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Edited on Fri Mar-11-05 01:30 PM by liberalpragmatist
UK-based group. HUGE in the mid-90s, at which point their popularity in the UK really was as big as the Beatles.
Their first two albums are fantastic. So is their b-sides compilation. However, after that they kind of lost it. Their ego got the better of them and their later stuff is pretty average.
Anyway, they tend to be a love-hate group. Very few people who are familiar about them are neutral about them. That's largely because the two brothers who lead the group, Noel Gallagher and Liam Gallagher are major-league assholes. Especially Liam. At the height of their 90s popularity they claimed they were better than their idols the Beatles. Liam later called George Harrison a "nipple," when he criticized them. Paul McCartney originally professed himself a fan but about '97 when their following was biggest (and their music having become most derivative) he criticized them. Liam was also banned from Cathy Pacific airlines for allegedly assaulting passengers, smoking, and cursing at the flight attendants.
Noel is easier to take. He's extremely sarcastic and offends a lot of people with his interviews, but he's actually a lot nicer and smarter than his brother who's always getting into fights and is quite stupid.
Because of their obnoxious behavior and their arrogant statements in the mid-90s they pretty much divide opinion pretty fiercely. People either love them, or, because they hate the brothers, they absolutely hate them.
Oh and on DU the Oasis fans are pretty obnoxious too. They like to annoy people. Just ignore them.
All this being said, some of their music is really good, IMO. For all the Beatles talk, what is rock music if unoriginal? Also they have just as much influence from British punk, The Small Faces, glam rock (esp. T. Rex), David Bowie, and the Stone Roses. Their first album Definitely Maybe really doesn't sound much like the Beatles at all and is often in Europe recognized as one of the best albums of the 90s. Their second album, (What's the Story) Morning Glory? is more derivative but was a bigger hit and does contain some excellent songs. That's where the Beatles influence really began to show on songs like "Wonderwall," "Don't Look Back in Anger," and "She's Electric," which are quite Beatles-esque in a good way. "Wonderwall" and "Champagne Supernova" were their big US hits.
It's on their third album that the Beatles stuff gets out of hand. That album, Be Here Now, is a mess - it's a pretentious self-parody. The Beatles thing is blown up to laughable heights, especially on the 10-minute "Hey Jude"-ripoff "All Around the World." Their last two albums after that aren't anything too great. A handful of good songs, but on the whole pretty average - Matchbox 20 quality.
It should be said too that the band has disowned the third album - Noel Gallagher says it was "grossly offensive," and says he can't even listen to it anymore, blaming the whole thing on his being on a perpetual cocaine high at the time.
Anyway, if you can put up with obnoxious personalities, their first two albums and their b-sides compilation The Masterplan are worth checking out. And just ignore LoZoccolo and HalfManHalfBiscuit. :eyes:
Check them out if you like any of the following (as I do): The Beatles, the Kinks, The Rolling Stones, The Who, David Bowie, T. Rex and assorted glam rock, The Sex Pistols, The Stone Roses, U2. It's basically anthemic rock. If your tastes are more progressive than pass them over.
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