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Oasis slouches through new mediocrities, old favorites


By Greg Kot
Tribune music critic


Oasis' Liam Gallagher stood with arms clasped behind his back Monday at the lip of the UIC Pavilion stage. Behind him, his band stretched the bash-and-crash finale of "Cigarettes and Alcohol" to KISS-like extremes, but the singer looked oblivious to the commotion. He was cool, he was wearing shades indoors, and his pose said, "Worship me, you vermin."

Is the pose earned? In the United Kingdom, Oasis can do no wrong, even when they have. The Manchester band has been nearly as newsworthy as the queen for the last decade, and has six more No. 1 albums than her royal highness.


In North America, the band is defined primarily by its sole top-10 hit, "Wonderwall," which it saved for Monday's encore. That anthemic ballad charted in 1996, though the band's creative forces—brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher—continue to hold sway over a sizable cult following. Talk of renewed creative vigor has helped whet appetites for a comeback (basically, the Gallaghers cut way back on their drug intake, they've been telling the British press).

The Gallaghers have something to prove on this latest overseas jaunt, even if they didn't act like it. Their latest album, "Don't Believe the Truth," affirms they've been living off their past accomplishments for years, though Oasis tried to build a case for its latest songs early in the show. But "Let There Be Love," "Lyla" and "Love Like a Bomb" are among the laziest tunes the band has ever tried to pawn off on its unquestioning fans, harmonically malnourished drones that tried to get over on sheer gorilla volume and little else. Only the modified bolero beat of "The Importance of Being Idle" moved beyond the slogging, mid-tempo formula.

The believers tolerated these missteps in anticipation of the older songs sprinkled throughout the 90-minute set, and "Champagne Supernova," "Don't Look Back in Anger," "Morning Glory," "Live Forever" and "Rock 'n' Roll Star" sounded appropriately huge beneath the extravagant, Wembley Stadium-ready light show.

But the big melodies were delivered with little flair. Liam Gallagher slouched forward as if he were about to head-butt the microphone. His voice was more of a petulant bawl that launched the choruses into the rafters, where he was answered by thousands of chanting voices far more urgent than his. Guitarist Noel Gallagher looked on from the wings like a diffident musical director, surveying the scene he has masterminded: The songs he's written, the arrangements he has created, the younger brother he has fought, verbally abused and elevated into a rock-star front man. Occasionally, the brothers switched roles, with Noel singing in a voice that was higher, lighter and more melodic than his sibling's, though not nearly as charismatic. During these interludes, Liam Gallagher walked off, too bored to even contemplate a tambourine solo.

For all their arrogance, the brothers make no pretense about the sophistication of their music. These are songs for the lads to sing along with at the pub. They brought a solid band to the stage, with former Ride singer-songwriter Andy Bell on bass, guitarist Gem, drummer Zak Starkey and a keyboardist slugging away like a reincarnation of Slade. Like those '70s U.K. stalwarts, Oasis specializes in Big, Dumb Fun. And if anyone objects that the band is selling itself short, that Oasis has failed to live up to the promise of "Wonderwall," the Gallaghers make it plainly clear that they just don't give a fig.

gregkot@aol.com