Thursday, December 4, 2008

Oasis Played Oracle Arena - Setlist, Pics, Review

Following Ryan Adams' solid opening set, Oasis took the stage at Oracle Arena to deliver a set that fulfilled all the hype, pomp, and showmanship that one would expect from one of the world's most mega rock bands. The lights were big, the set was big, the video screens were big - all of it was designed to be larger than life and completely wow the crowd. What's more, the setlist was a fantastic blend of the band's material over the years, and even included a few treats for the diehards.

It was actually quite remarkable how easily the band jumped from old material, to new, and back again. Despite the fact that the band's records have taken on a decidedly darker production aesthetic in the past few years, they've clearly been putting in the time to make sure that they can deliver on all the classics as well - material from Definitely Maybe sounded just as solid as anything off the recent records.

In many ways, Oasis' US gigs are doomed to be greatest-hits affairs: most Americans aren't super familiar with the deep album cuts, and moreover they pay money to see those well known tunes. That being said, given the infrequency of Oasis' touring in the US, that's not necessarily a bad thing: it is really and truly great to see the band rock out to "Morning Glory" under a full bath of lights with 6' guitar cabinets roaring away.

Even in light of delivering the hits, the band did manage to slip something in for the die hard fans (of whom there were many). They performed both "The Masterplan" (best known as the title track of the band's B-Sides collection), and "Slide Away" - a seldom played track from Definitely Maybe. It's nice to see a band that is so thoroughly an "arena act" still have the awareness and promotion of their rarer material. Although with a library of b-sides and rarities as rich as Oasis', it's easy to see why they would do so.

The only disappointing moments in the set for us were a somewhat half-hearted "we have to do this" version of "Wonderwall", and the closing of the night with "I Am The Walrus". In both cases it felt more like a band doing what was expected, as opposed to what came naturally. And still, a slightly weak version of two songs out of the whole night is hardly a damning report. We walked away feeling more than satisfied by the set. Oasis delivers absolutely what you'd expect from them: loud, unadulterated, unabashed rock and roll. And we loved every minute of it.

Setlist:
Fucking In The Bushes (Intro)

Rock N' Roll Star

Layla

The Shock Of The Lightning

Cigarettes And Alcohol

The Meaning Of Soul

To Be Where There's Life

Waiting For The Rapture

The Masterplan

Songbird

Slide Away

What's The Story (Morning Glory)

Ain't Got Nothin'
Importance Of Being Idle
I'm Out Of Time

Wonderwall
Supersonic


Don't Look Back In Anger

Fallin' Down
Champagne Supernova

I Am The Walrus


Many more pictures at the HAD Archive

4 comments:

Hanan said...

I really liked Falling Down. that was an instant favourite off the new record and they did it beautifully

I was upset that they played Wonderwall. I was hoping that Ryan would and they wouldn't haha

JPShar said...

Great review, thank you.

Do you happen to have the setlist that Ryan Adams played?

Going to see them in Chicago on the 12th - it's a 16 hour drive roundtrip, but I can't wait!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the review. I really enjoyed The Masterplan and Slide Away, and it was great to hear the new songs from the new album. Awesome show!

Anonymous said...

I saw them at the Shoreline last time around, and maybe because of that smaller venue it seemed like this time they weren't as into it - still, a great concert. I was thrilled they played both Slide Away and Masterplan (my all time favorite). I only saw part of the Ryan Adams set , but from what I saw of the last couple songs I was impressed.