Did I travel 7,500 miles to go to an Oasis concert? Yes, I did.
Would I travel 7,500 miles to see an Oasis concert again? Absolutely.
For context, I was only 12 years old when Oasis broke up. So, I can’t say I’m a life-long fan, but their music has always been there: on the radio, in the background of my teenage years, and in countless movie soundtracks.
My boyfriend, on the other hand, is a life-long fan.
And that’s how I found myself on the other side of the world, standing in the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles, waiting for Oasis to take the stage.
The Struggle for Oasis Concert Tickets
The news of Oasis reuniting broke while we were midway through our year-long travels around Asia, and safe to say, my boyfriend went straight into crisis mode.
At first, only UK and Ireland dates were announced.
Cue the panic: Would they eventually announce Australia? Should we risk waiting, or should we try our luck with the UK shows?
Unfortunately, the UK dates clashed with the British & Irish Lions rugby tour in Australia, his other great love. Imagine having to choose between rugby and Oasis as a Welshman. Brutal.
We were in Japan when the UK tickets went on sale, but luck wasn’t on our side. We didn’t get them.
Then came the announcement of US dates, and just like that, Los Angeles was on the cards.
(And yes, in case you’re wondering, we also have tickets for their Sydney gig. That was never in question.)
Arriving in Pasadena for the Oasis Concert
After three weeks of road-tripping through California, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada (all in the name of one Oasis concert), our final night was spent at the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles.
What a way to end the trip of a lifetime.
We rolled into Pasadena around 3pm because yes, LA traffic really is as bad as everyone says, and were immediately greeted by a sea of bucket hats.
My boyfriend had been nervous about the vibe of an Oasis concert crowd in LA. He expected nothing close to the euphoric chaos of Manchester or London.
But we needn’t have worried. Everywhere we turned, there were British expats who had clearly migrated to the West Coast for this show.
The atmosphere was already electric, and the gig hadn’t even started yet.
The Opening Acts: Cast & Cage the Elephant
The support lineup for the Los Angeles Oasis concerts featured Cast and Cage the Elephant.
Sadly, no Richard Ashcroft for us, but Cage the Elephant more than delivered with their set.
We made it into the Rose Bowl in good time, though not before I almost fainted at paying £44 (!!) for a rum and pineapple.
With (ridiculously expensive) drinks in hand, we headed to our seats and soaked up Cage the Elephant’s high-energy warm-up.
Oasis Take the Stage
And then, it happened. The moment my boyfriend had waited his entire life for: Liam and Noel Gallagher walking out on stage together.
The setlist was no surprise as it had been up on Apple Music since the first Cardiff show, but that didn’t dull the magic one bit.
Everyone knew exactly when to run for a bathroom break, but when the big songs hit, the energy was unreal.
The brothers didn’t say much, but when Liam dedicated a song to Woody Woodpecker and asked if there were any Irish in the house before singing Half the World Away, I felt a lump in my throat.
As an Irish person now living in Australia, I wasn’t just half the world away, I was fully on the other side of it.
In that moment, it felt like a tiny thread pulling me back home.
Merch Madness
One of the most surreal parts of the night wasn’t even on stage, it was the sheer amount of Oasis merchandise flooding the streets of LA.
I’ve been to more concerts than I can count, but outside of Taylor Swift’s friendship bracelets or Pitbull’s bald-head-and-suit combo, I’ve never seen fans this decked out before the show even started.
Whether intentional marketing genius or just pure nostalgia, it worked. Oasis fans turned up in merch like it was a badge of honour.
A few days earlier, we had even made our way to the official Oasis pop-up shop on Hollywood Boulevard.
(Fun side note: actress Jessica Chastain was being presented with her star on the Walk of Fame at the exact same time. But that’s a story for another blog post.)
Naturally, we left with our own merchandise purchases, and yes, bucket hats had already been pre-purchased back in Australia and we wore them proudly at the gig.
Was it Worth the 20-Year Wait?
I can’t fully comment on the wait itself as I wasn’t an Oasis fan before their split, but I could see and feel the buzz of what this reunion meant.
This is the gig nobody thought would ever happen. The fact that it did happen has made Oasis bigger than ever.
Whether it’s nostalgia, timing, or the sheer once-in-a-lifetime factor, fans and non-fans alike wanted to be part of it.
For me, it was emotional in an unexpected way. As someone who grew up obsessed with One Direction, and now knowing a full reunion is impossible, it felt even more precious to witness Oasis back together.
Because when moments like this happen, you want to be able to say: I was there.
It’s Oasis. It’s rock and roll. It’s biblical.
And for a few hours in Los Angeles, I really did feel closer to the angels, belting out Live Forever.
RELATED Music Reviews to read:
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- Gig Review: Ryan McMullan, Mercury Lounge, New York
- Luke Combs Concert Review: Accor Stadium, Sydney, Australia
By Orlagh Shanks
Orlagh Shanks is the Editor of Orlagh Claire, an award-winning travel and lifestyle blog.
After working in the PR & Influencer Marketing industry, Orlagh quit her job to travel Asia for 12 months and moved to Sydney, Australia where she is now a full-time travel blogger and content creator sharing travel tips and recommendations for all 30 of the countries she’s visited so far.
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