In an interview with the British music magazine Q set for release next week, Oasis songwriter Noel Gallagher suggested that the band will be taking a five-year hiatus from recording and touring. Though the band’s long-term plans are currently hazy, Gallagher intends to begin work on his first solo album shortly after the group completes its world tour for its most recent record, Dig Out Your Soul.
Though this is no doubt great news for the world’s teeming hordes of Oasis haters, and absolutely heartbreaking for the band’s most devoted followers, we’re a bit unsure about our feelings here. On the one hand, this may be a brilliant move for the band — if they stay out of the public eye long enough, there could be enough nostalgia for the twentieth anniversary of Definitely Maybe in 2014 to fuel a major comeback. On the other hand, they may sink so deep into irrelevance by that time that their return will barely register with anyone but the diehards. Also, after a handful of Oasis albums diluted by the subpar songwriting contributions of non-Noel members of the band, it could be nice to get an entire album of fresh Noel tunes, though if we’re being honest, we’d much rather hear them if they were sung by Liam. We’d also very much prefer it if Liam Gallagher refrained from writing his own solo album. It’s hard enough to take a couple of his solo compositions in the context of a late-period Oasis CD — just imagine the horror of a full album!
