Talking AI and Oasis with Breezer
Surfing the internet last week, there was an undeniable swell of joy emanating from the music world. Not only had there been rumours of new or lost Oasis songs rumbling around the sonic seas, but it seemed even Liam Gallagher had labelled them “mega”. Of course, the reality was a little further from the truth of the Gallagher brother finally reuniting.
Instead, the work was from Breezer, a rock outfit from Hastings who had used AI software to recreate Gallagher’s unique vocals and deliver a concept album, under the guise of AI-sis. Breezer previously explained: “AISIS is an alternate reality concept album where the band’s 95-97 line-up continued to write music, or perhaps all got together years later to write a record akin to the first 3 albums.
“We’re bored of waiting for Oasis to reform, so we’ve got an AI modelled Liam Gallagher (inspired by @JekSpek) to step in and help out. It seemed to be a perfect match, and we love how some of these have turned out.” We reached out to the band’s drummer Jon Claire to talk about becoming an internet sensation and how one small change created one of the most exciting musical moments of the month.
“It’s been absolutely astounding,” explained the percussionist. But while the odd mention via Piers Morgan or mainstream newspaper column inch is a dopamine hit we’d all enjoy, the real reason for the buzzing demeanour of the drummer was the thrill of being an Oasis fan at that moment. “It’s given everyone who loves Oasis an amazing what-might-have-been fantasy moment. And I think it’s shown how much of an appetite there still is for the music of Oasis. Obviously, there’s been a lot of talk about a reunion for a long time. I don’t suppose we’re any closer to it, and if this is the closest that we get, then it’s been amazing to provide that.”
The origins of the internet phenomenon had initially humble beginnings. Claire commented: “It was put into an Oasis Reddit group. That was it. It didn’t even get upvoted that much. I think I had a hundred upvotes, and then comments started to pop off on it and then the traction just went and went.”
However, in truth, the release was always likely to get chins wagging across the music world. The drummer explained: “It’s really funny because Oasis are such a divisive band. And AI is also divisive. So, we’ve got a divisive recreation of one of the world’s most divisive bands.” The release sent shockwaves through the industry and grabbed not only the attention of Liam Gallagher and Oasis fans but the media world as a whole.
While AI is a conversation that will likely hang over the creation of music for decades to come, the reality of using the tool is a little further from the notion of Britpop-loving robots re-writing a host of your favourite hits into a brand new sound. For this release, at least, the contribution from the cyber world was relatively small. “I feel that hasn’t been clarified,” says Claire when speaking about the actual formation of the concept album. “The melodies and the lyrics — all written by Breezer. And the vocal takes that were sung into the microphone were sung by Bobby, our lead singer.”
“It’s only the tone, the inflexion, and the cadence. That is the AI aspect of it. So, for example, I think we miss the trick by not singing the original vocals, in a bit, more of a Northern accent, because it would have sounded even more convincing.”
The songs had been originally written some ten years ago, but Breezer were never convinced they would make any headway, “I just don’t think there was a market for it,” despite the fact that the group’s friends had seen their potential. “I think we thought that we were in a delusional echo chamber,” he continued, “because, you know, we just love Oasis. And we thought it was quite funny that we’d recreated a very similar sound to them.”
While Breezer may well be releasing the original tracks soon, “we are definitely keen to satiate their appetite” the realities of operating a band without huge investment is a difficult one to negotiate. “We’ve all got jobs, and we’ve all got lives, you know. I think that the costs associated with getting a band actually out there now— five guys going potentially on tour and releasing music — you’d need £500,000 to launch a band now.”
For bands like Breezer, AI isn’t a scary thing. For them, it provided a chance to hear their songs delivered on a huge stage. “It’s giving us a way to connect with Liam potentially, and, you know, he could get in touch and ask us to collaborate on some songwriting. He could get in touch and ask to have the song as a single.” AI-created music may pose a risk to some of the biggest names in the music industry, for the most part, at least at this point and time, it remains a tool with which innovators can push themselves and those around them into new, exciting and, most importantly, enjoyable, spaces.
Breezer will be playing The Lost Tapes live at the 100 Club June 10th.
