Definitely Maybe [album]

DEFINITELY MAYBE (Epic)
Signed to Creation after its first out-of-town gig, crass as hell (one of its singles, "Shakermaker," lifts the melody from "I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing"), and continuing a line of brawling musical siblings that includes the Everly Brothers and Ray and Dave Davies, Oasis is the latest English band to emerge "from out of nowhere," surrounded by media hype that sometimes unfortunately threatens to eclipse the quality of its music. Oasis occupies a strange uncharted niche where boogie, glam and neo-psychedelia unapologetically mix-imagine a combination of the Faces, T Rex and the Stone Roses without the unsure retro kowtowing of, say, Primal Scream, and you're on the right track. Liam Gallagher's vocals may turn a few people off (he's obnoxious, sure, but he makes that work), but the hooks are exceptionally well-crafted and most of these tunes manage to get under your skin immediately. "Live Forever" and "Married With Children" are ballads that most bands this young just could not pull off; "Rock'N'Roll Star" musically and lyrically recalls Ziggy-era Bowie ("You're not down with who I am, but look at you now, you're in my hands tonight"). But Oasis' confidence and earnestness, ultimately its most valuable assets, gets the band through shaky territory unscathed. Definitely worth checking out: "Slide Away," "Up In The Sky" and "Supersonic."

c 2000 Andrew Turner

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