Having announced himself as the first Reading and Leeds 2020 headliner earlier on the day, there was only one real question going into Liam Gallagher’s UK tour finale: is he ready to headline festivals by himself?
Kicking off with Oasis’ ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Star’, pints are thrown, and the crowd whips itself into a frenzy. This reaction should be a sign of things to come, but as Gallagher transitions into the first chunk of solo tracks, the energy seems to disappear from the room, instead replaced by a mostly quiet crowd.
This seems to set the tone for the night. While the Oasis tracks seem to reignite the fire in his fans, Gallagher’s own work seems to extinguish it. Even Liam seems resigned to that fact, at one point cutting four songs from the setlist and, instead, asking the crowd “shall we just skip to the Oasis songs then?”
The show, just two months after Gallagher released his second solo album – Why Me? Why Not – should feel like a victory lap, yet as an ill Liam fights his way through the set it’s clear that even the fans see this as more as a chance to relive Gallagher’s Oasis heyday than as a celebration of the new songs.
As the night draws to a close, and Liam has long given up on his own tracks in favour of those written with his estranged brother, it’s hard to see how a Reading and Leeds headline could properly pan out. Instead of carving his own path, Gallagher is still heavily leaning on the past. After all, that’s all the fans really seem to want from his shows. But it begs the question, does it deserve to top next year’s Reading and Leeds bill?
While the show is objectively a crowd-pleaser, if you take a step back from the pint throwing, bucket hats, and oasis singalongs, all it is is a faint memory of days, and a band, long gone. A show that, in its current state, will feel misplaced and lacklustre headlining a major festival.
Words by Patrick Gunnng, photos by Alexia Arrizabalaga
1 comment
Well im not sure what concert this reviewer went to, as the atmosphere was great all through the show. Newer singles such as “Shockwave”, “Wall of Glass” certainly delivered a punch live, whilst the crowd pleasing “Once” had every one singing along.
Yes, I do agree that most people would have been disappointed if he didnt dip back into the Oasis heyday, but tell me what artist isnt better sticking to the big hits. Its what we all want from these guys…..McCartney without “Hey Jude”, Queen without “We are the Champions” I could go on an on.
Liam was obviously struggling with a cold and a throat that could have done with a rest, but he ploughed on though the night.
He only dropped two songs “Gone” and “The River” from the previous nights performance (so where you get four songs I dont know) and he clearly told the crowd he was struggling “So lets go to the Oasis stuff. I can spit them out all night”
So all in all this is an extremely lazy piece of reporting, that loses the facts but adds the writers own opinion. Say it as it was, not what you think it was.