noel
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds @ RCMH (photo: @jerryrubino)

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds played Radio City Music Hall (review, setlist, video)

The thing about Oasis isn’t just how many songs they have, or how repeatable they are, but also how timeless each is. The period in between Definitely Maybe and (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? was insanely prolific for the band, where they cranked out hit after hit, and dozens of b-sides that were just as great. Beyond that, the band recorded several other tracks that were of the timeless ilk, but since the break in 2009, neither Noel nor Liam have been able to recreate the magic of their work together. That’s not to say that Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds is subpar or ordinary or anything of the sort — in fact last year’s face-off between Liam’s As You Were and Noel’s Who Built the Moon? was the first time since the split when both brothers released cohesive and fun records. Still, the greatness of the Gallaghers is the push-pull — the dynamic that lies between the pair.

Regardless of all of that, Noel’s latest album is very interesting and represents well live, like at his February 15 tour stop at NYC’s Radio City City Music Hall. Who Built the Moon? material was the focus for the gig, but also leaned on Oasis classics and even a Beatles cover. Playing behind a giant LED screen fit for a stadium, the 11 piece band — which at one point included a guy playing a pair of scissors — ripped through new LP highlights like “Holy Mountain” and “She Taught Me how to Fly” in addition to Oasis standards such as “The Importance of Being Idle,’ “Wonderwall,” “Don’t Look Back in Anger” and “Go Let it Out” (played in a more Noel-friendly key that Liam sang on the original). Setlist and video from the show — including “Don’t Look Back in Anger” and night-closing cover of The Beatles’ “All You Need is Love” — are below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxSJZbwEM4o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qd7Df0KZZsk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01XxwkGH7wk

SETLIST: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds @ Radio City Music Hall 2/15/2018
Fort Knox
Holy Mountain
Keep on Reaching
It’s a Beautiful World
In the Heat of the Moment
Riverman
Ballad of the Mighty I
If I Had a Gun…
Dream On
Little by Little (Oasis)
The Importance of Being Idle (Oasis)
Be Careful What You Wish For
Wonderwall (Oasis)
She Taught Me How to Fly
Black & White Sunshine
Half the World Away (Oasis)
AKA… What a Life!

Encore:
Dead in the Water
Go Let It Out (Oasis)
Don’t Look Back in Anger (Oasis)
All You Need Is Love (The Beatles)