77. Champagne Supernova
I.
When Oasis played at the Heineken Music Hall in 2009, I wasn’t there. It broke my heart, because Oasis’s songs become anthems when you get lost in Britpop as a teenager. You’re young and you can take on the world – that’s what their music sounds like. But I was young and short of cash, so I missed them in Amsterdam. After that, the Gallaghers split up and they remained forever ‘that one favourite band I never saw’.
Lesson learnt. If you want to see your heroes, you mustn’t hesitate. So I saw Radiohead, Paul McCartney, Leonard Cohen and The Rolling Stones. In October, I’m going to Düsseldorf to see Bob Dylan again. You never know if there’ll be another chance.
For years, Noel and Liam were at loggerheads. Oasis had been declared dead. Every rumour of a possible reunion turned out to be just that: a rumour. Until the miracle finally happened this week. “The guns have fallen silent,” wrote the Oasis account on social media. “The stars have aligned. The great wait is over.” Oasis are back, for now with a limited number of concerts in Britain.
Long story short: I’m there, somewhere near the roof of Wembley. In Wembley! Oasis in Wembley! I’m typing it and I still can’t believe it. A boyhood dream, ya know what I mean?
---II.
I’m a fan of Adam Sandler, so this was a great week, because his new comedy special was released on Netflix. Adam Sandler: Love You is directed by one of the Safdie brothers, with whom Sandler previously made Uncut Gems. You can tell. Especially in the frenetic opening, when Sandler drives up in a car with a broken window and struggles his way past fans to the theatre. It’s filmed up close and edited at a fast pace. The atmosphere doesn’t quite feel right.
The show itself doesn’t go smoothly either. There’s a hole in the floor and the monitors aren’t working. A row breaks out in the audience. All staged, of course, but it does keep things exciting. I shouldn’t make a bigger deal of it than it is, because ultimately the show consists of a series of bizarre, corny and crude anecdotes and short songs with punchlines. I love the absurdity. I can’t resist the Sandman.
But the best bit comes at the end, when Sandler suddenly pays a beautiful tribute to comedy. With a song, he thanks his heroes and explains what the craft means to him. This is why he does what he does.
> Yeah, actors can play dramatic, Singers can kill a song But comedians say “fuck you sadness” Let’s laugh it off and move the fuck on. > >
Sandler is often criticised for his ‘simple’ comic roles. And when he plays a more serious part, such as in Uncut Gems or Punch-Drunk Love, people say: see, he can do it after all. But that’s not what Sandler does it for. You can play a dramatic role, but the impact of a good joke is greater. A laugh can brighten up a day and make life more bearable.
PS.
The fantastic YouTube channel Every Frame a Painting is back! For a while, at least. Between 2014 and 2016, the channel published short video essays on films. They were brilliantly made, for example this one on movement in Akira Kurosawa’s films, this one on Steven Spielberg’s long takes or this one on the effect of silence in Martin Scorsese’s films. A new series on the art of filmmaking will be released in the coming weeks.
---Wild God is out, the new album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. It all sounds a bit more upbeat than Ghosteen, though the record is clearly in the same vein. Unfortunately, I haven’t had much time to listen to it properly yet; I’ll try to come back to it next week. (I’m also still very taken with Fontaines D.C.)
It just keeps coming: The Smile are releasing another album this year. The brilliant Wall of Eyes came out in January, and Cutouts follows on 4 October. “To be swallowed up by the fast-running stream,” writes the band. “Down into the giant ever-growing river and on to the sea.” We’re being spoilt this year, as it looks set to be another good one. Just have a listen to Foreign Spies.
---A documentary has been made about the life of Superman actor Christopher Reeves. After falling from a horse, he was left paralysed and ended up in a wheelchair. It promises to be a rather typically American dramatic film, but no less an inspiring story for that.
---As a resident of Utrecht, I am particularly pleased that the Dom Tower is free of scaffolding. For five years it was encased in an ugly square block, and now it is free. On mornings when I cycle to the station, I see it towering above everything else in certain parts of the city, illuminated by the sun. Utrecht is Utrecht again!
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