Photo by Philip Cosores
You could say that Liam and Noel Gallagher are like the Kardashians of the 2000s Britpop scene, but the fact of the matter is that the Gallaghers are pretty easy to keep up with: they hate each other.
After Oasis’ explosive breakup in 2009, Liam and Noel immediately broke off into separate bands: Beady Eye, featuring Liam and members of Oasis, and the solo project Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds. Two Beady Eye albums and two High Flying Birds albums later, both brothers will be releasing their third post-Oasis albums this fall; but after Beady Eye broke up in 2014, Liam Gallagher will release As You Were this week as his first release under his own name.
(Rock ‘N’ Roll Star: A Conversation with Liam Gallagher)
2009 was an important year for Liam Gallagher, and that’s not just because he threw a plum and wielded a guitar like an axe at his brother – that was the year that rock ‘n’ roll’s most controversial bad boy joined Twitter. Over the past eight years, Liam’s tweets have served as a hilarious portal into the decades-old Gallagher brothers feud, yet they also chart the ups and downs of an unrelenting desire to forge a career outside of Oasis’ vast shadow.
In a recent interview with Newsweek, Gallagher says, “Sometimes when you talk a lot of shit, you find some real good gems in there. I like tweeting.”
And oh boy, are there some “real good gems.” Let’s take a look at what Liam Gallagher has been up to since he joined Twitter.
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April 23, 2009
In the final months before Oasis’ fateful backstage breakup at the Rock en Seine festival in Paris, tensions were already high – so high that Liam felt the need to “subtweet” his brother, calling him more boring than a “tin of sardines.”
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August 24, 2009
Days before the breakup, rumors spread of Noel’s possible departure from Oasis – apparently the “smartarses” weren’t too far off.
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February 17, 2010
With a volatile punch-down at Noel, we enter an ongoing era of ridiculous and shocking ad hominem tweets. Live forever, LG.
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July 6, 2011
An eloquent, biting remark that would give Shakespeare a run for his money. From the same man who touched hearts with “Wonderwall”, here’s “SHITBAG.”
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July 19, 2012
After both brothers released the first records from their individual projects in 2011, most fans agreed that Beady Eye was nothing special, and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds were, well, pretty decent, but not Oasis. But fear not: Liam swooped in to share his opinion about the “high flying smurfs.”
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May 3, 2015
For a few years, Liam took a break from hurling insults on Twitter (Manchester football referees are an exception). Presumably, Liam was busy working with Beady Eye, but perhaps he found a new passion for geometry. In particular, Liam appears to be fond of 12-sided polyhedrons.
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May 7, 2015
In February 2015, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds released Chasing Yesterday, which topped the UK Albums Chart. Despite its positive reception, Liam did not feel as fond of the album’s “SAXAPHONE” as the dodecahedron.
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February 12, 2016
The Gallagher brothers are shameless Beatles fans. Liam named his first son Lennon, and the Oasis hit “Don’t Look Back in Anger” samples the piano progression from John Lennon’s “Imagine”. It’s daring to rip off one of the most popular songs in the history of British rock, but years later, it seems that Liam is still finding inspiration in Lennon’s anti-war anthem.
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May 24, 2016
Liam Gallagher has left a lasting impact on the legacy of British rock music with classic Oasis albums like Definitely Maybe and (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, but last year, the rabble-rouser pioneered a new artistic endeavor: he searches for candid photos of his brother and then posts them with the caption “potato.” This work is truly cutting-edge.
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May 24, 2016
In case you didn’t realize yet, Liam hates his brother.
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June 16, 2016
Maybe “FUCK OASIS” goes a bit too far – it’s not cool to reject your massive fan base. Liam even apologizes to Noel (“RKID” is Manchester slang for “our kid,” which usually refers to a sibling). Maybe Liam came around and realized that angry tweeting does not lend itself to interpersonal problem solving.
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June 28, 2016
But angry tweeting is too fun to pass up.
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July 1, 2016
After two mediocre Beady Eye albums, is it finally time for the Oasis reunion we’ve been expecting for years? It seems Liam and “Pouting Potato” have not reached a reconciliation.
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July 9, 2016
Still doesn’t seem like that reunion is happening.
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June 29, 2017
In June, Liam announced his first record since Beady Eye’s final album three years ago. But as he began tweeting each song title one by one to build hype for the record, his phone died. Rock stars: they’re just like us!
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August 2, 2016
Ouch.
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August 3, 2016
What do Liam Gallagher and Donald Trump have in common? They both love to air their grievances on Twitter. But unlike the President of the United States, Liam seems to understand the urgency of climate change. Good on you, Liam.
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September 28, 2016
Potato.
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July 1, 2017
Was the theft of thousand-dollar parkas Noel’s doing? No word on Twitter as to whether Liam was reunited with his fully lined outerwear … in the hot England summer.
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July 4, 2017
After releasing singles “Wall of Glass” and “Chinatown” from his upcoming album, As You Were, Liam’s press cycle was in full swing. Here’s what he had to share with us about his first solo record.
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July 29, 2017
Has the world gone mad, or is it just the United States? We’re wondering the same thing, Liam.
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August 14, 2017
If Liam is the best songwriter in the world, then As You Were better live up to the hype.
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September 27, 2017
Twitter feuds aside, you can’t deny that Liam Gallagher (and his brother, Noel!) changed the landscape of rock music, inspiring groups across the board. If rock ‘n’ roll is here to stay, let’s hope that Liam’s upcoming solo effort brings us something that makes us want to pick up a guitar again.
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September 29, 2017
With family like this, who needs rock critics?
