Category: news

Turin-based atmospheric doom outfit Gli Alberi recently returned with their third concept album, Maturafine. I spoke with vocalist Arianna to dive into the themes behind the new release. We discussed the band’s musical evolution, their literary inspirations, and farinata.

Reuel

Hello Arianna! I’m very glad to be talking with you. How are you doing?

Arianna Prette

Hi Reuel! The pleasure is all mine! Everything’s great, thank you. We just played at the Doom Army Open Air festival with Gli Alberi in Veneto at the beginning of July, and now we’re taking a short summer break.

Reuel

Oh, how exciting! You have recently released your new album Maturafine. What are the first three words that come to mind when you think about this new album?

Arianna Prette

Nice question! Well, I guess they are sand, because every track talks about a physical or metaphorical desert. Then time, because the album deals with endings, with places that have changed and deeply transformed, but at the same time allowed something else to arrive. And for the last word, I’d say life, meaning a force that keeps moving forward anyway, filling the empty space left behind. In fact, we like to describe Maturafine as an optimistic album about the end of the world.

Reuel

How would you describe GLI ALBERI’s musical style and sound to our readers who haven’t had the chance to listen to it yet?

Arianna Prette

It’s not that simple to define our genre, but we usually describe it as atmospheric post-metal. We like to create evocative soundscapes where listeners can lose themselves in the synth textures, get carried away by the guitar and bass lines, and be guided by clean vocals or shaken by extreme singing, all tied together by the powerful beat of the drums. We try to bring all of this into our live shows too, aiming to build a profound connection between us, the meaning behind the tracks, and the audience.

Reuel

The concept of Maturafine is remarkable. What inspired you to center the album around deserts?

Arianna Prette

Since we loved writing our previous concept album, Reinhold, we all agreed on creating another concept album. We’ve always been drawn to environmental issues, especially the relationship between humanity and nature, in particular during these complex times. The spark came from William Atkins’ book The Immeasurable World, a travelogue through the world’s most remote deserts, like the Rub’ al Khali (The Empty Quarter) and the Aralkum Desert. Fascinated by those sands and their mysteries, we used them as a starting point, diving deeper through documentaries, films, and books like Ecclesiastes, also known as Qoelet, which, for example, inspired our track Q.

Reuel

This is brilliant. Maturafine is your third album released. What, in your opinion, does Maturafine have that older GLI ALBERI albums did not have, and makes it special?

Arianna Prette

It’s definitely an album where we felt more musically mature. After the feedback we got on Reinhold, we had a clearer picture of what worked and what we needed to improve. With Maturafine, we tried to raise the bar: we worked extensively on the arrangements, put a lot of care into the lyrics, and searched for a sound that felt as authentic as possible. It was also the first time we actively reached out to a record label. On that note, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank the guys at Masked Dead Records for believing in our vision and supporting the project!

Reuel

What musicians can you credit as the ones who inspired you, personally, in your life or career as a musician?

Arianna Prette

Well, there are so many! I’ll just name a few to avoid going on forever! Ever since I was a little kid, I loved Hans Zimmer’s film scores. As a teenager, I got into metal, especially symphonic and gothic bands like Nightwish, Within Temptation, Evanescence and The Gathering. But I was listening to a wide variety of music back then, from Enya, Loreena McKennitt and The Cranberries to Muse and Sigur Rós, along with Italian songwriters like Elisa, Franco Battiato, and Fabrizio De André. As for more recent metal artists, I also listen to Sylvaine, as well as Italian bands like Messa and Ponte del Diavolo.

Reuel

Legendary names!
If the sense of taste and hearing were mixed up together, what food do you imagine GLI ALBERI’s music would taste like?

Arianna Prette

Such a synesthetic question! I love it! The first thing that popped into my head is farinata. Maybe it’s also because its color and look remind me of a vast expanse of sand! For anyone not familiar with it, it’s a traditional savory dish from Liguria and Tuscany made with chickpea flour, water, salt, olive oil, and sometimes a dash of black pepper. It’s made of simple, wholesome ingredients, but when combined, they create a unique flavor that’s completely different from the single elements… with a dense texture that can sometimes be hard to swallow, but delicious, featuring a crisp crust that bites and a warm, soft heart. Ok, now I’m officially starving! haha

Reuel

And I’m intrigued to cook it this weekend!
How would you describe Maturafine using emojis only?

