The 2000s albums Noel Gallagher considered masterpieces: “Beyond 11 out of 10”
No generation is safe from becoming a little bit cynical about the new kids in town. Even if they are still just as relevant as they were in their prime, some of the dinosaurs of rock tend to have a few moments where they badmouth the next generation for not being nearly as good as what had come before. Noel Gallagher usually didn’t have that much of a problem doing that with any band he came across, but he knew something special was coming around when listening to Coldplay’s Parachutes and Dove’s The Last Broadcast.
By the time that the 2000s had started, though, it was a miracle that Noel had found himself back on top again. As much as Oasis sold during the Be Here Now era, there was nowhere to go but down once the tour was over, and after losing both Bonehead and Guigsy, Standing on the Shoulder of Giants felt like a massive comedown after years of writing one hit after the other.
In the meantime, though, the post-Britpop movement had started putting a slightly different spin on the retro stylings that Oasis was doing. Acts like Travis had started to emerge with far cleaner mixes, while Radiohead had taken a more intellectual side of Britpop with albums like The Bends. When Coldplay emerged, they seemed much more into making the kind of pop tunes of yesteryear.
As much as people have grown tired of the band these days, Parachutes is still a fairly solid release. Despite classics like ‘Yellow’ getting overblown these days, ‘High Speed’ is a great piece of ambient rock and roll, and tunes like ‘Spies’ and ‘Shiver’ are great examples of making pop music while still being a rock band.
And while it’s easy for Doves to be a favourite of Noel’s since they were from Manchester, The Last Broadcast is a solid piece of rock and roll. Whereas Coldplay’s album could be a lot softer than most fans were willing to go, hearing a group just willing to hit you with anthemic choruses was practically a warm hug for everyone that didn’t quite click with tunes like ‘Go Let It Out’ or ‘Where Did It All Go Wrong’.
Even Noel had to admit that he was impressed by what the new school had been doing, saying, “I think that [Coldplay’s] Parachutes is a masterpiece, although I didn’t at the time. I listened to it more. And The Last Broadcast by the Doves is beyond 11 out of 10. I was obsessed by those two records for a while.”
But looking back on where both bands have gone since then, everything veered off in slightly different directions. Both of them would have gladly cited Oasis as an influence, but where Doves stayed in the realm of rock and roll, Chris Martin had his eye on something much bigger, usually making music intended to be sung around the world on albums like Viva La Vida and A Head Full of Dreams.
Noel has always been content with following his muse no matter what the trends are, but who knows? Now, with Oasis back together, who’s to say that he couldn’t pull a little bit from the Coldplay playbook if a new album is, in fact, in the works?
