classical to Australia in November 2026, the founding Blur bassist says the term “Britpop” has never sat comfortably with him, despite being one of the musicians most closely associated with the movement. Speaking to Noise11, Alex James said the label has always been difficult to define because it ultimately captured a wider cultural moment rather than a strict musical style.
Britpop Classical, a concert production featuring a rock band performing alongside a full symphony orchestra and guest vocalists, revisits music from the era with material drawn from Blur, Oasis, Pulp, Supergrass and other acts associated with the period. While the show itself is built around songs from the 1990s, James suggested that the conversation around Britpop still carries significance because the music has outlived the period in which it was created.
The broader question is relevant beyond nostalgia. The 1990s represented one of the last periods when guitar bands occupied the centre of mainstream popular culture.
James believes many of those songs have survived because of songwriting rather than trend or production style.
“I never really liked the term, to be honest,” James told Noise11.
He said that while assembling Britpop Classical, the creative team began with several hours of material that could potentially be included before reducing it to a tightly constructed live show.
“We got it down to four and a half hours of hits that we absolutely had to do. Building a show like this is about how songs knit together with tempo and keys and flow.”
James admitted the definition itself remains flexible.
“Britpop is quite frankly whatever I say it is,” he said, laughing.
Beyond humour, James offered a clearer explanation. He sees Britpop as reflecting “a time in the ’90s when guitar bands ruled the world.”
That interpretation becomes broader than the standard shortlist of Blur, Oasis, Pulp and Suede. James pointed out that songs outside the traditional Britpop framework also became impossible to ignore during the process. He cited Radiohead’s Creep as an example.
“You wouldn’t necessarily think of it as Britpop, but once the orchestra lets rip on that song it’s just bonkers,” he said.
James also traced the roots of the movement back further than the 1990s itself. During the interview he identified British songwriting traditions of the 1960s as a major influence on Blur and its contemporaries.
For Blur, he said, the shift became especially apparent with the band’s second album, Modern Life Is Rubbish, released in 1993.
“That was a determined return to British songwriting references,” he said. “All of those bands were drawing from classic English songwriters.”
The opening sequence of Britpop Classical reflects that thinking. The show begins with material such as Rebel Rebel, Get It On, Waterloo Sunset and My Generation before moving into songs from the 1990s.
For James, these earlier songs establish the lineage. “That’s exactly the DNA,” he said.
His perspective also offers another interpretation of the long discussed Blur and Oasis rivalry. During the 1990s the battle between the two bands became one of the dominant narratives in British music media, often reducing a wider movement to a competitive storyline.
James acknowledged the division while also viewing it with some distance. “I always found the whole thing hilarious,” he said.
The renewed interest in both bands in recent years suggests that the appeal of the music itself has endured beyond old rivalries. Blur returned in 2023 with The Ballad Of Darren, while Oasis announced their own return performances, reigniting global demand.
For James, that continuing interest reinforces his argument that Britpop was never simply a scene or marketing category. It represented a period when guitar music connected with audiences on a large scale and produced songs that remain culturally durable.
Britpop Classical now brings those songs back into a new setting, with orchestral arrangements designed to reconnect audiences with music from a period James believes still carries meaning.
Watch the Alex James Noise11 interview:
BRITPOP CLASSICAL TOUR DATES 2026
Tuesday 3 November, Gold Coast, The Star
Wednesday 4 November, Brisbane, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
Friday 6 November, Melbourne, The Palais
Sunday 8 November, Adelaide, Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Tuesday 10 November, Sydney, State Theatre
Thursday 12 November, Perth, Riverside Theatre
Tickets available via mellenevents.com
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