Arianna Prette

Honestly, without realizing it, I might have already answered this in the second question! Sand, time, life… I’d definitely go with the hourglass: ⏳! It captures the concept so well! When time runs out, if you flip it over, a new cycle begins: an ending that turns into a start. And the sand sealed inside the glass is the true common thread, keeping that rhythm grain by grain.

Reuel

Thank you for your time, Arianna! Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Arianna Prette

Thank you so much for this interview opportunity! For anyone who’d like to learn more about Gli Alberi and Maturafine, I invite you to follow us on our social media and streaming platforms! We’ll also be announcing new live dates and updates very soon! And in general… support the underground scene!

The post Interview | Gli Alberi’s Arianna Prette: “An optimistic album about the end of the world.” first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.

Stevie Van Zandt, Bruce Springsteen‘s faithful brother-in-arms in The E Street Band, says that he has written scripts for no fewer than six TV series, and that his number one ambition right now is to have a TV network or major streaming platform commission at least one of the six.

In 1999, having had no previous acting experience, Van Zandt was cast in New Jersey Mafia drama The Sopranos, and proved a revelation in his role as mobster and strip club owner Silvio Dante. Twenty years on he was cast as a singer in Martin Scorsese’s gangster movie The Irishman.

In 2011, the guitarist co-wrote, starred in, and was an executive producer on Netflix comedy-drama Lilyhammer, and in a new interview with Vulture, the 75-year-old star says that he would relish being given another television project.

“It doesn’t have to be one of my scripts,” he says, “but that would be nice.”

“My favorite script is called Nobody Loves and Leaves Alive,” he reveals. “As all my stuff is, it’s a little bit of a dramedy. It’s about three brothers. And actually, I’m going to be playing two of them.

“The first brother is a gangster, which I’m going to play. People love me as a gangster. The second brother is a rock-and-roll guy, a real hippie type of rock-and-roll guy, which I can fake. And a third brother is an FBI guy, a role that I’m offering to Johnny Depp. I’m hoping he reads it. The show is about how they interact with each other — those three lives of the mob world, the rock-and-roll world, and the FBI world…. I already have the soundtrack done and the script done. So it’s a matter of somebody saying, ‘Let’s go’.”

Earlier this year, Van Zandt revealed that Bruce Springsteen, and his band members, had received death threats while on their Land of Hope and Dreams tour in the US.

“This tour has been a little bit different because of the high security,” he told UK tabloid newspaper The Daily Mail. “It’s a very specific political theme to this tour and there’s been a lot of threats, death threats. Usually there’s always some, but this time it’s been increasing.”

Revealing that Springsteen has had to “beef up security”, Van Zandt added, “it’s mostly just talk. And it’s not like we’re saying something that’s not true or we’re saying something that’s so really particularly controversial, but it’s specifically political.”

“So the FBI and others have been really watching things and been overly concerned about it, as they should be,” he continued. “We want the fans to be safe and feel safe. So we really go the extra mile with extra security for that reason alone.”

Italian post-black metal collective DIE SÜNDE have signed with Time To Kill Records for the release of their debut full-length album, Effemeridi, scheduled to arrive before the end of 2026.

Emerging as one of the best-kept secrets of Italy’s increasingly vibrant underground, DIE SÜNDE have quietly built a strong reputation through two highly acclaimed EPs: their self-titled debut in 2020 and Strega in 2022. Across those releases, the band established a distinctive artistic identity by weaving together black metal and post-hardcore/metal into a constantly evolving musical language, where fractured rhythms, dynamic songwriting and an instinctive sense of tension are held together by a deeply melancholic emotional core.

Rather than relying solely on aggression, DIE SÜNDE explore a broad expressive spectrum. Harrowing screams coexist with evocative clean vocals and choral arrangements, giving their songs an organic emotional depth that never feels forced or ornamental. The result is a sound capable of shifting naturally between violence and introspection, always driven by sincerity rather than convention.

With Effemeridi, the band takes a decisive step forward. Expanding both the scope and ambition of its songwriting, the album refines everything that has made DIE SÜNDE such a compelling presence within the Italian extreme metal landscape, presenting their most cohesive, mature and emotionally resonant work to date.

