The best of the noughties, part the second

Right, I'm feeling inspired, so here is part two in my list of the best albums from the 10 years that make up what is colloquially known as the noughties.

Oasis - Don't Believe The Truth (2005)

Many had written these boys off a long time ago. And who can blame them. After launching out the blocks with Definitely Maybe in the early 90s, it had been a case of diminishing returns for Oasis. Yeah they sold tons of records, but while there were some great tunes, the albums were generally disappointing. 2002s Heathen Chemistry had shown that a more diplomatic approach to song writing may suit the band, but I have to admit when I put this into my CD player for the first time, I wasn't expecting an album quite this good. First up you get Turn Up The Sun, which starts off with some nice pastoral acoustic guitar action, before yr typical Oasis guitar onslaught, with vocalist Liam Gallagher putting in a particularly impassioned vocal. Next up is Mucky Fingers, a Noel sung tune that betrays the influence of, believe it or not, The Velvet Underground. A nice wee chugger of a tune, it even features guitarist Gem Archer performing a harmonica solo. Then we get 1st single Lyla, which ticks all the right Oasis boxes, great vocal, catchy as hell, singalong. One of this albums strengths is the fact that on drums, Oasis had managed to recruit one Zac Starkey. Yep, Ringo's son. Yep, touring drummer with the Who. Perfect for this bunch of tunes and the albums secret weapon, with a deceptively light touch, given that one of the guys who taught him how to play drums was "Uncle" Keith Moon. This lightness of touch is perfectly displayed on Love Like A Bomb, a song that features one of Liam's most tender sounding vocals is ages. The Importance Of Being Idle, another Noel sung tune, is all full of Kinks damage, but then Oasis have often tread that fine line being "influenced by" and "ripping off blindly." I reckon this falls the side of the former (just), a view that isn't universal amongst some folks I know.

Next up, The Meaning Of Soul, possibly the best tune Liam Gallagher has ever come up with. Its all driving acoustic guitars, driving drums (wooden spoons on a box of corn flakes apparently) and another impassioned vocal. Just fantastic. Followed up by the vaguely psychedelic Guess God Thinks I'm Abel, an OK tune, though possibly the weakest on the album. We then get the 3rd Noel sung tune on the album, Part Of The Queue, a jaunty shuffle of a tune.

At this point, we generally get to the point where Noel has run out of steam and dashes off a rather silly tune to pad the album out, which is where the Digsy's Dinners (great) and She's Electric (no so great) of this world. But no, this time we get Keep The Dream Alive, a song with some wonderful chiming guitars and a chorus as epic and soaring as anything Oasis had ever done. And they follow that up with A Bell Will Ring, another tune that just soars and soars and soars. They then close the album out with Let There Be Love, an understated attempt at the Oasis epic album closer.

I really didn't think Oasis still had it in them to produce an album so strong from start to finish. Hell, even the filler kicks arse and, I think I like this more that Definitely Maybe (just maybe though). This could've been a new beginning for the group, leading to the most extensive international touring is ages, increased sales, and general good times (check out tour doco Lord Don't Slow Me Down for more on this). But, it wasn't to be. A weak follow up was followed by a pre-gig bust up between the Gallagher brothers, and it was all over. For good this time, Noel embarking on a solo career, while Liam and the rest of the band carried on as Beady Eye.

Hooter Hooter Hooter

Head Like A Hole / Cairo Knife Fight - San Fran Bath House - Thursday August 25th

Yeah, it was a school night. Yeah, I had a really early alarm call the following morning. Yeah, but when you have two of the best live bands in the country playing in yr town, you ignore such inconveniences. My pals and I arrived a bit late and missed the start of Cairo Knife Fights set. Its a complaint I have with gigs in this town. You never know when these things are gonna start. Sure they advertise when doors will open, but then the bands start really late, meaning yr sitting around bored, especially if you are attending by yrself, or the bands start really early and you miss the start, which sucks when you wanna check out the opening bands. Surely we can be given an idea of when the bands expect to start? Some gigs do announce this, but its a practice that needs to be adopted by more venues/bands/promoters/etc. Anyhoo, enough ranting.

I last saw CNF at this venue about a year and a half ago, when the produced a thoroughly entertaining set opening for The Veils. In the mean time, they've released a couple of fantastic EPs and playing more shows, and impressing a bunch of the right people. Thursdays set was business as usual. For a 2 piece, they make a huge sound. Classic without pastiche, they build their songs around a massive groove, and yet aren't particularly groovy, if that makes sense. Its just a shame I didn't get to see their full set, but they're playing in a few weeks with Beastwars, The Eversons and others.

For the past few years, the reformed (in more ways than one) Head Like A Hole have been playing the nostalgia game, playing a bunch of rapturously received gigs. However, they've recently released an album of brand new tunes and were road testing them this time out. Having not managed to hear any of the new material, I was intrigued to see if they stood up to the songs in their back catalogue. One things was for sure, they were gonna be great live. Opening with a new song, were then treated to Comfortably Shagged. Yep, they were playing well, but then they were always pretty damn good live back in the day. With a set evenly divided between old and new songs, Booga and co had the crowd on side and wanting more. Highlights included Wet Rubber, Fish Across Face, and a stonking version of Hootenanny. The new songs, while good, didn't hold up quite so well against the older songs, though that could have had more to do with familiarity as much as anything else. Bonus points go to guitarist Nigel Reagan for performing a solo while crowd surfing, a feat that not only amazed the crowd, but also his band mates. Main set done, we got the obligatory call for an encore. A four piece horn section make their way on stage and tease out the intro to A Crying Shame, possibly HLAHs biggest hit. The band joined them, and then it all kicked off. A couple more tunes and they were done. A thoroughly enjoyable gig, it has to be said.

Beastwars -Mighty Mighty - Saturday August 13th

An odd venue for a metal show it has to said, given that the Mighty is usually more of a hipsters paradise. But, Beastwars have been playing some great shows in recent months (this was the 4th time I'd seen 'em in 2011), plus their self titled debut album is one of the better records released this year. Support bands Viking Weed and Spook the Horses played enjoyable, if somewhat anonymous opening sets, during which the venue filled up more than I'd ever seen the Mighty. After a short wait, Beastwars stepped up and layed down the sludgy metal goodness we've come to expect from them. They played pretty much the whole of the first album, Lake of Fire being unleashed early, while Daggers, Cthulhu and Damn The Sky all standing out. As usual, they were great, tho possibly not as good as other gigs they've played this year (their album release gig was probably better, despite them killing power to the stage 3 times during their set), not quite reaching the heights they a capable of.

That's all from me for now. Stay tuned for the 2nd entry of my best of the noughties, coming soon (promise)

Check you on the flipity-flopity