oasis... in melbourne finally!!

This article was written for Issue One after the whirlwind Oasis created on their first visit to Australia!! Article by Lauren Murphy.

Tonight was the night that we would witness one of the biggest bands in the world performing the songs that made you feel free to be whatever you wanted. The band that gave you the confidence to live life to the fullest and to live it the way you wanted. Oasis arrived in Australia with the press hounding them for their rock'n'roll antics, not to our surprise. If there was not enough hype created more, getting the whole country in a debate over the boys of rock. Yet after missing their proposed concert for 1996, my only concern was making sure I would see them perform their music. I say, let Liam behave how he wants to and let Noel say what he wants. And let us have the best night of our lives tonight.......

But before the night begins you must sit out the hours before the doors open. At 9.30 in the morning there was a small gathering of fans sitting outside the doors with their food supplies to last them throughout the day. The earliest arrival of a fan was at 2.00 am, setting the pace for the rest of the people strolling in right up until 5 minutes before we entered the building. The excitement started to build up when the first van pulled up with Noel sitting inside. Yet only the lucky ones caught a glimpse of the star when he quickly snuck into the building. We wait some more time and catch Alan, Bonehead, and Guigsy arriving, this time we are treated to smiles and waves from the rhythm section. We missed Liam as we had to retreat back to our spot in the cue to make sure we got on the much desired barrier. Time passes quickly and before we know it we're squashed up against the barrier, busy grooving along to the tunes of 'You Am I'. If it was not such a good Australian band on stage I would of been disappointed that Oasis did not bring out a support band from England. 'You Am I' had a great presence on stage and also left us with a great version of an old Beatles hit 'Hippy Hippy Shake'. This got all the crowd going, preparing us for the next great band on stage.

The screams soon started as Liam was spotted on the side of the stage before he walked on. He was followed closely by the rest of the band who all received as many smiles as Liam did. It was an amazing feeling to see these once only 2D images moving about before your very eyes. So when you manage to make eye contact with each member of the band over the night you are so ecstatic that you would do just about anything. Standing in-front of Noel while he throws out the chords in 'Supersonic' and have him smiling right at you gives you the most amazing feeling. It seemed that every time they started another song you didn't think it could get better, but it did. Oasis did not just play music, they entertained their audience. Alan was always happy to give us a wave or a wink while his hands danced over his drums. And over on the left of the stage, Guigsy was grooving away while Bonehead supplied his strong rhythm, both of them also acknowledging the audience. Yet it was the man up-front who had the most presence. Standing there, tambourine in hand with that intimidating stance, as he went through the lines of 'Wonderwall', made you believe anything is possible. Liam Gallagher has na amazing voice which grabs you, placing all your attention in the sound floating off into the night. When he jumped down off the stage and strolled casually in-front of the barrier, a million arms were outstretched towards the man who changed the way people looked at life. It didn't matter if you couldn't touch him, just him actually being there was enough.

Noel had a different way of grabbing your heart. When he sat there on his stool alone on stage with his acoustic guitar, and played through his acoustic set your heart stopped beating as you stared in ore. As he strummed his way through 'Don't Go Away' a tear rolled down my cheek as all my emotions were hit. Noel looked at everyone, but had his favourite person in the audience, the Richard Ashcroft look alike that he spotted earlier in the night. After Alan's amazing performance on the bongo drums during 'Setting Sun', Noel ended his acoustic set and was joined by Guigsy, Bonehead and Alan to go through 'Don't Look Back In Their set for the night was loud and powerful, including songs from all three of their albums. Whatever song it was we sung it loud and sung it proud. When the drums started for 'Live Forever' I grew a grin from ear to ear as I prepared to belt out the lyrics to one of my favourite Oasis songs. I was not alone though, many other people were just as happy as me. During 'Champagne Supernova' an amazing effect was created with the lighting. They had stars moving around all over the set, making you feel like you were standing out on top of the world. This is how you feel most of the time when listening to Oasis, on top of the world. Whenever you are feeling down all you have to do is play 'Supersonic' and all your worries are gone. Some other hits they played included 'Cigarettes and Alcohol', 'Stand By Me', 'Roll With It', and 'Be Here Now'. All of these were done in good style and all received maximum applause. The only thing that let the Oasis concert down was the audience. The majority of them did not know how to appreciate music, with some people screaming throughout Noel's acoustic set. If the crowd was like the one at Radiohead's concert it would of been amazing. However despite the crowd the Oasis concert was incredible. So as they ended with 'I Am The Walrus' all I can do is feel content with my night out.