What just happened?
Did Liam and Noel walk on stage holding hands? Did they leave with Liam giving Noel a solid high five as he walked off stage at the end of Champagne Supernova? Did they then hold on and build it into a solid man shoulder-bump almost-hug?
Yes. That did happen. And for those lucky few (thousand) crammed into the Cardiff Principality stadium, this was the money shot, what we all wanted to see. We’re so invested in the Gallaghers and their sibling rivalry and the genius that sparked between it, that this physical acknowledgement of each other was enough to turn half the crowd to mush.
But before the tears - and there were plenty of tears - there was the beginning.
The anticipation awaiting this gig, the first of Oasis’ reunion tour was huge. One of those shows where the expectation risks disappointment. Quite easily this could have been some corporate cash-in. Instead it was a reassertion of who Oasis are and what they could continue to be.
Liam and Noel Gallagher walked on hand-in-hand - well Liam clutching Noel’s raised hand - and looked before them to see masses of bodies going wild. Limbs, hands, tongues, teeth, open throats and distended organs mashed up against bone somewhere beneath. It was all quite uncontrollable.
After all the acrimony, the fights, the split, the bad blood, the nasty tweets, the threats, disses, insults and slurs, the brothers were on stage together again - and clearly delighted. Well not clearly delighted, this isn’t some cheesefest Butlins reunion. But there was a smirk, a half-smile, a sense that this was a major rush. They don’t say much - though Liam’s quip about the ticket prices was nice, “was it worth the £4,000 you paid for a ticket?” - but they don’t have to.
And look, half the reason why the crowd are both losing their minds and crying their hearts out is simply because of the visual thrill of seeing Liam and Noel sharing space for the first time since 2009.
But the set they play is sensational, not predictable, but an exploration of the back catalogue that feels perfectly weighted and builds and builds with surprises and big hitters.
See also: Set list Oasis played at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium
They started with Hello - ‘it’s good to be back’ - and morph into Acquiesce, the song Noel has always denied was about the two brothers - ‘because we need each other’ etc - but this early on in the set was a clear acknowledgement of its significance.
They followed it up with (What’s the Story) Morning Glory and then Some Might Say, probably their greatest single but not even their biggest single. And it’s breathless and loud and delivering hard on the promise of these shows.
All day in Cardiff they’ve been up for it, but there’s been a different feeling too. Back in the day, as the glorious 90s turned into the nondescript 00s, Oasis shows became simply a refuge for hedonism, an excuse to go mad. It seems the shows existed to unite the football firms in the country for a urine-hurling championship.
Today, reports of Gen-Z loving Oasis look like they have not been overplayed. There’s been a cross-generational vibe around the stadium. Like Noel’s dream of melding dance music commonality with punk rock attitude to kill off grunge, something seems to have been rebooted. Turn off and on again, and the aggro violence has gone, and what’s left is something fresh and cool and utterly exciting.
They play Bring It On Down and Cigarettes and Alcohol, and it sounds huge. Then they hit Fade Away, which hits the right notes of nostalgia and serves as a reminder that this is a proper band, a band with depth, that rewards exploration, not simply ‘ooh they like to fight’ social media fodder.
The sense of occasion makes things electric. Supersonic and Roll With It are pure fireworks into the eyeballs, all sense of sitting back gone. This is physical music trying to dig out your soul.
Liam then departs to give Noel the stage for Talk Tonight and Half The World Away. And it feels important. While Liam is still the ultra-cool good-looking aggro-sex god, Noel carries the weight of the music and here reminds everyone of his purist songwriting chops.
They play Slide Away and everyone is crying. It’s the absence of course. But also to do with this band being the soundtrack to so many life events for people, from first snogs to new haircuts to marriages to friendships to funerals. It means something to people.
Yes we’re watching history. It is pure electricity.
And it also sounds evil. You can’t have Oasis without the Sex Pistols aggression and although this is a love-in, it sounds bad ass. Liam is always good value but here he’s feeding off the crowd like a vampire with good hair, spitting out the words, driving on the mayhem. This is what he does best, and what few others can do. But with Noel under him it’s astonishing. Liam’s solo gigs just haven’t replicated what it sounds like with the Chief beside him. It is loud and aggressive and furious, the sound of pent up rage getting let out.
They play Wonderwall, they finish with Champagne Supernova, and it feels, as Liam would say, biblical.
Noel once reflected that Oasis came this close to being a massive, seriously legendary group, a Beatles or Stones or Who or U2. He saw the problem was that they didn’t conquer America, and failed to score more than a couple of classic albums. But perhaps they didn’t miss their chance. This doesn’t feel like a reunion show, it feels like the start of something new.
Noel also once said if he’d released The Masterplan, their b-side album, instead of the much maligned Be Here Now, that “there would have been a revolution in this country’” After tonight, the first stop of this reunion tour, it feels like that revolution is could be back on. Christ, release an good album off the back of this tour and anything’s possible. C’mon on, Noel.
Regardless, get prepared Manchester, London, the rest of the world... Oasis are back.
Set list Oasis played at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium
- Hello
- Acquiesce
- Morning Glory
- Some Might Say
- Bring It On Down
- Cigarettes & Alcohol
- Fade Away
- Supersonic
- Roll With It
- Talk Tonight
- Half the World Away
- Little by Little
- D'You Know What I Mean
- Stand By Me
- Cast No Shadow
- Slide Away
- Whatever
- Live Forever
- Rock and Roll Star
- The Masterplan
- Don't Look Back in Anger
- Wonderwall
- Champagne Supernova