More details about Effemeridi, including artwork, tracklist and the first single, will be unveiled in the coming weeks.

Line-up:
Michael Anthony Foti – vocals
Simone Carraro – guitar
Nicola Rizzo – bass
Filippo Baccega – drums

Additional composer for the the album:
Carlo Giacomel – guitar

DIE SÜNDE:

https://www.instagram.com/diesuendeband

https://diesuende.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/diesuende

Time To Kill Records:

https://timetokillrecords.bandcamp.com/

https://www.instagram.com/timetokillrecords/

https://timetokillrecords.com/

On Aug. 9, 1986, Queen played Knebworth House in Hertfordshire in front of roughly 120,000 people.

The post Queen’s Freddie Mercury Played Final British Show 40 Years Ago This Month appeared first on Audio Ink Radio.

Somewhere between MySpace and Instagram we lost the plot, and social media transformed from an exciting outlet where you could discover new creations, to a vapid void of unnecessary ego stroking. Whether it’s tea and toast, or tits and ass, there seems to be a never ending ocean of topics polluting the waters where we used to find viable content that could sustain our attention for more than a few measly milliseconds. The landscape has changed, and for creators such as myself, it can often be overwhelming to see someone who scares people in Walmart with a fake stutter get millions of views and comments, while unbelievably talented artists, authors, and filmmakers are struggling to sustain the few dozen people whose attention is quickly fading between posts. What does that say about people in general? What does that say about ME? I happen to love that stuttering prick. He’s fucking hilarious.

Honestly, I think it just boils down to how we all process information these days. Everything happens at light speed compared to how things used to be. Anything you want to find out, you can do so within a few seconds. This process is convenient, but it also trains us to utilize the same methodology outside our little phone bubble. We don’t really spend much time being bored, or just gazing off into the sky. Maybe we do, but nobody would know, because we’re too wrapped up in that little bubble of ours. It’s an interesting dilemma, and I’m curious how it will all unfold in the years ahead. I do believe we are hitting a ceiling where this type of content will be looked at much in the way junk food was looked at long ago. People will eventually start to see the long term effects of consuming so much brain junk, that more time will be spent on what matters most. Real connections with the people and places that matter most. At least that’s what my optimistic side thinks anyways.

I struggle to even write these thoughts out on my computer, as both eyes are now infected with styes. Basically, a large bump that clogs up your eyelid and makes you look like you just challenged the biggest guy at Duff’s in Brooklyn after saying Bloody Kisses was overrated. Moments like this seem to happen more as you get older, with random, inexplicable health issues popping up to try and ruin your day. It could be anything from a stye, to throwing your back out trying to put your shoes on. Either way, I take these cues as opportunities to learn something. Perhaps they’re a chance to gain perspective on the things I used to take for granted, much like we tend to do when we get lost in our phones day after day. We scroll through an endless loop of nonsense that rewards us with empty calories, much in the same way a box of donuts would. Granted, it’s delicious in the moment and great in small doses, but in no way, shape, or form is it sustainable for a healthy outlook.

Whenever I spend too much time on my devices, I always feel more limited in my creative world. I don’t want to write as much, I have nothing to share with the world, and motivation is always sucked dry because my attention can be so easily manipulated just by scrolling. Actual progress requires more effort, and as tedious as that may sound to the lazy side of my brain, it does result in a better overall outlook on things. I’m at my best when I’m exploring the world around me. Connecting to the people I love, the things I love, the places I love to visit. It all adds up to a collective feeling of accomplishment that gives more motivation to express myself through things like music. If I pick up a guitar after an hour of scrolling through nonsense, I always end up writing nonsense riffs. When I pick up the same guitar after an hour of walking through the woods, I’m spitting out songs that could put a smile on any devil, demon, or dark spirit within a stone’s throw of the nearest graveyard.

