Oasis

Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants

"Standing" certainly won't win new fans for Oasis.

Review Score:

(6/10)
The poor Gallagher brothers.

After their debut album, the stellar "Definitely Maybe," the brothers and their band, Oasis, have been struggling to recapture that glory, where songs were solid and the hooks were catchy.

Their sophomore album, "(What's the Story) Morning Glory," was pretty close, but their third album, "Be Here Now," quickly grew shallow on repeated listening. 1999's "The Masterplan" simply revealed that a lot of the band's b-sides were better than some of its album material.

The band's had two years since "Be Here Now" to get a good album out of its system, and "Standing On the Shoulder of Giants" is a mostly solid effort that falters every so often, but it shows a good start for the band climbing out of pomposity.

"Standing on the Shoulder Of Giants" opens with the raucous "F**kin' In The Bushes," an instrumental showing that the band is willing to learn a few new tricks. Sampling a 1970 film, the first song is the most experimental piece on the album - the dirty old man's gruff grumblings make for a light starter.

It's mostly old hat stuff for the rest of the album, which is traditional Oasis.

During the past six months, both of the Gallagher brothers have claimed the new album would feature lots of drum loops and hip-hop influences, but they stretched the truth more than a little.

A few of the tracks have drum loops, but for the most part, this is classic Oasis that shows more signs of being influenced by Kula Shaker than the Chemical Brothers.

About two-thirds of the album is composed of ballads and crooners, with a few scattered rockers to break up the slow monotony.

This isn't to say some of the ballads aren't great. "Where Did It All Go Wrong?" certainly isn't where the album went wrong, as it's one of the band's best songs ever. But there's simply so many ballads that they drag the album down.

Another big problem with the album is how short it is, clocking in at about 45 minutes. Noel Gallagher, the band's principal songwriter, can't claim lack of material. The single for "Go Let It Out" features two b-sides, "Let's All Make Believe" and the magnificently graceful "(As Long As They Have) Cigarettes In Hell," both of which would have been welcome additions to the album.

"Standing On The Shoulder of Giants" also features the first song written by Liam Gallagher, a pleasing but unmemorable song to his adopted son, "Little James."

Oasis isn't going to win any new fans with "Standing On the Shoulder of Giants," but it should keep old fans appeased for a while longer.

More Reviews: