Blur Bassist Makes Beautiful Blue Cheese

The worlds of rock and food don’t usually pair well together. A handful of superstars have certainly eased their way into (semi)-retirement by slapping their name on a few bottles of liquor—Jay-Z’s Armadale vodka, Sammy Hagar’s Cabo Wabo tequila—but that’s about it. It’s usually reality television that musicians look toward to pay for their retirement, not their own pasta lines.  

Well if you don’t know Alex James for anything, you’ll know him now for his cheese. According to Idolator and Contact Music, the former Blur bassist has started production on his very own line of blue-veined cheese at his Cotswolds farm. The ever-cheeky James plans on calling his creation Blue Monday in honor of the New Order tune—the most successful 12-inch single of all time. Accordingly, Blue Monday will hit cheese shops in 12-inch wheels (though we recommend you, ahem, don’t try to play them on your turntable).

With James’ culinary endeavors added to the pile, the former members of Blur have certainly been keeping themselves busy since the band’s hiatus began five years ago. Front-man Damon Albarn has his Chinese opera, his record label, and, of course, his virtual band Gorillaz. Guitarist Graham Coxon has his six solo albums, the most recent being 2006’s Love Travels at Illegal Speeds. Drummer Dave Rowntree has thrown himself into Labour politics, and is a patron of Amicus—a charitable UK organization supporting American lawyers working against the death penalty. And now we have James and his Blue Monday cheese. No wonder Noel Gallagher hates these art-school overachievers.