Or – Britpop: the genre I hated for so long.
There isn’t a great deal of music that I don’t like. I pride myself in fact, of the eclecticity of my musical tastebuds. But there are a couple of genres that I don’t like listening to very much, if at all.
I love a bit of Heavy Metal music (Rammstein, Motörhead, Black Sabbath etc.), however I’m not so keen on the screaming, fast tempo type of metal, such as Death or Black metal for example. (And I didn’t know so many subgenres of Heavy Metal there was until I read this – wow!)
The sound and style of a generation
And then there’s Britpop.
Britpop was a prominent cultural and musical movement that emerged in the United Kingdom during the early 1990s. It is characterised by a distinct fusion of British rock and pop influences, combined with a strong sense of national identity and nostalgia. Britpop not only encompassed a specific genre of music but also encompassed a wider cultural phenomenon that included fashion, attitude, and media presence.
In the early 1990’s, I would have been in my late twenties, early thirties. Not exactly a teenager, but I was still interested in the “pop scene” as it was once called. With many others, I witnessed (mainly through Top of the Pops) the emergence of Britpop when bands like Oasis, The Verve, Supergrass, Blur, Pulp, Suede, Elastica etc. hopped their way onto the TOTP stage in their Union Jack adorned clothes, and those bloody bucket hats. Those bloody hats almost solely contributed to the overall image and aesthetic associated with the Britpop.
Even if I did like the style, I was too old to wear a bucket hat and walk around with maracas.
That’s the look – what about the Music?
Music style: Britpop was heavily influenced by British guitar-driven rock, pop, and indie music from the 1960s and 1970s, such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, and The Who. The music often featured catchy melodies, prominent guitar riffs, and energetic, anthemic choruses.
Lyrics and themes: Many Britpop songs revolved around the themes of British life, culture, and social commentary. They often focused on everyday experiences, relationships, and observations of contemporary British society, which struck a chord with a generation seeking an authentic representation of their own identity. (Hence the term “Brit pop”.)
I am a lover of guitar-driven music, so I think that was the main element that attracted me to Britpop when it first emerged. In particular Oasis, with their 1994 single “Cigarettes and Alcohol”. Not so much the lyrics of it, but the 12-bar blues style distorted electric guitar riffs.
In the 1990’s (I can’t recall exactly when) I saw a Noel Gallagher interview on the TV.
So long, seeya honey
I have been known to instantly dislike a person based solely on a first impression, especially when I was younger (I’m much better now, I promise!). When I saw Noel Gallagher in that interview, I took an instant and complete dislike to him. He was arrogant, rude, dismissive of his fellow peers and downright ignorant.
I thought “what a knob” and ignored him and his music (in fact, most of Britpop) for at least 30 years.
Reel Stories
In June 2019, an episode of “Reel Stories” featured Noel Gallagher, talking about his life in music. On the off chance, I recorded and watched it – mainly just to see if Noel Gallagher was still a knob.
In it, he freely admits that he was a bit of a knob (not his words) for most of the time he was in Oasis, but he’s calmed down a bit now. It was a good interview and Noel was candid and open in it. They played clips from Oasis tracks during the interview, which led me to think that I should maybe give the music another go.
What’s The Story
Gallagher was accused of plagiarism in the early days of Oasis. There is a famous court case, in which Gallagher admitted that he’d plagiarised a Neil Innes song for their single “Whatever” (settled out of court in 1994) which garnered a great deal of publicity at the time. He’s subsequently freely admitted that he does get influenced in his song writing from listening to other tracks and then copying the melodies.
It was at that point that I thought I’d listen to some Oasis.
What’s The Story? It’s the same!
I was curious to listen to “Champagne Supernova” in particular. I’d heard a cover version of it, but had never heard the original, so I thought it was time to, at the very least determine whether I had a bad cover or not!
I duly purchased the first four Oasis albums:
- Definitely Maybe
- (What’s The Story) Morning Glory
- Be Here Now
- Standing on the Shoulder of Giants
And gave them a listen. (What follows is my opinion and interpretation.)
The first two albums aren’t at all bad. I could definitely tell the tracks that had an “outside influence” on them, and they are pretty good. The guitar-driven theme is present throughout, which takes the initial harsh edge from some of the lyrics.
When we arrive at Be Here Now and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants in particular, things have changed somewhat. I don’t know whether it was the influence of the court case(s) and accusations, but the songs on those later albums seemed to become very “samey”. Each track kind of merges into the next, without any real change of style.
I stopped listening after those four albums.
Conclusion
Without doubt Noel Gallagher can write excellent songs. You’ve only got to listen to the likes of Wonderwall, Cigarettes and Alcohol, Don’t Look Back in Anger and Champagne Supernova to demonstrate that fact. Coupled with brother Liam’s style of singing (which is incidentally, a spectacular and very unique style), Oasis were a force to be reckoned with. Demonstrated by the chart positions of the albums, the generated sales and the subsequent awards.
And although Noel’s redeemed himself in his later years (at least for some of his behaviour!), I’m afraid the greater majority of the Oasis music is still not my cup of tea. Yes, I have a few tracks that I’ll happily listen to again and again, however it’s not that many.
I still think Noel Gallagher is a knob. But maybe, just maybe, a little bit less than before.
P.S. The cover of Champagne Supernova turned out to be a good one.