By Paul Sandle and Sam Tobin
LONDON (Reuters) – Oasis plan to reunite after 15 years, with news on Tuesday that brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher are lining up a series of gigs in 2025 crashing the British band’s website and sending hotel prices soaring.
The group, whose debut album “Definitely Maybe” was released 30 years ago, split in 2009 when lead guitarist and main songwriter Noel said he could no longer work with frontman Liam after a number of public spats between the siblings.
“This is it, this is happening,” the band said on X, announcing tickets would go on sale on Saturday. The first of 14 shows will be in Cardiff, Wales next July, followed by nights in Manchester – where the band was formed in 1991 – London, Edinburgh and Dublin.
“The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised,” the band said in a statement on their website, which said the performances would be part of a planned world tour.
Both brothers have enjoyed individual musical success and acclaim since Oasis split up, but always against the backdrop of calls from fans for the band to reunite.
Tuesday’s announcement follows a weekend of speculation about a reunion, which music streaming platform Spotify said had prompted a 160% spike in streaming globally over a two hour period on Monday compared with the previous week.
“It’s very safe to assume that those streams are going to continue increasing across the week now that we have official confirmation, and leading up to tickets going on sale on Saturday,” said Sara Sesardic, Spotify’s editorial lead for the UK and Ireland.
The news also prompted prices for hotel rooms for the nights of Oasis’ planned shows to spike, with few cheaper rooms available in Manchester on the nights of the gigs.
A similar jump took place ahead of Taylor Swift’s recent tour this summer, including when she came to Britain.
A tour in 2025 will mark the 30th anniversary of Oasis’ second album “(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?”, which included the singles “Don’t Look Back in Anger” and “Wonderwall”.
The release of “Roll with It” from the album in August 1995 put Oasis head-to-head with rival Blur’s “Country House” in a chart battle that was seized upon by the media. Blur won the coveted number one spot.
“(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?” went on to sell more than 22 million copies worldwide, becoming the best-selling album of the 1990s in Britain and the band’s breakthrough in the United States.
The Gallaghers were often at loggerheads when touring in the 1990s and their hostility continued after Oasis split.
“He thinks he’s the man and I think I’m the man, do you know what I mean?” Liam said in 2017.
(Reporting by Paul Sandle, Kylie MacLellan and Sam Tobin; Editing by Kate Holton and Alexander Smith)
