Oasis at Croke Park reviewed: This is what the masses want and boy do they get it

Irish Independent

3 days ago

They rode into town, pitched up in Croke Park and took 80,000 souls with them for a journey back to Britpop's halcyon days, when their band slugged it out with rivals —as well as each other — and released era-defining songs that continue to hoover up new generations of fans.
'It's good to be back,' goes the repeated refrain of Hello, the first song they play on their sold out Live '25 comeback tour, and the feeling is mutual in Dublin 3.
For days, the country has been in a grip of Oasis-mania, the queue outside the pop-up store on St Stephen's Green telling its own story. Unsurprisingly, Croker's crowd features a proliferation of bucket hats, Adidas-branded track tops and Bohemians football shirts with the Oasis logo emblazoned on the front. One wonders how many sporting the latter have ever set foot in Dalymount.
From the moment a venerable recording of The Auld Triangle fills the balmy air, the crowd are up for it, with those in the stands abandoning their seats in anticipation of a show that some have paid several hundred euro to experience. Blame the contentious dynamic pricing model that Oasis happily went along with, but the demand was so high that the Gallaghers could have played a full week of concerts at GAA HQ and there would still be fans left ticketless.
Both band and audience know exactly what this is: a raucous trip down memory lane and an opportunity for everyone to sing themselves hoarse
For those here, it's a set that's relentlessly crowd-pleasing. The Gallaghers wisely understand that their first pair albums are what people want to hear. Unlike 1990s peers Blur and Pulp, they don't even bother to record new songs for these shows. Both band and audience know exactly what this is: a raucous trip down memory lane and an opportunity for everyone to sing themselves hoarse. It's what the masses want and, boy, do they get it.
Right from the off, there's no let up. It's Oasis in thrilling, brute force mode. Second song, Acquiesce, has the fans pogoing on the pitch, while Liam and Noel alternate on vocals. 'Because we need each other,' Noel sings, 'we believe in one another.' He has always claimed that the song is not about him and Liam. Who is he kidding? Difficult as their relationship may be, they bring out the best in each other.
For the bulk of the first 40 minutes or so, it's Liam who takes vocals, although he has the entirety of Croke Park to sing along with him. Some Might Say, Cigarettes & Alcohol and Supersonic are nothing short of epic, the younger Gallagher in his element, his light, hooded jacket buttoned up to the neck, sunglasses clamped on, a born frontman.
Thirty years ago to the weekend, Oasis's Roll With It went to war with Blur's Country House for the UK number one single. Blur pipped them to the post, but Oasis smashed them when it came to album sales.
Tonight, before a spirted version of Roll With It, Liam dedicates the song to the people of Charlestown, Co Mayo — the place where his mother Peggy hailed from and where he and Noel spent many a childhood summer. He may have noticed a Mayo GAA flag draped from the posh seats of the Davin Stand directly in front of him. Later, Stand By Me is dedicated to Peggy.
There's a welcome change of tempo when Noel takes over the singing, but there's no diminishment in audience engagement. They sing back Talk Tonight and Half the World Away, word-perfect.
Even haters of the band would have to agree that the hat-trick of Whatever (which features a snippet of the Beatles' Octopus's Garden), Live Forever and Rock 'N' Roll Star is nothing short of mesmerising
And then, there's a reminder of Oasis' imperial phase, three decades ago, when Noel's songwriting gifts seemed boundless, and when Liam's singing was magisterial. Even haters of the band would have to agree that the hat-trick of Whatever (which features a snippet of the Beatles' Octopus's Garden), Live Forever and Rock 'N' Roll Star is nothing short of mesmerising.
Liam offers his thanks for those who stuck with the band during a fractious 16-year hiatus. 'We must be hard work,' he quips. Nobody cares, now that he and Noel have patched up their differences and are taking a pivotal slice of 1990s nostalgia on the road with them.
Virtually every song played tonight was released in their mid-1990s heyday. Little By Little is the only song released this century to be played. Instead, the meat and veg of the show is derived from debut album Definitely Maybe and its massive selling follow-up, (What's the Story?) Morning Glory.
And then there's a composition as masterful as The Masterplan — which opens the four-song encore — and you're reminded that Oasis released it as a B-side. Madness.
Early on in the show, Liam wonders aloud if Oasis have ever played Croke Park before. They haven't. Noel resists the opportunity to say that he played a Gaelic football match here — in the old stadium — in 1983. Apparently, he scored a point for his Manchester GAA club, St Oisín's.
The pair may walk onto the stage united, literally hand in hand, arms held aloft, but there's none of the on-stage banter between them that was common in the old days. A cynic might wonder if they have really patched up their differences.
They are certainly not going through the motions, however. Musically, Oasis have never sounded this good. Liam's vocals are far, far better than they were 30 years ago — that was evident at his solo 3Arena how last year — and he points out that he's rarely been as sober in Ireland as he is now. Noel's virtuosity on the guitar is apparent on several songs. He's no slouch, either, when taking lead vocals, his care-worn voice capable of heartstring-tugging.
It is true that this tour has sanded down Oasis' rough edge and that's not necessarily a good thing
This live iteration of the band features founding member Paul 'Bonehead' Arthurs as well as fellow guitarist Gem Archer, bassist Andy Bell and drummer Joey Waronker. The latter has bashed the skins for everyone from Beck to R.E.M. All are highly accomplished musicians and they play as though their lives depend on it.
It is true that this tour has sanded down Oasis' rough edge and that's not necessarily a good thing. Gone, too, is the unpredictability that made early Oasis shows so thrilling. This is a very slick affair and the setlist has barely varied from one city to the next. For reasons unknown, they haven't found room for one of their finest songs, Columbia.
There are few pyrotechnics, although the big screen that runs almost the entire width of Hill 16 is a wondrous thing, delivering the band in stunning high-definition, and utilising a dazzling array of imagery that helps to burnish the band's own legend.
Notably, there are no secondary stage to do the sort of stripped back segments that the likes of Coldplay so enjoy and there's no 'vanity ramp', favoured by the likes of Robbie Williams — who plays Croke Park next Saturday. Instead, the band remain in an area not much bigger than the small parallelograms to be found on the Croke Park pitch when football and hurling matches are under way.
For much of the set, Liam stands stock still, his hands behind his back, his head tilted upwards. It's his trademark and he remains as consummate a frontman as he was when first playing Slane 30 years ago. Speaking of rock's leaders, the Verve's Richard Ashcroft plays a blinding support set, with The Drugs Don't Work and Bittersweet Symphony especially potent.
Oasis bring the night to a close with the song that has ended every show on this tour. Champagne Supernova is suitably super-sized for the occasion.
Afterwards, as the Hogan Stand crowd mill out onto Jones Road, they take up its closing refrain. 'Where were you while we were getting high?'