Oasis in Manchester: A concert like a clear home victory

Anyone with fans like these can easily become enthusiastic. And so it's understandable that the Gallagher brothers described Friday's concert in their hometown of Manchester as historic, even "biblical." The approximately 80,000 people in attendance at Heaton Park, where the performance took place, sang along to each of the 23 songs.

But even before the concert, spontaneous, mostly beautifully off-key chants repeatedly erupted in the center of Manchester. Playlists by the trend-setting Britpop band dominated the pubs. The tram ride to Heaton Park turned out to be a gigantic choir rehearsal. Near Victoria Station, a police officer lent his megaphone to a fellow countryman so he could drown out everyone else with "Wonderwall."

Oasis' performance felt like a Champions League final, where all the fans who had traveled there knew in advance that their team would win. However, given Oasis' turbulent history, that's hardly a given. Brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher repeatedly feuded both on and off stage in the years before their temporary breakup.

And they often gave shockingly lackluster concerts supporting mediocre albums like "Heathen Chemistry." Their performance at the 2004 Glastonbury Festival is considered by fans to be their absolute low point. Liam occasionally forgot lyrics, barely spoke a word to the audience, and left the stage without saying goodbye. Their last open-air concert at Heaton Park in 2009 also turned into a disaster – albeit due to repeated power outages.

But now the two brothers are singing again, including meaningful songs like "Don't Look Back in Anger." If they stick to this motto, the current comeback tour could earn them each £50 to £100 million, according to industry speculation.

The first of five Manchester nights on Friday was a concert for the history books. Gem Archer (guitar), Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs (guitar), Joey Waronker (drums), and the Gallaghers confidently played a perfectly balanced greatest hits set. Oasis never displays much emotion on stage, but Liam Gallagher's vocals are currently at their peak. And Noel Gallagher also has a vocal power that carries his voice all the way to the back row – for example, on "The Masterplan," the best B-side in the band's history.

The concert showed how big and anthemic Oasis songs have become: This applies not only to classics such as "Live Forever", "Don't Look Back in Anger", "Champagne Supernova", "Supersonic", "Wonderwall", and "Rock'n'Roll Star", but also to some lesser-known titles and "late bloomers".

Take the driving "Acquiesce," released as the B-side of "Some Might Say" in 1995. The song contains lines that fit the Oasis reunion. While Liam sings the first verse, Noel takes over the chorus with the words: "Because we need each other / We believe in one another." Although he once claimed the song was about friendship, not brothers, it's now understood as the motto of the comeback.

But it took a full fifteen years for the Gallaghers to pull themselves together and make peace, entirely in the spirit of their fans. The joy and euphoria of the fans was what turned the concert into a true celebration. Even the beer showers that those in the front rows had to endure repeatedly felt somehow blissful.

Symptomatic of the good mood was the group of young Icelanders who couldn't believe their luck: They were finally seeing the band their older siblings and even their parents had always raved about; and Oasis was indeed a testament to the older relatives' good taste in music.

You could also see young women on their boyfriends' shoulders, who, with their full vocal commitment, refuted the rumor that Oasis was only a band for men over forty. However, older, white men, it must be admitted, were already in the majority. So you sweated alongside complete strangers from different countries, who hugged each other at the end, singing. And you experienced the tough comeback together when, after "Champagne Supernova" and a huge fireworks display, it was all over.

Manchester will remain under the spell of the Britpop party for another good week before the Gallaghers' comeback takes them to London. Anyone who managed to snag one of the long-sold-out tickets in Manchester despite the exorbitant prices and found themselves in a shower of beer for "Supersonic" will never forget this evening. Liam gave the audience a final round of praise – they deserved a "10 out of 10," he said. And we know he's no suck-up.