Tonight’s main act doesn’t really require an introduction, he fronted one of Britain’s most popular bands, along with his older brother and fellow band mates, they went on to take over the world (literally), leaving behind them a wake of bands who were keen to replicate their levels of success but the majority of them failing to do so to any great degree. I am of course talking about OASIS and tonight, at the Plymouth Pavilions, Liam Gallagher was to take to the stage to show the people of Devon what it takes to be a bonafide rock ‘n roll star!

 

 

Liam Gallagher has become a bit of a marmite artist, you either love him or hate him, some folk enjoy the Manc swagger, the over the top confidence and general cock sure approach to life which, without it, I don’t think that OASIS would have reached the heady heights of world domination that they did. Love him or hate him, there were 4000 people packed into Plymouth Pavilions tonight to watch him perform.

 

Leading the charge was Scottish musician KYLE FALCONER, he’s best known as the lead vocalist of The View who managed to release 5 studio albums from 2007 to 2015. Their set consisted of fast paced numbers which really helped in laying the foundations of the evening.

 

 

Up next was Jordan Cardy aka RAT BOY, we saw these guys play a while back, I think it was supporting The Libertines and I would like to say that their set appeared much stronger tonight, they have been compared to other artists such as Jamie T, The Beastie Boys and The Clash. They effortlessly fuse hip hop and indie rock to produce a catchy, memorable set of songs that people easily warm to.

 

 

It was soon time to welcome the main attraction to the stage, having such a colourful back catalogue to draw upon, the fans were wondering if he’d be drawing on each band that he’s featured in (OASIS, Beady Eye) as well as showcasing material from his recently released solo record As You Were which picked up rave reviews across the board, I guess we’d just have to wait and see….

 

 

The audience didn’t have to wait very long as he took to the stage with his band and launched headlong into OASIS classics “Fuckin’ in the Bushes”, “Rock ‘n Roll Star” and “Morning Glory” which sent the room into overdrive. It was funny to see so many middle aged OASIS fans in the audience, my photographer likened the view from the balcony as looking at a few thousand white maltesers that had been spilt on the floor (made me chuckle anyway….)

 

 

From here, he strode through 5 tracks off his solo record, highlights included “Wall of Glass” and “Paper Crown” which kept the audience on its toes throughout.

 

He treated the audience to another 3 back to back OASIS tracks, the poetically brilliant “Rockin’ Chair”, the singalong classic which is “Some Might Say” and possibly my favourite OASIS track of all time “Slide Away” which ended their 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe perfectly, each track received rapturous applause from room.

 

 

He performed 2 encores, the first featuring “Cigarettes and Alcohol” which caused a massive surge due to some over excited builder types in the middle of the standing area, the first encore was closed with a faultless version of “Live Forever” which again, showcased Liam’s vocals perfectly, proving that he is a genuine rock ‘n roll star.

 

He mixed his old stuff with his new songs and really worked the crowd, it was a shame that you couldn't hear what he was saying between songs - Owen Williams

 

He slid off stage only to appear again for the final track of the night, without a doubt THE best section of the evening, every voice in the room was represented when the chorus kicked in, phones were held aloft as Liam stood, watching a room full of die-hard fans singing the words of "Wonderwall" back to him.

 

 

He came, he delivered and he did not disappoint, whether you’re a fan of the new material or his back catalogue, there really was something for everyone. The next big question is, will OASIS reform in 2018? Well folks, even with me having little birds in various places, I can honestly say that I don’t know, part of me would like to see it happen, another part of me wants to leave the past very firmly where it belongs....in the past. I guess for anyone who wasn’t old enough to see them perform the first time around, it would be a great opportunity, I guess the deciding factor is whether the brothers Gallagher can bury the hatchet in order to stand next to one another on stage for a couple of hours to do the deed! Thinking about it, Liam managed to belt out 11 OASIS songs tonight as well as 8 from his solo album, I think the first time I saw OASIS, they only played about 8 songs in total so in a way, those who didn’t get to do it first time around may have already witnessed an OASIS show, albeit without the proper lineup….

 

Here’s crossing everything to hope that they can get something arranged for a reunion, but saying that, I’ve had everything crossed for the last 20 years for Morrisey and Co to reform for a SMITHS tour but I really do think that hell would freeze over before Moz decides to agree to that!

 

Review Steve Muscutt

Photography Rhodri Cooper

To see ALL the images that we took at the gig, please click HERE

 

Setlist

Fuckin' in the Bushes

Rock 'n' Roll Star

Morning Glory

Greedy Soul

Wall of Glass

Paper Crown

Bold

For What It's Worth

Rockin' Chair

Some Might Say

Slide Away

Come Back to Me

You Better Run

Universal Gleam

Supersonic

Be Here Now

 

 

Encore 1

Cigarettes & Alcohol

Live Forever

 

Encore 2

Wonderwall