Oasis Vic, March 19
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Oasis extend a long line of British pop bands possessing built-in obsolescence. Most of the band’s press has revolved around the volatile relationship between autocrat Noel Gallagher, who plays lead guitar, writes and arranges all the songs, and sings backup vocals, and the lead singer, his pretty-boy brother Liam, who follows Noel’s instructions, placing the snarl-laden whine of John Lydon within classically structured pop tunes. Big deal, brothers always fight. The band’s debut album Definitely Maybe (Epic) does manage to deliver some fairly striking straight-up pop goods. A composite sketch of British guitar pop from the Beatles through early glam rock, Oasis creatively recycle any number of riffs and melody lines–although there’s nothing creative about the blatant rip-off of T. Rex’s “Bang a Gong (Get It On)” on “Cigarettes & Alcohol.” Most of Gallagher’s hook-laden tunes fixate on a limited number of topics; usually the tedious triumvirate of sex, drugs,
and rock ‘n’ roll. The words either express boredom (“It’s a crazy situation / But all I need are cigarettes and alcohol”) or revel in stupidity (“I know a girl named Elsa / She’s into Alka-Seltzer”).
Weezer, like the Monkees, are a bit of a media creation: the bulk of their success has been propelled by the cleverness of their videos rather than the strength of their music. The Metro was packed with adolescents and their chaperones. It was odd to hear the Metro din pierced by girlish screams and even odder that the girls were screaming for a rock star who was pretending not to be one. Like Oasis, Weezer offered no variation from its debut album (wouldn’t want to confuse the young ‘uns).
