The spat between Noel Gallagher and Radiohead
If one thing has been made crystal clear since the early 1990s, it’s that Noel Gallagher doesn’t mince his words at all. Throughout his time with Oasis and beyond, Gallagher has been known to say his piece on any artist that is either a songwriter of biblical proportions or one of the most insulting excuses for music ever committed to celluloid. Between the innumerable barbs he’s had with his brother Liam, Noel has a few unkind things to say about one of his fellow ’90s rock legends.
Right around the time that Britpop started to peter out, Radiohead was ascending to new heights. Having already been workshopping their ideas with albums like The Bends, it was OK Computer that opened up a different avenue for them, being one of the last major rock events of the 20th century as Thom Yorke sang about the dangers that could come with technology if humanity isn’t careful.
As the world stepped into a new millennium, Radiohead was looking to switch up their sound as well, going in the opposite direction of their rock masterpiece on Kid A. After embracing different electronic textures, the band reinvented themselves as an experimental rock outfit, never looking back as they went on even more sonic adventures through the years on albums like In Rainbows and their latest project A Moon Shaped Pool.
Although Radiohead may have had more focus on their art than critical praise or hit singles, Noel took issue with their experimental side, telling NME: “No matter how much you sit there twiddling, going ‘we’re all doomed,’ at the end of the day people will always want to hear you play ‘Creep’.” Noel would also chastise the band for being art rock, implying he was about making music for the people by saying that he never went to university. Thom Yorke would retaliate later, stating that he learned to treat people with respect with a gentle nudge towards the comments made by Noel.
It was always about more than just the music, though. On the first Oasis tours after their hiatus following Be Here Now, Noel would go after Radiohead again for their demeanour onstage. Since most of Radiohead’s songs have been known to be on the dreary side, Noel claimed that the band should call it quits, saying: “If you don’t enjoy it, retire. Do us all a fucking favour and go to a mansion in Oxford so we don’t have to listen to your miserable bleakness about how shit your life is.”
Despite the initial spat, Radiohead has always been fairly complimentary to Oasis, even calling them one of their favourites on MTV during their first interviews — of course, the sincerity behind such a comment is known only by the band themselves. As Radiohead’s star continued to ascend, Noel ended up backpedalling on some of his statements, calling songs like ‘Fake Plastic Trees’ and ‘Karma Police’ great after the fact. Noel also heaped praise on Jonny Greenwood, lauding him as a genius both with Radiohead and his instrumental works like the soundtrack to There Will Be Blood. Hindsight is always 20/20, and after coming out of one of the biggest rock bands in the world, Noel seemed to finally see the appeal hidden behind all the dreariness.
