In the world’s biggest band, every week offers its own new dose of pandemonium.
Festivals. Fights. Flings. Flights.
When you’re a rockstar, each seven-day period is more intense, thrilling and exotic than the last.
That’s why no two pages in the story of Oasis are the same.
Throughout the nineties and noughties, this group of Mancunian rascals were overindulgent, grandstanding superstars who practised what they preached; living a hard and fast lifestyle that served as a perfect visual accompaniment for their self-produced soundtrack of roaring guitars and crashing symbols.
But in their two decades at the top, no week of Oasis mania was ever more definitive than this one: The first seven days of October.
This was the week that propelled the band beyond the island of tea and scones onto the international stage. And it was also the week that would ultimately mark the end.
It all started on October 2, 1995.
The scene was set for Britain’s most exciting up-and-coming band to justify the hype – as Oasis’ sophomore album, What’s The Story (Morning Glory)? was carefully placed on shelves around the UK.
Once those store doors opened, nothing was ever the same again.
What’s The Story was snapped up by more than 345,000 fans in its first week – spending 10 weeks at number one in the UK charts.
One glance at the tracklist reveals why.
Roll With It, Wonderwall, Don’t Look Back In Anger, Some Might Say, She’s Electric, Champagne Supernova.
The record was packed with anthemic earworms created to stand the test of time – enjoying constant airplay, analysis and mimicry for twenty-five years and counting.
When What’s The Story landed in shops, Oasis achieved superstar status.
Fast-forward almost exactly thirteen years, and another similar scenario was unfolding.
It’s October 6, 2008, and for the seventh time in history, legions of Oasis supporters are swarming to stores for a another new release – an album the group has titled Dig Out Your Soul.
Fans didn’t know it at the time, but they’d never queue for an Oasis album ever again.
Dig Out Your Soul signalled the end.
In the same week the world watched Oasis swagger into the spotlight, we would also soon hear their swansong.
An epic 18-month promotional tour of Dig Out Your Soul proved to be the tipping point for the two Gallagher brothers.
The pair had quarrelled over the cancellation of a show at V Festival (Liam citing laryngitis, Noel calling bullshit and said his brother had a hangover) before pulling the plug on a performance in France seconds before stepping out on stage.
By the time they’d reached the Rock En Seine festival in August 2009, tensions were as high as they’d ever been, with the two siblings already travelling separately to shows.
Just before the Paris gig, a blazing row culminated in Liam “wielding a guitar like an axe”.
The pair were interrupted by a sudden knock at the door that cut through the chaos: It was their five-minute warning to prepare for the gig.
Instead of using these 300 seconds to make his way to the stage, Noel spent them inside his car.
It was during those few moments he decided that was that.
Oasis was done.
A message on the band’s website, written by Noel, eventually appeared stating: “It is with some sadness and great relief…I quit Oasis tonight. People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer.”
And that was that. The band was gone, and the two brothers remain at loggerheads a decade down the line.
Rumours of a reunion have been a weekly occurrence in the eleven years ever since, but a reconciliation has always been just out of reach.
The post-Oasis years have given birth to bands Beady Eye and High Flying Birds, and whilst there’s never really been any sight of a sincere olive branch, Noel has seemingly ignored impromptu tweets by Liam asking to give things another go, if only for a one-off gig.
The band’s’ closer, Dig Out Your Soul, is often lost within the footnotes of Oasis trivia today; bundled beneath the glory days of What’s The Story, origin tales of debut Definitely Maybe, and the drug-addled anecdotes of Be Here Now.
But DOYS is sort of remarkable in how it holds up as such a solid piece of work despite the growing turbulence going on behind the scenes.
Fittingly, the very last words to appear on an Oasis album are “soldier on” – an apt description of the brothers’ fruitless attempts to persevere through an upcoming tour fraught with tension; which would ultimately bring about the band’s demise.
You could frown at the Oasis timeline and spend hours trying to decide which dates to circle as being the most definitive moments in the band’s history.
But no single week is more fascinating than this one.
This was when we got the best and last of Oasis.
In ‘95, the leap to glory. In ‘08, the unknowing goodbye.
Audio
Gorillaz announce huge Manchester arena gig on upcoming UK and Ireland tour
Daisy Jackson
Gorillaz are well and truly back, and they’ve announced a huge Manchester gig on the upcoming The Mountain Tour.
