Live Review: Liam Gallagher - Utilita Arena Cardiff
LIAM GALLAGHER
UTILITA ARENA
CARDIFF
03/06/2024
Liam Gallagher delivers a note-perfect performance celebrating the enduring legacy of Oasis's debut album 'Definitely Maybe'. The set is a masterclass in nostalgia, featuring deep cuts, emotional singalongs, and a powerful reminder of the album's timeless impact across generations.
Words by Philip Giouras
★★★★★
What makes an album timeless? It’s perhaps a question Liam Gallagher asked himself ahead of this UK tour. A series of shows in celebration of Oasis’s debut album ‘Definitely Maybe’ as it turns 30 this year.
Crucially, however, what makes an album a celebration and not a cash grab? Ticket prices have inflated massively over the past twelve months, with standing tickets tonight coming in at roughly £90. Unsurprisingly, they flew out of the door in seconds following the promise of the return of some long-awaited Oasis deep cuts alongside their seminal award-winning debut album in full and have been hard to find on the secondary markets.
Whilst Liam Gallaghers iconic hubris is blazoned across the back of the merch, “Every time I look in the mirror, god looks back” reads one shirt, you can tell he’s actually put real care into his Cardiff performance, from the larger-than-life epic production through to the carefully crafted setlist.
Approaching show time a gigantic date appears on either side of the screen reading 2024 as it slowly flicks back to 1994. As it concludes, the screens fritz like VHS recordings of the era and the opening riff of Rock N Roll Star fills the air, as well as pints. However unlike when the song would launch Gallagher’s recent solo performances, tonight the effort in the production gives you a sense you’ve been transported back thirty years, helped by the larger-than-life screens which seamlessly meld archive clips of the group (predominantly Liam) with live footage of Gallagher on stage, managing to blend his 90’s style with his current rugged and sharp-cut look.
That ‘squint and they could look identical’ method he’s going for with the visuals could even extend to Gallagher’s vocals tonight. It’s the crispest he has sounded in a long time. The power, arrogance and youthful exuberance of the opening run of ‘Columbia’ and ‘Shakermaker’ are sublime here when played in all their glory. The same can be said for his band who shake the foundations of the arena.
The psychedelic influences in the roots of the ‘Definitely Maybe’ sound come alive throughout the evening. The Beatles are an obvious influence, however, you can identify that 70s meet 90s clash present throughout the era in bands such as Primal Scream, Inspiral Carpets, Cornershop and the evening’s support act CAST. It’s also a delight to see Bonehead back on stage following his recent cancer treatment. There’s a beautiful bond between him and Liam and the guitarist is a crucial element in amplifying Gallagher’s sound.
Whilst played in full tonight, Gallagher takes liberties with the album’s running order and makes sure to include a smattering of fantastic B Sides. Both brilliant decisions and tonight’s reordered tracklist manages to create multiple key moments throughout the set. Gallagher’s attitude is also in fine form. “Who fancies lasagne” he remarks before bursting into ‘Digsy’s Dinner’ with its ridiculous lyrics plastered across the digital screens, flamingos and lasagne aplenty. He also makes a touching nod to “little brother Noel”, who he claims is “still playing hard to get” but has been “spotted outside a fancy chocolate store, like Thorntons” with a reunion on his mind perhaps?
Noel’s less-than-conspicuous absence should be noted. Both brothers have established themselves as successful individual musicians both in the studio and crucially on stage. Liam especially has fine-tuned his set, learned to take care of his voice, rest properly and crucially has an understanding of what the evening’s music means to his audience.
He even digs deep into the vault to perform ‘Lock All The Doors’, an old pre ‘Definitely Maybe’ demo that Noel resurfaced and remade much later on for his own solo project. A version that Liam is keen to point out is not tonight’s inspiration as he makes the evenings only dig towards his sibling declaring “I heard some people saying this is a High Flying Birds tune, I’m desperate, but I’m not that desperate.”
It cannot be understated how elevated tonight’s performance is by Gallagher’s well-cared-for vocals. We all know he can own the stage with just a lean and a tambourine, but the show lives and dies off the authenticity of recreating such an iconic album. He roars through ‘Up In The Sky’ and ‘Bring It On Down’, and he manages to hit the emotional high points of a beautiful string-soaked ‘Whatever’ and a surprising rendition of ‘Half The World Away’. Importantly, this is all without a single croak, it’s pretty much a note-perfect performance.
So what makes an album timeless? That question is answered by the people around me; the young couple giddy with excitement as they approach their Oasis-themed wedding (Stand By Me is the first dance, and tables are named after Oasis tracks), the 26-year-old guy and his girlfriend who bought him tickets so he can hear his favourite album in full for the first time.
Finally, as I turn to my side, it’s the boy I see no older than eleven singing his heart out. His arms are aloft as he recites every single word. Not just to ‘Supersonic’ and ‘Cigarettes and Alcohol’ but to ‘Slide Away’, ‘Digsy Dinner’ and surprisingly with his most might ‘Married with Children’.
This album means a lot to people, and that’s why it’ll live forever, and crucially tonight, Liam Gallagher delivered a timeless performance to match.
Setlist:
Rock 'n' Roll Star
Columbia
Shakermaker
Up in the Sky
Digsy's Dinner
Bring It On Down
Cloudburst
I Will Believe
Half the World Away
D'Yer Wanna Be a Spaceman?
Fade Away
Lock All the Doors
(It's Good) To Be Free
Whatever
Cigarettes & Alcohol
Married With Children
Encore:
Supersonic
Slide Away
Live Forever
Encore 2:
I Am the Walrus (The Beatles cover)