That's an interesting point, and one that hints at why he refused to produce Chasing Yesterday; basically because all the songs were completely finished, giving him little creative influence.

Like I said previously, if it is a 'rock' record, then let's hope to god it is in the vein of Fuckin In The Bushes. That dabbles in electronic production techniques like sampling, loops and synths that are going on behind the Led Zep style riff, and is all the better for it. Those largely used electronic techniques - whether it be the drum loop, the vocal sample, the swirling synth that you can make out - sound so weird to put you off kilter, while the ears face an onslaught of guitar riffs and choirs. Yes, your reaction should be 'what the fuck is this?!'. That's what rock music should do - make you sit bolt upright and assault the hearing.

And, not to get too sidetracked, despite the cliches thrown around that Oasis in the 90s were purely a retro nostalgic act, I do believe they pushed the boat out sonically - albeit in the most reckless manner possible. What with the Owen Morris brickwalling, the vast distortion and earth quake inducing guitars, these were pretty modern techniques that really pushed the noise levels up to the maximum (taking hints here and there from shoegaze), so much so that much of what went before sounds relatively tame. The success of Oasis did not purely rely on nostalgia and conventional songwriting, it was also largely down to the fact that they DID sound like a modern band. Oasis, and the following solo projects, biggest failures are exactly down to sounding TOO retro at times.

I'm amazed that some folk think rock and electronic styles are mutually incompatible. Combined together, it more often than not conjures up the heaviest, most in-your-face hard hitting intimidating sounds of the modern era - something that 'rock n roll' prided itself on back in the day, yet whose proponents these days are so insufferably inoffensive and dull that you get the impression they don't have any idea how to 'rock'. And yes, I count the poorer Oasis material and Beady Eye in that.

It would have been great if Noel had taken an extra year to make Giants with a producer who pushed him to write and experiment in the studio. The weaker, more conventional songs should have been binned and Fuckin In The Bushes should have been the template for the album, along with other Noel experiments like Setting Sun. It would have been a fantastic reinvention: the hard hitting ballsiness would still be there, although the means to being 'hard hitting' and 'ballsy' would have changed. The ethos of the band would have remained intact while the band made sonic leaps. That is precisely why Liam's vocals are a wasted asset on so many songs (particularly the simpering Beady Eye); what better voice is there in the world to combine with the sonic assaults of electronica inspired music? You are not going to forget that easily, so why he - or Oasis - didn't bother beats me.

So when Noel says the album will be a 'rock' record, I sure as hell hope he doesn't mean in the style of a middle aged pub dweller rocking out to Status Quo (like many of his recent 'rock' songs). Of course, if it's largely electronica I'd be delighted, but if he is eager to still play the rockstar, then now is the time to put your balls on the line.... like a real rockstar.

Which one is that? Genuine question as it probably refers to latter Coldplay!

A big radio show over here has this item where people can vote for a newly released song to be played or not. Last week it was that new Taylor Swift one. They played a snippet of it.

85% voted for it not to be played