The music duo Bob Vylan criticized Damon Albarn for his statements about her controversial Glastonbury appearance. The blur front man described the appearance in an interview as “one of the most spectacular failures I have ever seen in my life”. Bob Vylan now countered and called Albarn a “native musician of the 90s”.
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Controversial appearance at the Glastonbury Festival
It all started with the Glastonbury Festival appearance in 2025 of the punk rap duo Bob Vylan. During the concert, Frontmann Bobby Vylan called the slogan “Death to the IDF” (the Israel Defense Forces are the armed forces of the State of Israel) into the audience – a call that was understood as an anti -Semitic one in both the UK and internationally. The slogan “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will BE Free” also ensured split reactions because it is used by Hamas.
Among other things, Gorillaz co-founder Damon Albarn commented on this incident in an interview with “The Times” on July 12th. “It was one of the most spectacular failures I’ve ever seen in my life,” he said. “I mean, I already had my moments – not quite as catastrophic as this, but you can just be carried away. The old testosterone drives you. But it is unfortunate. Everyone is just as hysterical.”
Reaction of Bob Vylan
Four days later, the duo reacted on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) with two posts: “A little help for all other musicians from the 90s who have no idea and are asked about Bob Vylan in Glastonbury: their answer should be roughly as much as possible,” they then write and list then how many medical specialists in the Middle East conflict have died since October 7.
It also says: “The genocide is transmitted live so that everyone can see it, and Great Britain not only allows it, but even promotes it – together with the United States. Why are we talking about a punk band?”
Albarn’s view of the Middle East conflict
In the same interview, Albarn had also commented directly on the Middle East conflict: “Part of Palestine’s big problem is the way her identity is so brutally undermined,” he said. He also emphasized that he would “like to work with musicians in Palestine and Israel”.