After a flare incident at the first of three Melbourne shows of the much-anticipated Australian leg of the Oasis reunion tour, some people – including myself – wondered what might be in store, with more than 50,000 people converging on Marvel Stadium on Cup Day for the third Melbourne concert.
Fortunately, the crowd were considerably better behaved than the partying punters that spilled out of Flemington Racecourse just a few hours earlier (4 November).
With the stadium's retractable roof covering the crowd from the typical Melbourne wind and rain – what locals could call a pretty standard spring day in the southern city – the atmosphere was electric by the time Noel and Liam Gallagher, and band, walked out right on time at 8.45pm and launched into the Rolling Stones' 'We Love You'.
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Fans who had been following their reunion world tour would have known what to expect – all the hits, nothing released after 2002, and some Liam swagger; and on this, the band delivered.
A few songs in and the set began to really hit its stride, with the anthemic 'Acquiesce' from the band's outstanding B-sides release 'The Masterplan', followed by 'Morning Glory', which Liam once again dedicated to Woody Woodpecker. The story behind the dedication remains up for debate, with it either a cheeky nod to the song's title or to Liam's well-known love of kids' cartoons.
It's been 20 years since Oasis have played Australia – I last saw them on the Livid Festival tour in 2002 – with the band splitting and the Gallagher brothers' relationship disintegrating not long after.
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Fans were desperately hoping this reunion tour wouldn't be Noel and Liam phoning it in (especially given that some ticket prices were around $400 a pop) – and it's safe to say this couldn't be further from the truth.
The band have never sounded so good, with both of the brothers' vocals on-point and the stadium production doing the songs justice. The soaring vocals of 'Some Might Say' were certainly proof of that, with Liam's delivery impressively strong.
The high demand for tickets of course meant Marvel Stadium was always likely to host these shows, however it's my least liked stadium for anything but AFL games.
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If it wasn't for the big screens, even those with those aforementioned $400 tickets were resigned to squinting at the band and left to largely watch the performance on the big screens behind and above the stage. Toilet and bar queues were typically long – even during the show – but the sound was superb and the crowd well-behaved, so the pros outweighed the cons on the night.
Besides dedications – 'Bring It On Down' for the "genuine glue sniffers" in the audience; 'Live Forever' for the people who couldn't be there – Noel and Liam were men of few words between tracks, with the 23-song set kept tight and sharp.
Following some classics – 'Supersonic', 'Roll With It' – Noel took the lead with two wonderful stripped-back tunes from 'The Masterplan': 'Talk Tonight' dedicated to "the sheilas" and 'Half The World Away', which was sent out to all the Irish fans in the crowd.
While songs like 'Supersonic' have the bombast, swagger and, honestly, pretty ridiculous lyricism that have been hallmarks of the band, it's in these more downtempo tunes that Noel's songwriting really shines through, and it was a pleasure to witness on this massive stage.
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The one track from 2002's 'Heathen Chemistry' that got a run was the soaring 'Little By Little' – a great transition from the two 'Masterplan' ballads – which is somewhat of a shame, as it would have been great to hear 'Stop Crying Your Heart Out' in such a setting. However, the band would be up there all night if they were to play everyone's picks – and 'Heathen Chemistry' was one of the least well-received albums of the band's pre-split years.
With some of the big guns still yet to be played, there was no doubt the band were returning for an encore, and fortunately didn't keep fans waiting long.
After band introductions, including Mike Moore on rhythm guitar (in for Paul 'Bonehead' Arthurs who was forced to miss the Australian tour due to cancer treatment), Oasis rolled out 'The Masterplan', 'Don't Look Back In Anger', 'Wonderwall' and 'Champagne Supernova'.
It's hard to not be over 'Wonderwall' at this point, but it provided the cathartic sing-along nonetheless, and the sprawling anthem to close out the night was a fitting end to a set packed with huge songs that, when rolled out one after the other, really show the band's huge contribution to the Brit-rock canon.
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For those lucky enough to have been there the first time round – and, judging by the demographic, a good section of the crowd were – it was a fitting return to an exciting and revolutionary time in alternative music. For those donning a bucket hat and Adidas jacket for their first Oasis experience, it was a show certainly worth waiting for.
Will we see new music from the band after their world trek is over? The jury is out. However, with the Gallaghers looking happier together than they have been in decades, maybe.
For now, though, fans were more than happy to soak up this fantastic walk down memory lane with a band that definitely seems to have more in the tank.
