Years after his band warred with the brothers’ group, Blur bassist Alex James has spoken of his delight at Liam and Noel Gallagher’s reunion – hailing their Oasis comeback as a “wonderful” moment for British music.
Alex James has spoken of his delight at Liam and Noel Gallagher’s reunion – hailing their Oasis comeback as a “wonderful” moment for British music.
The 56-year-old Blur bassist welcomed news of the brothers’ reconciliation ahead of their long-awaited summer stadium tour — their first shows together in 16 years — decades after his and the Gallaghers’ band were embroiled in a Britpop chart feud,
He said in an interview with The Sun about the Oasis reunion: “It’s wonderful. It’s awful that most bands end up hating each other.
“From Blur’s point of view, huge parts of how I feel every day… the fact there was a reconciliation and we’re all on good terms again… because when something is such a big defining part of your life you don’t want to be exiled from it.
“It was great for Blur and I’m delighted for the Gallaghers.”
Blur famously endured inner conflict in the early 2000s, leading to the temporary departure of guitarist Graham Coxon.
Reunited in 2008, the original line-up went on to perform at a sold-out Hyde Park show and headline Glastonbury in 2009.
Blur’s more recent albums — ‘The Magic Whip’ and ‘The Ballad of Darren’ — marked a return to full strength and received widespread acclaim, continuing a legacy that veered into more experimental territory in the 2000s with records like ‘Think Tank’ and ‘13’.
The band’s journey is in contrast to that of Oasis, who stuck closely to their anthemic Britpop roots with Beatles-inspired choruses and big singalong hooks.
Alex, who also curates the annual Big Feastival on his farm in the Cotswolds, plans to bring a new twist to the era’s music this summer with a project titled Britpop Classical — a collaboration with the London Concert Orchestra and guest vocalists, reimagining 90s classics with full orchestral arrangements.
“There’s a kind of legacy section, showing where all the influences that inspired these bands came from,” he said.
Alex added: “We’ll probably have a bit of Beatles and Stones and there’s so many great bands from Manchester in the early 90s. So there’s probably going to be a Northern Quarter section. And then you will move into a kind of upbeat sing-along section.
“If you’re doing this in a headline slot, you can really bring a whole production to bear. We’re sort of knee-deep in arrangements and orchestration. It’s really, really exciting. I think it’s going to deliver something totally f****** unique.”
Alex James hails Oasis comeback as a ‘wonderful’ moment for British music
