When Oasis unexpectedly reunited in 2024, one of the biggest questions the Gallagher brothers posed – or perhaps it was a challenge – to American audiences was whether they loved them all along.
Which, in all honesty, is fair. Following the band’s roaring start following two, in Liam Gallagher’s words, “biblical” albums that require little further explanation, Oasis hit the skids and never quite recovered among broader American audiences.
Yes, they continued to perform in amphitheaters and arenas in specific markets, but it wasn’t quite the reach or audience the band achieved globally, where they were stadium giants.
But, as the band played their first show on American soil since Dec. 20, 2008, at Patriot Center (a 10,000-capacity arena on George Mason University’s campus) in Fairfax, Va., and just months before the band split in August 2009, the excitement and hype surrounding the reunion were impossible to ignore.
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That was first exhibited when the news of the reunion broke. The next was when tickets sold out almost instantly. It’s continued with merchandise and limited-edition vinyl flying off the shelves of pop-up shops, and what’s become Oasis tourism, with fans flying in from all over the States, as well as the globe, to see the band.
Finally, Thursday night in Chicago, nearly two months after the tour kicked off in Wales, Oasismania finally hit these shores. Brashly always setting out to be bigger than the Beatles, the band’s first of four U.S. shows demonstrated that maybe America should have paid more attention and appreciated the jaw-dropping power of the band’s catalog three decades ago.
By the time the intro video played on the stage screen, it was impossible to hear anything but the roar of the crowd. Then, when Liam and Noel (raising each other’s arms), guitarists Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs and Gem Archer, bassist Andy Bell, and new drummer Joey Waronker emerged, the noise went to 11.
Watch Oasis Perform ‘Hello’ in Chicago
Despite playing the same set throughout this year, the excitement and energy was inescapable. In the excellent 2016 documentary, Oasis: Supersonic, Liam said, “We weren’t the best musicians in the world, but we had spirit.” While he may have undersold the band’s chops at the time (which are much more polished 30 years later), he was absolutely correct about the latter.
Oasis Has Recaptured Their Early Spirit
That’s why beloved songs like “Acquiesce” and “Some Might Say” are, to a degree, more emblematic of Oasis than their biggest hits. On this night, these songs served as mission statements, with “Acquiesce” serving as Chicago’s biggest bar sing-along. Somehow, Oasis harnessed the spirit that won over fans at the band’s first show in the Windy City, less than 10 miles away at the Metro, at a venue nearly 50x larger.
Even on lesser-known and quieter songs, like the Noel-led “Talk Tonight” and “Half the World Away,” and the louder “Slide Away,” diehards sang along to every word.
Closing the main set with “Live Forever” and “Rock N’ Roll Star,” and the encore of “The Masterplan” (debatably their best song), “Don’t Look Back in Anger,” “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova,” which concluded with a flurry of fireworks, the band rightfully basked in the glory of the autumn-esque, starry Midwestern night.
When they first formed nearly 35 years ago, Oasis unapologetically set out to be the biggest band in the world. Playing clubs, theaters, amphitheaters, and arenas wasn’t good enough. They wanted to play in the biggest stadiums in the country. Now, after years of chasing success in the States and then disappearing, Liam and Noel finally achieved what they wanted: they conquered America.
Oasis Aug. 28, 2025 Chicago Soldier Field Set List:
“Hello”“Acquiesce”“Morning Glory”“Some Might Say”“Bring It on Down”“Cigarettes & Alcohol”“Fade Away”“Supersonic”“Roll With It”“Talk Tonight”“Half the World Away”“Little by Little”“D’You Know What I Mean?”“Stand by Me”“Cast No Shadow”“Slide Away”“Whatever”“Live Forever”“Rock ‘n’ Roll Star”“The Masterplan”“Don’t Look Back in Anger”“Wonderwall”“Champagne Supernova”
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Gallery Credit: Allison Rapp
