Out of Time

"Out of Time" is a song by British band Blur from their seventh studio album, Think Tank (2003). The song was written and produced by band members Damon Albarn, Alex James and Dave Rowntree, with Ben Hillier also serving as a producer. After being premiered via BBC Radio 1 on 3 March, it was released as the album's lead single on 14 April 2003, by Parlophone. The song became the band's first release without guitarist Graham Coxon. It is a pop ballad featuring acoustic guitars and bass, as well as a Moroccan orchestra. Lyrically, it deals with a civilisation that has lost touch, with Coxon's departure being referenced in the lyrics. "Out of Time" received positive reviews from music critics, with some of them placing focus on Albarn's vocal performance. Commercially, the song was successful in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number five, as well as attaining success in other European countries, peaking inside the top 10 in Scotland and the top 20 in Ireland and Sweden. The accompanying music video, directed by John Hardwick, does not feature the band members themselves in any way, being made up of footage from a 2002 BBC documentary titled Warship, exploring the lives of those serving on a warship. The video is centered around a young female aircraft maintenance technician. The song was played live at several concerts by Blur, including on their series of two shows at London's Hyde Park in 2009, as well as their concert directly after the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in the same city. Background and development Recording sessions for Blur's seventh studio album started in November 2001 in London with the absence of guitarist Graham Coxon, who had been battling alcoholism and depression, thus failing to turn up to the initial sessions. Coxon spent time, what he described as "awkward afternoons", contributing on some tracks on the album, but left the band in 2002 after he had a "mental breakdown" during these sessions. Coxon explained that "there were no rows" and "[Blur] just recognised the feeling that we needed some time apart". The remaining members of Blur decided to carry on recording, travelling to Morocco to continue recording the album, with the intention to "escape from whatever ghetto we're in and free ourselves by going somewhere new and exciting". The band settled at Marakesh, where they built a studio together, which "brought everyone closer".