Gig played on 09/07/05

Resistance is futile. Yes, Oasis are one of the most conservative rock groups not just of now but of all time, a band hemmed in by the most banal and obvious of musical influences. And no, Oasis haven't written a great song in more than a decade. And, yes, it's a mystery how Liam Gallagher's thuggish and predictable public persona was ever mistaken for cool. But the moment that booming percussion opens "Live Forever" as this hot summer day drifts into dusk, all is forgiven and forgotten. This is songwriting at its rawest and simplest, and it's designed to hit you in the heart not the head.

Sometimes The Coral have the same knack, but - perhaps because they are so prolific - they are never consistent. Today, hampered by some quite atrocious acoustics, they play a charming but rather aimless set. A gorgeous stroll through "Pass It On" reminds us that they can be as sunny as the day outside, but too often they fall back on their more difficult psychedelic material such as "Goodbye" and "She Sings The Mourning".

Oasis would never make the same mistake. Their standard response to putting out shoddy records is to mutter an apology and remove the song from their set list forever. It's a lazy attitude which has probably prevented them ever living up to their potential but if it means we don't have to listen to "Stand By Me" or "Little James" then only a masochist would argue. In fact, the primary stumble the band make tonight is an agonising bellow through "Little By Little", one of the ugliest songs to have ever been acquainted with the top five.

Elsewhere, this is the very definition of a crowd pleasing performance. Oasis look exactly as you would expect, with Liam leaning and sneering into the microphone in that classic style, and the songs are overwhelmingly weighted towards those first two albums. By now "Wonderwall" should really be a tired old albatross of a song, but Liam's sheer intensity and the power of that voice give it nearly the same emotional punch as it had all those years ago. But it's a raucous run through "Cigarettes And Alcohol" and an epic "Champagne Supernova" - brilliantly timed to play out as the sun sets - that see the vast crowd ecstatically roar every word back. Even new material, like a jaunty "The Importance Of Being Idle", sounds fresh and winning tonight.

Oasis may be spunking the good will they earnt long ago, but the bank shows no signs of drying up just yet.

by Jaime Gill