Former Oasis lead guitarist Noel Gallagher's band just dropped a new LP, and a TV advertisement has some scratching their heads over the inclusion of a one-star review.
The album from Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, titled "Who Built The Moon," has received mixed reviews since its release on November 24, but still managed to go silver in one week and reach number one in the UK.
So it felt a little strange to feature a one-star review from The Irish Times, calling the new LP "a dried up Oasis of dross," in the advertisement.
And people quickly picked up on it:
But several people hypothesized that it was Gallagher's way of having a laugh at The Irish Times' expense:
When the review came out, it was pretty harsh, with reviewer Ian Maleney saying: "There are musical gestures here that would be a cause of embarrassment if you heard them played by a gang of black-clad teenagers at a Saturday afternoon battle of the bands in a rural parish hall."
"It’s the stale, musty sound of a glorified pub band going through the motions. Rock is dead; this is a pantomime," it added.
Gallagher responded on Instagram by saying, "That’s me told then!! See what they did there with the headline?"
So including the review in his ad definitely seems like a calculated dig at the Times.
But it turns out Gallagher doesn't necessarily care for high praise either, as he showcased in his response to the speculation that Oasis could be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
He recently told Rolling Stone of the possibility: "I’ve already been approached by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame… The f**kin’ fella from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame came to me and said, 'Do you know in two years you’ll be eligible for the Hall of Fame?' I said, 'Is that right?' He said, 'Yes.'"
"And he started going on, and I said, 'Let me f**king stop you there. I know what it is. I know what it entails, and it won't be f**king happening, OK?'," he added. "He invited me down to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame itself and showed me all these exhibits of Oasis stuff. It's a great place and all that, but I won't be doing it, I don't think."
Clearly, Gallagher has moved on and is focused on his new band's success.
And now we have a fun new phrase we can roll out when need be:
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