I suppose this all boils down to how we manage our time, and what we do with the time that is given to us. Yes, I just quoted Gandalf, but that old bastard had some wise words that always vibe with my daily routine. There have been more than a few friends of mine sharing the same sentiment lately, which helped trigger this article entry to begin with. I can only hope that they, and all of us, don’t get too bogged down by the algorithm stealing our lust for life. I want to spend my time doing the things I love, exploring the places I love, and connecting with the people who make this whole thing worthwhile. Family, friends, fans of Autumns Eyes, whatever you want to call it. Those are the people who truly hold the key to my unabashed affection for life. Without them, it’s nothing more than the same empty void doom scrolling sells as reality.

The post The Death of Boredom: A Rant About Social Media From Autumns Styes appeared first on Autumns Eyes.

Alex Terrible spent a day going round after round with critics who wanted him to apologise to the trans community following Slaughter To Prevail’s Bloodstock set — screenshotting messages, replying publicly, refusing to give an inch. Then one person told him his posts might be getting other people bullied, and asked how he’d feel if it were his family on the receiving end. He deleted the entire thread. His words: having thick skin himself doesn’t mean everyone does.

STREAM THE METAL BREAKDOWN DAILY NOW:

Scott Penfold digs into the latest hard rock and metal news on today’s Metal Breakdown Daily. Download the free Loaded Radio App on Apple iOS and Google Play and get it every weekday morning.

How it started

Slaughter To Prevail played Bloodstock. By Terrible’s account, activists had tried to get the set cancelled before the band went on.

He responded with a video from the performance, text over the top sarcastically apologizing to the trans community for the fact that the band played a sold-out show people enjoyed. Underneath, he asked what exactly he’s supposed to be apologizing for — and said he’d do it, no problem, if somebody would explain it. He isn’t too proud, he wrote. He also thanked the Bloodstock team and organizer Vicky Hungerford for believing in the band.

Then the replies started, and he answered every one of them.

How it escalated

Somebody suggested he go on a podcast with trans people and learn from them. He fired back asking what he was meant to learn, and why — his position being that they had a problem with him, not the reverse. He said, at length and in capitals, that he doesn’t care how anyone identifies, who they sleep with, how they dress, what they believe or how they vote. What he objects to is people pushing their values onto him.

Someone accused him of teaching mindless hate. He replied that if saying he respects everyone and doesn’t want to be involved in anyone’s personal beliefs counts as spreading hate, then he’s not surprised people call him a Nazi.

Someone else said his trans fans needed him to stand up for them. That one got the sharpest response of the lot — he doesn’t want people at his shows out of obligation, he wants people who love the music, and he asked, with several expletives, for the complete list of causes he’s apparently required to publicly endorse. Israel? Palestine? Ukraine? Where does the list end?

He did, in the middle of all that, write that everyone deserves love, trans people included.

Lambgoat reported the exchanges as they happened. Loudwire reviewed them before they came down.

Then somebody found the crack

Here’s the part that makes this an actual story instead of another day in the comment war.

One person came at it differently. Not as an attack — as an appeal. They put it to him that his posts were inciting pile-ons, that people in his replies were being bullied because of what he was writing, and asked how he’d feel if the targets were his own family.

That landed.

In an Instagram Stories response, Terrible said he’d never thought about it that way, because he acts the way he does knowing he can defend himself — he’s been dealing with the internet for ten years and he can take it. But he conceded the person was right: people could be getting attacked because of his posts, and he doesn’t want that. He said he judges by himself, and by himself he’s fine. That was the blind spot.

His conclusion, roughly: forget the drama, forget the posts, he deleted them. What he wants to do is make music, be a better version of himself, and protect people who can’t protect themselves — not be the guy whose feed turns into a place where people go after each other.

And the line that actually sticks, in his own words: “because I have thick skin doesn’t mean everybody has thick skin.”

Four years of this, and that’s the argument that got through. Not a demand. Not an ultimatum. Somebody asking him to picture his own family in it.

This didn’t start at Bloodstock

Context matters here, because this story reads very differently if you’ve only just walked in.

We’ve been covering this one for years. In 2025, the band’s European tour announcement with Dying Fetus, Suicide Silence and Annotations Of An Autopsy triggered enormous backlash aimed squarely at him. The recurring flashpoints are documented and specific: a Black Sun tattoo, a symbol appropriated by the Nazis and adopted since by white supremacist groups; a photo of him in an SS helmet; a 2023 post about rules for “real men” that drew accusations of homophobia and misogyny; and years of comments critics have called homophobic and transphobic.

