With the release of the new Beady Eye album BE last Friday, discussions have naturally shifted towards one topic: a potential Oasis reunion.
Liam Gallagher has stirred the conversation by expressing to NME his wish to “bury the hatchet” with brother Noel. However, Andy Bell, the former bassist of Oasis and current guitarist for Beady Eye, stated that the likelihood of the Brit-pop icons coming together again is minimal to non-existent.
“I’d love to see my former band reunite,” Bell mentioned, but he acknowledged that the rocky relationship between the Gallagher brothers makes it highly improbable. “I’ve got no qualms about doing it at all. If the opportunity to revive Oasis arose, I’d jump at the chance,” Bell disclosed. “But it’s really up to Noel and Liam. Honestly, I don’t know if it’s likely to happen in this millennium.”
Bell further expressed that he has no issue with the persistent rumors of reunions, particularly since he oftentimes is asked whether his previous band, Ride, will ever come back together. “To me, it simply indicates that people still have an interest in Oasis, just as I occasionally get inquiries about Ride and our potential reunion,” he clarified. “I categorize it similarly to things I would enjoy seeing happen.”
Although he had previously dismissed the idea of a Ride reunion, Bell mentioned that his perspective on that subject has evolved. “Ride is more like something we have on the back-burner; we’ve all expressed that it’d be lovely to do at some point, but everyone is currently busy with various projects. We all have a lot going on—music and other endeavors. It’s not something I want to leave permanently,” he joked. “Right now, I feel that I have unfinished business with Beady Eye, and I think we need to reach a certain milestone before I consider taking a break from it.”
While we may not witness an Oasis or Ride tour in the near future, Bell has assured fans that Beady Eye is definitely planning to perform in Australia sometime soon, having missed the opportunity to visit when they launched their debut album, Different Gear, Still Speeding, in 2011. “We’re absolutely making a trip to Australia this time; I keep hearing discussions about it,” he mentioned. “We wanted to go last time as well, but it didn’t happen. This time, it’s definitely in the works.”
