OASIS: Don't Believe the Truth

For those who are not aware, Oasis had a couple massive albums in the mid 90s – they were Definitely Maybe (1994) & What’s the Story Morning Glory (1995). Then came Be Here Now in 1997 which many thought was over-hyped and over-produced despite having received raving reviews from the press. I personally thought it had too many Hey Jude endings and layers of pointless guitar noise (think of Phil Spector producing the Sex Pistols), yet the songs were great nonetheless.

For the next few years, guitarist & chief songwriter Noel Gallagher became obsessed with re-inventing the band’s style and came out with Standing On the Shoulder of Giants - their most experimental album to date. It was certainly a step forward but perhaps in the wrong direction, and in 2002 their music had retreated to straight forward rock’n roll on Heathen Chemistry - a relatively safe album that ignored any progress made by the band since 1995. Singles like “Stop Crying Your Heart Out” and “The Hindu Times” resurrected the classic Oasis sound, however others like “Born on a Different Cloud” and “Songbird” hinted a new direction… and this is where Don’t Believe the Truth comes in…

Welcome to 2005, nearly 10 years past the band’s commercial peak. Like music and fashion trends, their members have come and gone, leaving the Gallagher brothers as the only originals remaining. The most recent line-up change was drummer Alan White who was forced to quit due to troubles with his forearm (tendonitis?), and interestingly his temporary replacement happens to be Zach Starkey. By the way, Zach’s father played drums in the 60s for another successful British band. (HINT: you might have heard of ‘em!)

Anyhow, Don’t Believe the Truth takes off from where Heathen Chemistry left off. Liam, Gem and Andy have accepted bigger songwriting roles so the album is more democratic than ever before. Yet the music is not a big departure from previous works and any noticeable change seems natural - not forced. A great example is “Love Like a Bomb”, a melodic piece written by Liam Gallagher (who is obviously a big Lennon fan) and Gem Archer. It is played and sung in the same fashion as Heathen Chemistry’s “Songbird” – exactly what many die-hard fans would have expected.

One of the album’s highlights is “Mucky Fingers” - a raw, up tempo party anthem which combines Velvet Underground influences with Bob Dylan-ish vocals sung by Noel. It is the biggest departure from the traditional Oasis sound thanks to a harmonica and a simple drum beat which emphasizes every beat (rarely heard in an Oasis song). In fact, I doubt you’d even recognize it is Oasis!

Arguably, the best song that bassist Andy Bell has written for Oasis is the album’s opener, “Turn Up the Sun”. It is a rocker with a slight touch of country western and it can’t match Liam Gallagher’s singing style any better, both musically and lyrically. Fans of Andy’s old band Ride might appreciate his other song, “Keep the Dream Alive”, which bring back the shoegazing era of the early 90s for just 5 minutes more.

“The Importance of Being Idle” is a laid back summer song which fits the mood of a typical lazy day in the sun. I can almost imagine Mr. Noel Gallagher leaning back on a lawn chair beside his million dollar swimming pool, strumming and singing this song as if the entire world is nothing but a dream. Meanwhile, “Lyla” is like a Soundtrack of Our Lives song in disguise, which there is nothing wrong with - of course!

The album ends with “Let There Be Love” – probably their best closing song since “Champagne Supernova”. Liam sings the verse while Noel sings the climax part, and they do it with so much feeling that you’d think the world will end!

Overall, another strong effort! Rating: 9 out of 10.