He addressed much of it on the Downbeat podcast, where he denied being racist, homophobic or transphobic, said the Black Sun tattoo wasn’t political, and confirmed he’d covered it for the sake of his career. He expressed regret over the SS helmet photo. He did not apologise for promoting a band he himself described in stark terms, or for wearing a brand owned by a neo-Nazi activist.

Last October, guitarist Jack Simmons offered an explanation for a separate tattoo that landed about as well as you’d expect, while conceding the controversy is the band’s own fault.

So when Terrible asks what he’s supposed to apologise for, his critics have a list. Whether covered tattoos and stated regret are enough, and whether any artist owes the public a position on anything, is the argument — and it isn’t getting settled today.

Also Recommended – Bands That Wear Masks: The 13 Best Masked Rock And Metal Acts, And The Nu-Metal Pioneers Who Beat Slipknot To It

Where it stands now

The posts are gone. No apology to the trans community was issued, and he hasn’t retracted anything he said in substance. What he retracted was the fight itself, on the grounds that other people were catching strays.

That’s not nothing. It’s also not what his critics were asking for, and plenty of them will say so.

Meanwhile the band keeps working. The European run wraps August 15 in Eindhoven, and North America picks up September 10 in Houston and runs through November 23 in Myrtle Beach.

He fights bare-knuckle for fun. Turns out the thing that stopped him wasn’t a punch.

Check This Out – The 13 Most Brutal Metal Breakdowns Ever Recorded (Ranked)

TL;DR

• What happened: Alex Terrible deleted his posts about the alleged Bloodstock protest after one commenter changed his mind about the pile-on he was fuelling.
• How it started: he said he was told activists tried to get the set cancelled, and asked what he’s supposed to be apologising to the trans community for.
• How it escalated: he posted screenshots of critical messages with his own replies attached and went several rounds publicly.
• What stopped it: someone told him his posts were getting other people bullied and asked how he’d feel if it were his family. He said he’d never considered it because he can defend himself.
• What he did not do: apologise to the trans community, or retract his stated position.
• Still unconfirmed: neither Bloodstock nor any group has publicly confirmed the cancellation effort he described.

FAQ

He didn’t apologize — but he stopped, and he said why. Does walking it back count for anything here, or is it too little too late? Tell us below, and keep it locked on the Loaded Radio stream — follow Loaded Radio for daily rock and metal news.

The post Alex Terrible Deleted Every Bloodstock Post After One Message Got Through appeared first on Loaded Radio.

Moving on from the Mandrake era.

The post Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson Says His Forthcoming New Solo Album Is “Heavy As Sh*t” appeared first on Theprp.com.

The song is inspired in part by her battles with depression over the past few years.

The post Otep Shamaya Goes Trip Hop With Her Comeback Single “(ISH) I’m Still Here” appeared first on Theprp.com.

It’s all love and peace now, obviously, but when when [formerly] warring siblings Liam and Noel Gallagher were gleefully trading witty insults in the media, they were united in their belief that the band which propelled them into global consciousness was special, their songs forever resonant.

And they were right.

Here are 12 songs which demonstrate why Oasis continue to capture the popular imagination, 30 years on from their huge, history-making Knebworth gigs.

1. Rock ‘n’ Roll Star

Famously, in May 1993, Creation Records boss Alan McGee, back in his hometown of Glasgow to see family, caught Oasis playing third on the bill to 18 Wheeler, and offered the band a record deal on the spot. Noel Gallagher, already wise to the weapons-grade bullshit spouted by cocaine-fuelled music industry types thanks to his apprenticeship as a roadie for Inspiral Carpets, made sure that McGee left the venue with a copy of Oasis’ eight-song Live Demonstration cassette, so he wouldn’t forget the band’s name when he sobered up. With all due respect, Strange Thing or Cloudburst on that tape would never have secured the Mancunian quintet worldwide record deals, but side B, song 4? That’s the good stuff.

Imagine fronting a gang of older lads who look like they’ve stepped off a building site in their work clothes and delivering the line, “Look at you now, you’re all in my hands tonight” with utter conviction to audiences you could comfortably fit into a Ford Escort while third on the bill at JBs in Dudley, The Duchess Of York in Leeds, or Hull Adelphi. Then try to imagine watching anyone but a 21-year-old Liam Gallagher, still living with his mum Peggy on a Burnage council estate, singing this and actually believing him/her/they.

