Last Thursday night at U Street’s Lincoln Theatre, audiences were indulged by an enthralling performance from one of the greatest songwriters of our time, Mr. Noel Gallagher accompanied by his High Flying Birds.
As I arrived at the theater, the first thing I noticed was the massive crowd that literally wrapped around the entire block. The rumor was that some folks had been waiting in line since 8AM and to top things off, it had been raining heavily for most of the day. The poncho-clad crowd, many huddled together sharing tiny umbrellas, looked glum to say the least. As the soaked patrons worked their way into the theater at door time, you could see a glimmer of hope wash across their eyes as they filled the theatre and shook off the remnants of the damp outdoors. The merch line was particularly crowded right from the moment the doors had been opened, perhaps to purchase dry clothes.
With no opening act, the anticipation inside the venue was as noticeable as the rain outside. With a set time of 8:10 PM, by 8:09 the crowd was on its feet. When Noel Gallagher walked onto the stage he smiled to acknowledge the audience, and without a word went right to his instrument. Opening with “Do the Damage,” a B-side from his latest studio effort, Gallagher’s guitar sound was impressive, his tone brilliant—and better even then one could expect to hear live.
Touring to promote his March 2015 release, Chasing Yesterday, Gallagher—the guts and song-machine behind his former band Oasis—would make this DC stop a very memorable one. I haven’t seen him perform since his 2012 visit to DC’s Warner Theater and man, did I miss him. Tonight, Noel’s performance was almost flawless but more importantly, his layered studio guitar sound translated near perfectly in a live setting.
As far as songwriters go, Gallagher can easily be considered to be one of the best of our time, and with his second solo album and his second full-blown tour with the Birds, Gallagher has achieved almost god-like status that spans generations. His band, The High Flying Birds is top-notch in every respect as well and Gallagher himself seems to be at his best—even down to his beautiful vocal harmonies which also exude even more charisma in a live setting than on the album—which is a hard task to pull off.
Gallagher’s setlist included material from both of his albums with his High Flying Birds and included six Oasis songs to boot. The Oasis mega hit “Champagne Super Nova” provided the audience with the first and much awaited sing-along of the night. Sometimes it takes a colossal hit to bring the entire audience together and Gallagher choreographed this masterfully. Shortly, the audience got another chance to chime in with the upbeat Oasis classic “Whatever.” Later, “Dream On” kept the momentum going.
With a consistent and stunning light show and video board that would put some arena displays to shame, Gallagher was poised and primed during a 20 song set. The evening offered not one dull moment and a lot less commentary from Mr. Gallagher then I had expected as he barely conversed with the audience members. (The last time he was in DC, he stirred up the crowd by mentioning that his house was bigger then White House which he had toured earlier that day.)
To end his regular set, he employed an angelic and perfect rendition of the anthem-like “If I had a Gun.” If anyone in the theater wasn’t close to tears by this point, “Gun” was the moment they likely lost it. To pull Gallagher back on stage for a few more songs, the crowd sang in unison, “Forever Noel,” to the rhythm of Alphaville’s ‘80s tune, “Forever Young.”
Noel Gallagher is writing, performing, and sounding better than he has in his entire career, including those beloved Oasis days. Although Chasing Yesterday has enjoyed mixed critical reviews, I would argue that it continues to push the high precedent set by his first release with his Birds. Gallagher is continuing to raise the bar and set new standards for himself as a musician—and he’s making his own rules and only looking forward. He’s not only the stronger half of Oasis, he’s a colossal solo artist in his own right.
SETLIST | Do the Damage, (Stranded On) The Wrong Beach, Everybody’s on the Run, Fade Away, In the Heat of the Moment, Lock All the Doors, Riverman, The Death of You and Me, You Know We Can’t Go Back, Champagne Supernova, Whatever, Dream On, The Dying of the Light, The Mexican, AKA… Broken Arrow, Digsy’s Dinner, If I Had a Gun
ENCORE | The Masterplan, AKA… What a Life, Don’t Look Back in Anger