The legendary band, created by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, will be performing at the Co-op Live arena next spring.
Gorillaz is a virtual band made up of singer 2D, bassist Murdoc Niccals, drummer Russel Hobbs and Japanese guitar prodigy Noodle.
The huge tour announcement comes along with the announcement of their new album, The Mountain, which features a whole myriad of collaborations including Johnny Marr, IDLES’ Joe Talbot and Dennis Hopper.
It’s their ninth studio album and promises to be a ‘playlist for a party on the border between this world and whatever happens next, exploring the journey of life and the thrill of existence’.
The Gorillaz The Mountain Tour will visit arenas across the UK and Ireland next Spring, with support from Trueno, and follows the sold-out 5-star House of Kong exhibition and four triumphant performances at Copper Box Arena.
Manchester will get the new Gorillaz tour first, with the band kicking things off at Co-op Live on 21 March before heading to cities including Leeds, Cardiff, Nottingham, and Liverpool.
The BRIT and Grammy-winning virtual band formed following a collision of mishaps, meetings and pure luck to blow up a pre-digital world.
The album will officially release on 20 March 2026.
General on sale begins at 11am on Friday 19 September HERE.
Gorillaz’ ‘The Mountain Tour’ dates in full
MARCH 21 – Co-op Live, Manchester 22 – BP Pulse Live, Birmingham 24 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow (support from Trueno) 25 – First Direct Arena, Leeds 27 – Utilitia Arena, Cardiff (support from Trueno) 28 – Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham (support from Trueno) 29 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool (support from Trueno) 31 – SSE Arena, Belfast
APRIL 1 – 3Arena, Dublin (support from Trueno)
JUNE 20 – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London (support from Sparks and Trueno)
Featured image: Press image
Audio
The adopted Manc indie pop star with that we’re backing to win the Mercury Prize this year
Danny Jones
The 2025 Mercury Music Prize shortlist is officially out, and we’re proud to say that the North has been well represented once again this time around, with multiple names from the top end of the nation featured among the nominees – including an adopted Manchester-based rising star.
You know what, cratch that: she might as well be a Manc music queen at this point, if you ask.
We may be heavily biased here, but with indie and alt-pop artist CMAT making her way onto the Mercury Music Prize award shortlist this year, our vote is practically already cast.
If you haven’t listened to CMAT yet, then you’re seriously missing out, and following the release of her latest LP, Euro-Country, at the end of August, it’s little surprise she’s earned the Mercury nod.
She may be Irish-born, but the ‘Dubyone Diana’ truly started to make a name for herself in Manchester, and you’re damn right we’re taking her as one of our own.
Moving to 0161 as a teenager with her old band, Bad Sea, she was just 17 when she got here; now 29 and making fairly different music to the kind she did as part of the previous duo, she’s grown massively in popularity over the last few years – and she’s done a lot of it from right here in Greater Manchester.
From playing the city centre music venue circuit to stunning crowds at the likes of Kendal Calling and Glastonbury Festival, she’s come a long way in a relatively short amount of time.
Come on, if this isn’t award-winning energy, then we don’t know what is…
We welcome her to keep leaning into country music as much as she wants.
There’s another reason we want CMAT to win the Mercury Prize
It isn’t just because we’re somewhat biased local fans that we’re putting our money on her winning the 2025 Mercury Prize: she nearly already did this time last year for her sophomore outing, Crazymad, For Me, having released three impressive studio albums in less than 36 months.
“As she was reading it, I had this weird flip in my stomach, that I didn’t want to win the Mercury Prize for THAT record, because I had a feeling I could make something better.
“Two days later, I started to make EURO-COUNTRY. The Mercury Prize put a bottle rocket up my bum, to try and do something a bit more cutting edge and experimental and intense, if that makes sense.”
She signed off by adding, “I didn’t necessarily expect to be nominated again as a result, but I am very happy to have been.” We had a feeling she would, to be honest, hence why she was among our artists of the month – not even a fortnight before the shortlist was announced, no less.
Unsurprisingly, the likes of Fontaines D.C. and Sam Fender are also on there after a standout 12 months for both artists, but we’re sticking with CMAT for our 2025 Mercury Prize winner. After all, surely she can’t miss out two years in a row?
The Manc -
6th October 2020 