Gallagher The Younger quite correctly identified Rock ‘n’ Roll Star as “the most arrogant song ever” and as track 1, side 1, on Definitely Maybe, it is the most perfectly cocky introduction to a debut album that would change literally millions of lives. The Instagram/TikTok generation call this “manifesting”, back in the ’90s it was known simply as “dreaming”, but no dream ever sounded more like destiny.

2. Live Forever

“I’ve pretty much summed up everything I wanted to say in Rock ‘n’ Roll Star, Live Forever, and Cigarettes & Alcohol,” admitted Noel Gallagher as Definitely Maybe was filed in record racks across the UK ahead of its August 29, 1994 release. “After that I’m repeating myself, but in a different way.”

Rock ‘n’ Roll we’ve already discussed, and Cigarettes & Alcohol is the most fabulously ‘zero fucks given’ song on the most fearlessly optimistic punk rock album in history, but it’s Live Forever which is the most Oasis song ever written, and Noel Gallagher’s definitive statement.

Written as a response to (incorrect) music magazine rumours that Kurt Cobain was intent upon naming Nirvana’s third album I Hate Myself And I Want To Die, Live Forever is all about widescreen dreams, unshakeable self-belief and BDE swagger, a transcendent anthem which encapsulates everything about early Oasis. If you don’t ‘get’ Oasis after listening to Live Forever you never will, but if you know, you know.

3. Half The World Away

Coming in the wake of four superb introductory singles – Supersonic, Shakermaker, Live Forever and Cigarettes & Alcohol – Oasis’ first non album single, released on December 18, 1994, was a bit… whatever. Until you listened to its B-sides.

Noel Gallagher’s prolific songwriting talents had already allowed Oasis to casually toss out songs – Fade Away, Listen Up, Alive – as bonus tracks on singles when other bands would have killed to showcase them as A-sides. But listening to the B-sides of Whatever is the moment where you imagine Gallagher is starting to take the piss. It’s Good To Be Free (check out the live White Room version) is a banger, but the beautiful, brilliant Half The World Away moves the dial from ‘grandstanding’ to ‘shithousing’… not least because Noel, not Liam, at the time the world’s most compelling vocalist, sings it.

That Half Away The World was subsequently used as the theme tune to much-loved BBC sitcom The Royle Family only served to copper-fasten its iconic status, and place it alongside Pulp‘s Common People as an alternative British national anthem, one that actually resonates with the majority of its citizens.

4. Talk Tonight

Without Melissa Lim, this list would end here. Rather ungraciously, interviewed for the Oasis documentary Supersonic, Noel Gallagher claimed to remember neither Lim’s name, nor what she looked like, admitting that the time was “a bit of a blur”, but the San Francisco native’s entry into Gallagher’s life stopped him walking away from Oasis during their very first American tour, following what he considered to be a disastrous crystal meth-fuelled gig at LA’s legendary Whisky A Go Go club.

Having been hit by a tambourine thrown by his little brother at said gig, a furious Gallagher collected his passport and $700 from tour manager Maggie Mouzakitis, pushed a note under her door to say that he was fucking off, then caught a flight to San Francisco to meet Lim, who he’d first met at Oasis’ show at the city’s Bottom of the Hill venue four nights earlier. “He was very upset,” Lim told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2016 . “I took him in, fed him and tried to calm him down. He wanted to break up the band… I wasn’t going to let it happen on my watch.”

The story is told, partially, in Talk Tonight, which Gallagher recorded solo in Austin, Texas just weeks later, after his return to the fold. The song’s chorus runs “I want to talk tonight/ Until the morning light/ ’Bout how you saved my life”, a more gracious ‘thank you’ which no-one can ever take away from Lim.

By the way: listen to that Whiskey A Go Go gig sometime, because it’s electrifying when the Gallagher boys aren’t trying to knock lumps out of one another. And that was Oasis at their worst.

5. Acquiesce

“Because we need each other. We believe in one another.”

