Still Soul Searching

Oasis are a hell of a lot like the New York Mets. For one, the level of hype that preceeds each is staggering -- so much so, that it becomes nearly impossible for either to live up the high expectations. Secondly, neither has had relative success in over a decade. Sure, the Mets made it to World Series in 2000 (and nearly again two years ago), and yes, people in England still wet themselves over the Gallagher brothers, but other than that, it's been disappointment city -- especially in these parts. Music fans and sports fans alike have turned their heads towards newer and sexier alternatives (i.e. Coldplay and the Rays), leaving my team and my band in the dust. But I will always, always be a believer. No matter how dire the situation gets, I will never lose faith in the Amazins or the self-proclaimed best band in the world. Every time spring rolls around, in the same fashion that every time new album hype begins to swell, I'm back onboard -- hoping and praying that each will return to its former [morning] glory.

So suffice it to say, last Tuesday I shelled out the $13 required to purchase the special edition of Dig Out Your Soul -- Oasis' highly-anticipated first release in three years. No single-disc editions for this guy. You're damn right I'm going to be suckered in to paying a few extra dollars for that worthless behind-the-scenes DVD. And yes, just checked, no bonus tracks on the edition I bought. Crap. Scammed again. Anyway, I really thought this one was going to be it. The band's latest single, "The Shock of Lightning," is unquestionably the most aggressive-sounding single and closest thing to Definitely Maybe I've heard since 1997's Be Here Now. Ever since the band got blasted for the decadence and pretentiousness that riddled their third release, they have been obsessed with experimentation. And while I normally applaud artists for mixing it up and breaking away from the status quo, this began to get very old very fast for my once-favorite band. All I've been asking for for the past decade is a single like "Shock," so needless to say I was ecstatic that maybe -- just maybe -- the boys were finally able to re-crack the code that helped them create what was arguably the best 1-2-3 punch of the past twenty years (Definitely Maybe, Morning Glory, Be Here Now).

But alas, this new one is better equated to Oasis' mediocre second string of albums (Standing On the Shoulder of Giants, Heathen Chemistry, Don't Believe The Truth), more so than anything else. And sure, like all recent Oasis failures, this one has it's moments. But unfortunately, it pretty much it's all smoke, mirrors, and a return to bad habits on Soul. I'll give the band credit for wisely selecting what is easily the album's best song as their first single, but other than that, you'll be hard-pressed to find anything else that even comes close to touching their material from yesteryear. And it really is unfortunate considering that this one was recorded at the famed Abbey Road studios. The band had all the bells and whistles at their disposal, and evidently still couldn't spark very many creative fires. Ironically, it appears that everything was dug up on this one but soul. We're given plentiful interludes between songs (one of which blatantly steals the intro to "Dear Prudence"), sitar cameos, John Lennon excerpts -- you name it, they experiment with it. Unfortunately, all of this simply equates to convenient distractions clearly meant to mask the mostly stale sounds of the 11 tracks. And don't get me started with the lyrical content. Admittedly these guys have never been poets, but this is simply dreadful. You should never judge a song by its title, but Dig Out Your Soul proves there is always an exception. "Bag It Up," "Ain't Got Nothin'," and "I'm Outta Time," couldn't be more dead-on descriptively. While we are given a little bit of a respite on the Noel-helmed "Falling Down," this one sounds like it's already been remixed by the Chemical Brothers. So yeah, this is no Oasis I came to grow and love. And although "Wonderwall" is unquestionably the song that has paid the bills for these guys, the Gallaghers need to stop attempting ballads and get back to going all shoegaze on our asses. I still say Liam's vocals are complemented best with layered, wall-of-sound guitars (see "Morning Glory"). But hey, just like there's always next season, there's always next album.

My Rating: 5.0/10