Music review: Oasis surprises and thrills in Rose Bowl stunner

The Gallagher brothers more than made up; they made history.

Returning to the U.S. after a 16-year hiatus following their 2009 breakup, Oasis brought their Live ’25 Tour to North America for just five stops, including two sold-out shows Sept. 6-7 at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena.

News of the Britpop band’s reunion caught many by surprise, as the bickering brothers had been estranged for nearly two decades. And yet, they reportedly sold out all their shows in an hour — that’s approximately 180,000 tickets across both nights in Los Angeles.

Following a captivating intro video depicting their unlikely return with news headlines like “Gallaghers Put Feud Aside to Plot Reunion” and “Oasis Reunited?” Liam and Noel walked out the first night holding each other’s hands in the air and sharing a warm embrace before launching into “Hello” with a simple line lifted from the song: “Good to be back!”

With such a start, it appeared the hatchets had been buried. The question was: would they remain there or resurface before the tour, much less the night, concluded?

Despite the balmy Southern California night, Liam sported his signature parka and amber sunglasses, striking his trademark pose — arms behind his back, hands clasped, leaning up into the mic for electric openers including “Acquiesce” and “Some Might Say.”

It was a night filled with offbeat dedications, from “Morning Glory” (“This one is for my old mate Woody Woodpecker,” Liam declared) and “Bring It On Down” (for all the sword swallowers) to “Half the World Away” (for the Irish in the house) and “D’You Know What I Mean?” (dedicated to the warriors).

At 52, Liam showed a lighter, more playful side than in his notoriously smug youth. Setting up “Slide Away,” a song for “the lovebirds in the house,” the singer poked fun at Coldplay’s kiss cam, saying, “It’s 2025, we don’t give a shit.”

Later, he signaled for the sound tech to turn up his mic. Once improved, the appreciative frontman blew him a kiss, a gesture he generously doled out to fans throughout the night.

One thing quickly became clear in Oasis’ two-hour, 23-song set: both the sound and visuals — shimmering across the Rose Bowl’s monstrous wall of video screens — were spectacular. Liam’s voice was crisp and vibrant, Noel’s guitar sparkled throughout, and the imagery transported you to a psychedelic world where Oasis reigned supreme.

Though the band never matched their UK dominance in the U.S., their first two albums — 1994’s Definitely Maybe and 1995’s (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? — produced hits that captured the zeitgeist of mid-’90s alt-rock.

That legacy was alive and well tonight, even when Liam wandered into a meandering tale about swimming with a shark named Mark off Santa Monica before teasing concertgoing Angelenos for always being stoned and then coaxing them to bounce to the party anthem “Cigarettes & Alcohol.”

“Just jump up and down,” he said. “It’s really easy; even I can do it.”

Not that the crowd needed prompting. While not as manic as the response in Wales when the tour kicked off in July, the Rose Bowl was clearly vibing from the floor to the rafters on songs like “Supersonic,” the driving “Roll With It,” and set-closing “Rock ‘n’ Roll Star.”

The night also had its poignant moments. About midway through their set, Liam left the stage and let his big brother take the lead on three songs, beginning with “Talk Tonight.”

As it happens, the San Francisco woman who inspired the song and talked Noel out of quitting the band in 1994 was in the audience. Afterward, she posted to her Instagram: “30 years and worth the wait!”

Of course, being in L.A., this show also attracted numerous celebrities. But the only one that really mattered was Paul McCartney, who has a long history with the band — from The Beatles’ influence on Oasis to the conflict that emerged when Liam claimed at the height of their popularity that they were bigger than The Fab Four.

So, when the Manchester boys incorporated a snippet of “Octopus’s Garden” at the end of “Whatever” as an homage to The Beatles, and McCartney was seen using his phone to film portions of the concert, which he later called “Fabulous,” it seemed like perhaps this rivalry was also finally laid to rest.

Under a bright full moon, the band — rounded out by guitarists Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs and Gem Archer, bassist Andy Bell, keyboardist Christian Madden, and drummer Joey Waronker — moved toward their encore with the soaring “Live Forever.” As Liam’s voice gave way to Noel’s wailing guitar, the singer unplugged his mic and handed it to a lucky fan up front.

The four-song encore included “Wonderwall,” the song that introduced many U.S. fans to Oasis, but its emotional apex was the Noel-fronted “Don’t Look Back in Anger.”

Pointing to a young girl in the front row, the guitarist said, “This next song is for you” and then let the crowd know, “She’s been in tears the whole night, this girl.”

As the camera panned to the girl in her Oasis T-shirt sobbing uncontrollably, the scene was uncannily reminiscent of when The Beatles invaded America in 1964.

Teeing up their last song, “Champagne Supernova” — succeeded by a spectacular fireworks finale — Liam, now wearing a bucket hat, joked, “It’s time for me to go to bed because these days I’m a little princess.”

Turning more serious, he left the crowd with: “I know we’re hard work and we must be a f@&king nightmare to support, but we appreciate it. A nice one for helping us put this band back on the map.”

It was a not-so-subtle reminder of how much Oasis was the same, and yet how far they’ve come.

Donovan Roche is a longtime music writer and frequent contributor to Times of San Diego. Send your story ideas to droche617@gmail.com.