Reviews
These are reviews of all albums and Oasis gigs in Sweden.
Made by the biggest swedish newspaper; Aftonbladet
The albums, "The third CD beats everything!"
Definitely Maybe
A debut album with itīs genius simpleness turned the world up side down a bit.
The Gallagher brothers have managed to sum up all essential british pop of the
tougher kind. With brilliant melodies. With a light touch of genius capacity to
refine old worn out guitar clichés. And, most important, with a flashing devotion.
They play like each chord is the last one and theyīre convienced that no one have
ever done it better!
Classics: Supersonic,
Live Forever and RockīnīRoll Star
(Whatīs the story) Morning Glory?
I already suspected it at the first sight. A month and, approximately, fifty
listenings
later am I totally sure; Oasis have, just one
year after their first single, made a classic
rock album. It should not really be possible. The group doesnīt do anything that
hasnīt
been done before. Itīs just about conventional rockīnīroll with straight
melodies,
striking choruses, really high volume and
open showing Beatles influences.
But with their dedication, immoderate
love to music and tremendous believe in themself,
manage the big mouth Manschester hooligans not only blow life in the fed up form,
they make it sparkle in a totally new, juvenile life.
Then they have Noel Gallagher. He confirms
hereby, once and for all, that he is a
composer of the same caliber as Ray Davies, Marc Bolan and Paul Weller.
Every song on Morning
Glory are brilliant, everyone could stand as a single, from the
opening rock knock Hello, with a biting
chorus directly from Gary Glitters storm hit
with the same name to the magnificent finishing hymn Champagne
Supernova through
melody chocks Wonderwall and Hey Now!, the ballad Cast No Shadow,
the electric
outburst Morning Glory. And so on.
A masterpiece.
Classics: Wonderwall, Donīt Look Back In Anger and Morning Glory
Be Here Now
- Itīs all about the melody. Not how nice a song is produced, how good the lyrics
are
or who plays the guitar best- are people getting touched then itīs a good song.
Says Noel Gallagher and summarize on an
almost ridiculous easy way everything
that makes Oasis such a fantastic rock band.
Noel donīt give a damn if people call his songs for shameless thefs and nostalgic
retro. He loves the Beatles, Stones,
Small Faces and Bowie
and want nothing else
but to write the same phenomenal songs as they did. So of course he borrows what he
needs. The only
thing that counts is if people are getting touched.
What if some points out that Stand By Me sounds like
All The Young Dudes , that
the lyrics swarms with Beatles- titles or that Itīs Gettinī
Better (Man!!) sounds
a bit obscure in expensive stereos. If that bothers them then they havenīt
understood anything.
Oasis have done it again.
If Be Here Now is their strongest moment time will
show, also if itīs a classic
rock album in the same division as Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts
Club Band and
Exile On Main Street, the two records that Noel Gallagher have had as a target
during the work on the album.
But compared to the rivalries in the 90īs then Oasis
third album beat most of them.
There is more interesting and innovativ artists. Noel says pleasantly that he makes
"usual pub rock", but that is as said not whatīs it all about.
Itīs about good songs. That touches.
And a stronger collection rock songs am I doubting that weīll hear on any other
album this year.
Be Here Now is more rock than the presents. Longer
songs, more and harder guitars,
more groove and slightly less adress.
But surely number ones can be picked out.
The comming single Stand By Me and the even stronger
Donīt Go Away are grand
string arranged ballads from the same school and class as Donīt
Look Back In Anger
and Wonderwall. Liam Gallagher sings them better
than ever.
All Around The World, that rumours to be a christmas
single, is a magnificent,
nine minute singsong anthem about hope and comfort.
Oasis have probabaly also never rocked so organic.
The clever, guitarfull My Big Mouth
should be a potentiall concert opener. The title track is a dirty slack Stones/Faces
rocker with tough maracas, suggestive flute riff and the album maybe most catching
chorus ("sing a song for me, on from Let it be").
Itīs Gettinī Better (Man!!) swings like a hotel
door.
I Hope, I think, I Know is the name of the big pop
number, a song with so much
bubbling self confidence that only Oasis could have
recorded it.
The new so notorious psychedelic side becomes aware in the dramatic,
Beggars Banquet coloured Fade
In- Out (with excellent slide guitar by Johnny Depp!)
and the organ bluesy Magic Pie, the only song that
Noel sings on the album.
The only track that might is a bit faint is The Girl In The
Dirty Shirt, in which Oasis
actually calculates themself in a little pointless way. So on can I think that Noel
sometimes blow up the songs unnecessary, puts in a little to much, stretches his
solos half a minute to long.
But in that case Iīm poking with a pair of tweezers.
And that feels in fact a little silly to do on such a brilliant record as Be Here Now.
Classics: Stand By Me, Donīt Go
Away and DīYou Know What I Mean?
The Masterplan
A collection of B- sides. Again. We have heard them before and know that many
of them holds higher class than stupid- Noel chosed to put as A- sides.
