A very good indicator of whether I’m going to like someone or not is how they feel about Oasis. If they don’t like them, I can feel the blood and heat rush to my face and my fists clinch.
There are only two reasons anyone EVER gives for not liking them. They are:
1) The brothers are a couple of clowns.
2) They copy the Beatles too much
Both of these reasons drive me crazy because neither one is based on actually listening to the music. It’s based on an impression they’ve acquired from the press that they’ve adopted as their own when they have no idea. Simple mindedness like this is one of my biggest pet peeves in people. So, there’s no sense pursuing a relationship. If they’re knee-jerk about this, they’ll be knee-jerk about other things. Knee-jerking is for jerks.
The first reason is the one most created by the press. Yes, the Gallagher’s fight and argue and can act immaturely. However, Ray and Dave Davies did the same thing and no one wrote off the Kinks as being a bunch of hacks. Plus, has anyone ever actually watched a Noel Gallagher interview? He’s one of the most clever, candid, and humorous rock stars out there. I recently watched a doc series called The Seven Ages of Rock and the episode on British Indie Music was the best installment. The best scene, and I’m trying to find it online, is when Noel says that "Wonderwall" made him a millionaire four times in one week. He then, for emphasis, holds up four fingers and mouths “Four times!” as if his own mind was blown by it. So honest and hilarious. Another moment was from the film Live Forever, a doc on the same subject. Noel is slouched in a huge desk chair and says, after defending their opus Be Here Now, “Take it to the shop, you might get 2 quid for it. Come ‘round and I’ll sign it. You might get 5.”
Reason number two is the lamest. Show me one band NOT influenced by the Beatles, and I’ll tell you it’s actually jazz. Blaming them for copying the Beatles is like vilifying a Christian for copying the Bible. I can only think of one song that has any remote Beatles rip-off and it’s the intro to “Don’t Look Back In Anger”, which has a piano part that sounds a lot like “Imagine”. Other than that, they write some of the greatest, straight up, power drenched, rock songs of all-time. How anyone can listen to “Champagne Supernova”, “Live Forever”, or “D’You Know What I Mean?” and not be blown away by the sonic ferocity makes no sense. You must have pear and mango moisturizer running through your veins.
I will admit they aren’t the most inventive lyricists in the world. Noel’s words seem to be there to fill space between power chords and solos. The one bonus of that is that lead singer Liam is one of the greatest singers/interpreters in the biz and can make nothing sound like something. I’ll sacrifice lyrics for sheer sonic force.
There are only two reasons anyone EVER gives for not liking them. They are:
1) The brothers are a couple of clowns.
2) They copy the Beatles too much
Both of these reasons drive me crazy because neither one is based on actually listening to the music. It’s based on an impression they’ve acquired from the press that they’ve adopted as their own when they have no idea. Simple mindedness like this is one of my biggest pet peeves in people. So, there’s no sense pursuing a relationship. If they’re knee-jerk about this, they’ll be knee-jerk about other things. Knee-jerking is for jerks.
The first reason is the one most created by the press. Yes, the Gallagher’s fight and argue and can act immaturely. However, Ray and Dave Davies did the same thing and no one wrote off the Kinks as being a bunch of hacks. Plus, has anyone ever actually watched a Noel Gallagher interview? He’s one of the most clever, candid, and humorous rock stars out there. I recently watched a doc series called The Seven Ages of Rock and the episode on British Indie Music was the best installment. The best scene, and I’m trying to find it online, is when Noel says that "Wonderwall" made him a millionaire four times in one week. He then, for emphasis, holds up four fingers and mouths “Four times!” as if his own mind was blown by it. So honest and hilarious. Another moment was from the film Live Forever, a doc on the same subject. Noel is slouched in a huge desk chair and says, after defending their opus Be Here Now, “Take it to the shop, you might get 2 quid for it. Come ‘round and I’ll sign it. You might get 5.”
Reason number two is the lamest. Show me one band NOT influenced by the Beatles, and I’ll tell you it’s actually jazz. Blaming them for copying the Beatles is like vilifying a Christian for copying the Bible. I can only think of one song that has any remote Beatles rip-off and it’s the intro to “Don’t Look Back In Anger”, which has a piano part that sounds a lot like “Imagine”. Other than that, they write some of the greatest, straight up, power drenched, rock songs of all-time. How anyone can listen to “Champagne Supernova”, “Live Forever”, or “D’You Know What I Mean?” and not be blown away by the sonic ferocity makes no sense. You must have pear and mango moisturizer running through your veins.
I will admit they aren’t the most inventive lyricists in the world. Noel’s words seem to be there to fill space between power chords and solos. The one bonus of that is that lead singer Liam is one of the greatest singers/interpreters in the biz and can make nothing sound like something. I’ll sacrifice lyrics for sheer sonic force.