In the sleevenotes to The Masterplan, Oasis’ outstanding B-sides compilation album, we’re informed that Acquiesce, contrary to all speculation, isn’t about the relationship between Liam and Noel Gallagher.

Riiiiiiiight.

That Acquiesce was ‘relegated’ to the B-side of the infinitely weaker Some Might Say is, frankly, unbelievable: you’d have to have ears fashioned from Bagpuss’ pelt not to hear the gulf in class between the two songs, not least when it comes to the soaring, sublime switches from Liam’s verses to Noel’s chorus.

When Oasis played two nights at Maine Road, then the home ground of their beloved Manchester City, in April ’96, they chose Acquiesce as their set opener. The nerve! The chutzpah! Liam sings flat – whatever – and it’s still unfeasibly thrilling.

6. Hello

Hello is by no means the best, most significant, or most important song on (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, but it’s on this list for a simple reason. If you were an Oasis fan in 1995, and had heard the Mancunians preview their second album with the decidedly mediocre one-two of Some Might Say and Roll With It, you would have been forgiven for having a crisis of faith over what lay ahead, particularly if you also found time within that to question The Chief’s wisdom in spunking so many killer songs on B-sides. But Hello, the album’s lairy opener, was the moment you knew that everything was going to be alright.

With retrospect, the Gary Glitter echo is deeply unfortunate. But the Paul Calf-echoing “I’ve got a feeling you still owe me, so wipe the shit from your shoes“?

Come on.

7. Wonderwall

Is anyone here unfamiliar with Wonderwall? Anyone at all? Okay, next!

8. D’You Know What I Mean?

Another album opener, another absolute beast of a song.

Famously, Be Here Now, is Oasis’ ‘cocaine album’: frankly, if you think any Oasis album wasn’t a cocaine album, you weren’t paying much attention. Whatever, the implication here is that Be Here Now was over-blown, long-winded, and full of its own self-importance, which is a totally accurate assessment. But in the case of opener D’You Know What I Mean?, the more relevant epithets are ‘epic’, ‘massive’ and ‘monstrous’, for it sounds the way you would hope one of the biggest rock bands in the world should sound, brash, bold and louder than bombs.

Explaining some of the thinking behind the song’s swagger, Noel Gallagher stated, “We were a bunch of scruffs from Manchester and we’re going out in a Rolls-Royce.” Old school rock ‘n’ roll indulgence may be a bit déclassé in 2024, but sometimes you just have to sit back and gawp in wonder at the excess, and this is one such instance.

9. Little James

Now, wait, we’re not suggesting that this is one of Oasis’ greatest songs: we’re not insane. But in terms of the Oasis story, Little James is a landmark moment, being the first Liam Gallagher-penned/non-Noel Gallagher penned song to feature on an Oasis album, specifically Standing on the Shoulder of Giants.

Rather sweetly, the song was written for Gallagher’s former stepson, James Kerr, the son of Liam’s ex-wife Patsy Kensit and Simple Minds vocalist Jim Kerr: a shame then, that’s it’s such a soppy, sappy, wet tissue of a tune, with lyrics – “Live for your toys / Even though they make noise / Have you ever played with plasticine / Even tried a trampoline” – that make Noel Gallagher’s rhyming couplets read like Jean-Paul Sartre.

Noel, to be fair, was encouraging of his brother’s efforts, saying, “It’s good, it’s very catchy… Now he knows he can do it, good luck to him.” But in opening up his band’s songwriting, Gallagher Senior opened up Oasis’ own Pandora’s Box…

10. Stop Crying Your Heart Out

Take a look at the songwriting credits on Heathen Chemistry: after Noel Gallagher opened the door to other writers, suddenly everyone in Oasis wanted in on the act (or in on the songwriting royalties, at least). To be fair, given that Andy Bell had written for Ride, and Gem Archer had a modicum of success with his previous band Heavy Stereo, you can easily imagine why they listened to Little James and thought, ‘Right, fucking hell, if that’s the standard now…’

Now go look at the the songwriting credits on Heathen Chemistry again. Notice anything? Here’s a clue: the only good songs are all Noel Gallagher’s songs. And Stop Crying Your Heart Out, the very obvious highpoint, is so far and above everything else on the record that you have to imagine that Noel Gallagher was trying really, really hard not to sound too smug when he presented it to the band. “Mind if I try one of mine lads?”

