Yes, I have been an ardent admirer of Oasis since day one. Let me try to objectively review this documentary …as if I were not a fan.
It is important to acknowledge that Oasis initially emerged as an independent band signed to an independent record label.
Within a relatively short timeframe, they achieved widespread popularity and subsequently disbanded.
Fast forward to 16 years later. It is a considerable time span. While it is not possible to definitively state that they could have been easily forgotten, this reunion could have primarily attracted only the longtime fans.
Well, This event attracted roughly 70,000 people per evening over 41 dates.
Nevertheless, it is not the impressive figures that capture the attention. What truly stands out is the profound connection between the artist and his audience. The communion.
The enduring impact that these songs have on individuals across generations. Their meaning to people who weren’t even born when the split occurred.
The rehearsal footage is absolutely priceless. Intentionally, the filmmakers refrained from being present, instead strategically placing cameras throughout the rehearsal space to create an organic and authentic atmosphere.
The inaugural date of the tour is
undoubtedly nerve-wracking. However, the brothers’ entrance, hand in hand on stage, evokes an indescribable and profound sense of pure joy. It is utterly satisfying.
The crowd is uplifted to its highest level, experiencing complete elation.
Adults shed tears while gazing at the sky and thanking the divine. Families, friends embracing one another, caring for each other, chanting every word. Dancing and jumping. Kids having the time of their lives.
There is an uncanny, lifting energy that is embodied by every single member of the audience. It is an impressive and emotional sight guided by only one thing: LOVE.
At this point, It is not only about Oasis anymore. It is about their remarkable ability to transport listeners away from their concerns, hardships and the challenging world we inhabit. For a brief moment, they create an atmosphere of safety and belonging. Even amidst a crowd of 70,000 or 90,000 people, they make you feel at home.
Saint Liam with the half halo tambourine on his head, Noel, Paul, Gem, Andy and Joey are here to tell us that tonight, everything will be ok.
God bless them for bringing this level of happiness.
So nevermind the rivalry, their first joint interview in years is genuine, touching and heartfelt. And nevermind the fact that they made a shitload of money with this reunion tour, it is beside the point because what is depicted on screen is of another level. It is a phenomenon unparalleled in its scale and considering the circumstances, unlikely to be achieved by any other outfit… dare I say.
Not bad for an indie band.
It DEFINITELY is the music documentary of the year, MAYBE the decade…deserving of widespread recognition and appreciation.
So go see this thing, devoted fan or not, you will be in awe of what is depicted in front of you. Witness a spiritual and uplifting gathering fueled by the power of music. …
It truly is BIBLICAL.
Photo and article by Richard – Speaker at The Record Club
I’ve seen Don’t Look Back in Anger, and I’m not quite sure what it is.
It’s not really a concert film: songs are cut in half, and there’s a heavy focus on the first (great) album, admittedly the only Oasis album I loved at the time, and still the only one I really love today.
It’s not really a documentary either. Not a word about the wives, despite the role they played in pushing the reunion forward; nothing about the enormous amount of money involved; almost nothing about the crew or the people behind the machine; hardly any anecdotes from the road. It can’t all have been pure joy. I know from running The Record Club and interviewing bands that even on an infinitely smaller scale, there is always more happening behind the smiles.
But there’s another thing that gets lost when looking back at Oasis today: what becoming mainstream actually meant to many indie-rock fans in the 1990s.
It was almost a no-go.
You could walk into second-hand CD shops and find piles of Some Friendly by The Charlatans or the Stone Roses’ first album. The same thing happened with Nirvana’s Nevermind, and then with Oasis’ Definitely Maybe. Once these bands exploded, part of the indie crowd considered them traitors to the cause. Success could almost disqualify you.
So what about all the emotion and the crying in the film?
That I completely understand.
If, as a kid, teenager or student, you heard Oasis every single time you went to the pub, those songs inevitably became attached to your life. Thirty years later, sometimes it isn’t even the lyrics or the music itself that makes you cry. It’s everything that happened to you while those songs were playing.
I experienced something similar recently with Slow Pulp at Primavera Sound in Barcelona. I was there with one of my daughters, who is very much into indie rock herself, and I was genuinely brought to tears. Not because Slow Pulp were playing some gigantic nostalgic anthem, but because perhaps 20,000 people out of the festival’s 40,000 showed up to see them at the worst possible time, 6 p.m., in full sunlight, without any of the lighting and atmosphere that make a night-time festival show easier to love.
And yet all those people were there for them.
That connects with probably the best idea expressed in the Oasis film: the greatest thing is when people make a song their own. At that point, it no longer entirely belongs to the band.
Still, I can’t help wondering what our idea of a rock superhero would look like if The Beatles had never existed. Perhaps Hendrix or The Doors would have become the template instead. And personally, I would have preferred that.
So of course I loved Oasis, I loved Definitely Maybe. But I didn’t go to their free Paris Fête de la Musique concert in 2000 when their imperial Britpop years were already behind them. Later, in 2009, a friend invited me to see them at Paris Bercy concert hall. I went partly with a sense of sadness that Andy Bell, the guitarist from Ride, whose Nowhere remains a cult album for me, had ended up joining Oasis (as a bass player!).
And then something annoying happened.
They were great.
So, as a very humble rock critic who has been going to around twenty concerts a year since 1990, I had to admit it: Oasis were a great live band.
Article by Laurent – Speaker at The Record Club and creator of concertandvinyl.com