But yet. Itīs healthy to be reminded of the strength in this now quite slandered band.
Lazy I put in the Cd in the stereo, turns the volume up to max and suddenly Acquiesce
explodes in my ears. Iīm almost falling out of my chair. Such a blasting sound!
Fade Away, Listen Up, (Itīs Good) To Be Free and RockinīChair has the same effect.
Not forgetting the pop bomb Stay Young, easily the
best song from the BHN sessions.
It might be that uncle Gallagher donīt like it, but as it stands in the booklet;
"The audience, that always knows better than the songwriters themselfs, loves it.
Couldnīt have said it better myself.
The best band in the world.
At least sometimes.
Classics: Acquiesce, RockinīChair
and Stay Young
The Gigs, "The best band of the 90īs!"
The Hultsfred Festival 13 August ī94, 2000- 3000
people
Crazy high volume, Liam Gallagher in a nice blue
shirt and cool sunglasses and
a tambourine in one hand. Supersonic, Shakermaker
and many great songs that no one
have heard earlier, plus a vibrating ending with the Beatles I Am The Walrus.
The Gino, Stockholm 2 September ī94, 700 people (full)
After Hultsfred and the release of the debut album Definitely
Maybe was it
Oasis fever. The band was quickly brought to the
Gino and the hole pop Stockholm
were there. "Oasis turns the show into a
explosive Here and Now feeling!"
Palladium, Stockholm 16 November ī94, 500- 600 people
Oasis was the hotest band in the world, was touring
hard and managed to come to
Sweden a third time in four months. "Somethingīs missing in the performing, the
burning aggressiveness that sparkled from the band can barely be seen now.
Like if the Gallagher brothers and their companions were a bit play tired.
The Annexet, Stockholm 20 November ī95, 3500 people
The only gig in Sweden was made in the Annexet which uslessness is unbelieveable
You here that not a single song is worse than brilliant. You hear that the guitars are
great and you see that Liam owns the show. But it never feels like that. The distance
is to long, the environment to cold and ugly and the sound stinks.
Most memorable is;
Noels solo part with Wonderwall and Cast No Shadow.
The Sjohistoriska Museét, Stockholm 7 August ī96
Before the gig was it talk about Oasis weaknesses as a live band, but with a borrowed
orchestra plus a couple of new songs smashed they all doubtness to pieces.
Itīs the 90īs best rock band that stands on the stage, no one holds as high and
smoth class. Now they have become a live band too. Without stealing one single dance
step from Steven Tyler.
The Globe, Stockholm
I just have to
admit it. The five plus canon was loaded.
I thought that the brilliant rehearsle in Oslo would grow to an overwhelming
sensation
in Stockholm- Oasis second home capital.
But I have
to rest two inches before lightning...
The
performance is at times quite shaking. White the drummer boy shakes for example
alot
at some points. Wonderwall is one, therefor a total failour. Also are the responce
actually
smaller than awaited.
After six
songs Noel has to tell the crowd;
"Get
off your seats, you lazy bastards!"
But in the
whole, the concert are just amazing.
A concert,
when you leave and feels your chest full of boiling life and hope and you
are
in such a redicolus happy mood.
It
shouldnīt be possible. A band that so consecvent refuses to give after
to the
demands of a "show" should according to logic totally fall apart in a place
like
the Globe.
They
arenīt exactly any song and dance kind of guys. They stand motionless and
stare
at us, throughout the concert. No one makes a single move in a try to communicate.
Nevertheless it feels so electric.
So
intensed.
So
powerfull.
It says
alot about the force that Noel Gallagher has living inside his songs.
They
are...
yeah,
incomparable. All of them.
I have
said it before. No band in the history of rock has after only three albums
been
able to show the world so many classics as Oasis have.
And then
you should think of that the guys has left behind a fistfull more
killers on
this years tour. As RockīnīRoll Star, as Shakermaker, as Slide Away,
as
Cigarettes & Aclohol. Most of the hits are performed with killing authority.
Ok
Wonderwall, the shows expecting climax, are they throwing away, and
Magic Pie,
which Noel sings by himself, feels mute. But the other 14 songs
explodes
in the face.
The best
ones are Stay Young - a pop caramel that every other band in the world
would
kill for; Noel put it as a B-side- Supersonic, Champagne Supernova
(complete
with a brilliant Noel- solo) and last but not least a HEAVY DīYou Know
What
I Mean?
Then we
have the little brother Liam.
The king
of the Globe.
He is
truely not an audience pleaser either.
My God,
during Live Forever - dedicated to Diana- the damn guy sits and sharpens
his
glasses! Nevertheless he sparkles so people driving by becames blinded.
I canīt
come up with one other pop artist that has the same flamering carisma.
And as he
sings.....
I think
you can say I love Liam Gallagher.
I ended
the Oslo review by saying that we stood infront of an unforgettable evening.
It was,
despite the none star exctasy, not an overstatement.