“Heathen Chemistry had a couple of good tunes, Little By Little and Stop Crying Your Heart Out,” Noel later told NME. “The rest of it is a bit ‘meh’.”

File under: sit down, shut up.

11. Lyla

So, following on from the previous entry, wherein it may have been implied that letting every fucker write songs for Oasis was The Beginning Of The End – which it kinda was – in the interests of fairness, we should state here that 2005’s Don’t Believe The Truth is [insert Larry David impression] pretty, pretty good. Andy Bell’s Keep The Dream Alive is excellent, Gem Archer’s A Bell Will Ring is decent, and the Archer/Liam Gallagher co-write Love Like A Bomb is catchy, sunny and fun, with some nice Beatles harmonies. Well done everyone.

Again, though, The Chief’s compositions shines brightest, with Mucky Fingers, The Importance Of Being Idle and Part Of The Queue hinting that Noel’s songwriting was heading in a more experimental direction. Lyla is more typical Oasis, but it’s also arguably the band’s last true banger, with a chorus tailor-made for summer stadium screamalongs 20 years on.

12. I’m Outta Time

Again, with hindsight, Dig Out Your Soul is probably most significant for foreshadowing What Noel Did Next, but let’s give props to Liam here, because the rather lovely I’m Outta Time is not only the best and most poignant song on Oasis’ seventh and final record, but also the album’s most-streamed song on Spotify.

After this, you can understand why Liam felt pretty bullish about the prospect of post-Noel, post-Oasis life, which has worked out just fine. But not quite as fine, admittedly, as things have been since the brothers buried the hatchet and Oasis swaggered back into view.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



TAETHEN UNVEILS NEW SINGLE “PARADISE FOR FOOLS” FROM FORTHCOMING ALBUM ILLUSORY SENSATIONS


Progressive Metal Solo Project Blends Atmospheric Soundscapes, Crushing Riffs, and Fearless Musical Exploration
Presave: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/taethen/paradise-for-fools
Progressive metal visionary Taethen, the solo project of Julia Kajanto, has unveiled the powerful new single “Paradise for Fools,” now available as the first glimpse into the ambitious full-length album Illusory Sensations , scheduled for release on September 25, 2026 .
Created entirely by Julia Kajanto, Taethen is an independent project driven by a passion for progressive music without creative limitations. Rather than following a predictable formula, each Taethen release embraces its own identity, exploring new sonic landscapes while remaining rooted in adventurous songwriting and emotional depth. The result is music that constantly evolves, rewarding listeners with fresh experiences from one release to the next.
Drawing influence from bands such as Intronaut, Karnivool, and Opeth, Taethen combines progressive metal with elements of post metal, atmospheric sludge metal, and acoustic rock. Towering riffs collide with immersive textures, dynamic arrangements, and moments of introspective beauty to create an emotionally engaging listening experience.
Now available, “Paradise for Fools” showcases the project’s balance of crushing heaviness and expansive atmosphere while introducing the themes that run throughout the upcoming album.
The forthcoming album, Illusory Sensations , ventures deep into the complexities of the human condition, examining existential uncertainty, psychological conflict, and personal transformation through intricate musicianship and cinematic songwriting.
Speaking about the release, Julia Kajanto shares:


” Illusory Sensations has been in the works for years, and I’m incredibly excited to finally let it out into the world. It’s an exploration of the human psyche, delving into the darker aspects of existential discovery. It’s full of progressive metal madness, crushing riffage and beautiful soundscapes.”


As a completely self-produced effort, every aspect of Illusory Sensations , from songwriting and performance to recording, production, mixing, and mastering, was handled by Julia Kajanto, reflecting a singular artistic vision from beginning to end.
With “Paradise for Fools” now available, Taethen invites listeners into a world where progressive songwriting, emotional intensity, and fearless experimentation converge into an unforgettable musical journey.
“Paradise for Fools” is available now.
Illusory Sensations arrives September 25, 2026.
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/taethen/paradise-for-fools

Follow Taethen

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/taethen

Media Contact: zach@metaldevastationradio.com
Artist Contact: Julia Kajanto
Email: taethenmusic@gmail.com