Considering he already boasts 4 nights at Manchester’s brand spanking new 20,000+ capacity Co-op Live in his dairy this June, two nights at the O2 Apollo can only be considered an extremely intimate venue to catch Liam Gallagher live, doubly so when you add a second living legend of the city in John Squire to the bill.
The evening does have a bespoke kind of feel to it. It’s small and we go in knowing that we’re unlikely to get more than an hour of material, another surreal departure for two musicians who usually have the benefit of bulky and beloved back catalogues to draw from.
Having released their first collaborative album together a few mere weeks ago to a generally positive reception it does mean that much of the crowd are here due to the duo’s pulling power as opposed to shared familiarity with the records material. There are pockets of the crowd who’ve clearly had it on repeat since release, more pockets that recognise the trio of singles released and on radio rotation and more still that are just here for a good time in the presence of two of Manchester’s great musical architects.
Liam has not shied away from the nostalgic feel and sound of the record, leaning into it. And why shouldn’t he? If anyone has earned the right to throw back to that era is the two men on stage tonight. It’s this reason that though the crowd may not know the words to every song, that do all sound familiar enough that heads bob, pints get raised and each song is greeted with enthusiastic applause, between chants of “LIAAAMMM LIAAAAM” naturally.
The venue choice and the sense that tonight represents a time in Manchester’s musical history all gathered together creates a bit of a reunion feel. Even a family affair. Liam starts the gig by prowling the edge of the stage, reaching each extreme corner an leaning out towards the crowd, fist bumping and gesturing, resulting in a crescendo of energy and reaction from them that bleeds into the start of Raise Your Hands, the most recent single fresh in the minds of many and a great opening number to get the crowd singing alongside Liam as well as showing of Squires guitar chops with one of the record’s stand out solos.
For John Squire, it really is a family affair, his son Dillon Squire opened the show with his band. With what we imagine is probably quite a high bar set at home we’re not surprised to find their set is far from a nepo-baby phone in. There is detail and thought within their material, a desire to “do it right” comes across and we respect the intent! Its early days for the artist but a platform such as tonight surely won’t hurt for both his exposure as well as much sought after big stage experience.
Bridging the gap between son and father sets tonight is Jake Bugg. Having last seen him headlining his own arena tour for his still huge debut album tour we’re sad to say we lost track of him a bit after that, so it’s a pleasant addition to the evening to check back in with him.
Having released 4 albums since that barnstorming introduction, his most recent in 2021 (not including a subsequent soundtrack), and currently working on his next release, there is a maturity on show tonight that wasn’t there over a decade ago now. The only act to take to stage solo tonight, he comes across assured and humble. New tracks retain that familiar Jake Bugg sound and allow him to explore more subtle elements, perhaps with the pressure of that monster debut far enough in the rear-view to really shake loose. It is still huge though. Seen It All, Two Fingers, Taste It and Lightening Bolt are belted along to, word for word, as if they’d been released earlier this year by most of the crowd. In fact its fair to say that excluding an encore that follows later from the main act of Jumping Jack Flash, Jake Bugg takes the crown for biggest sing along tonight.
Photo Gallery by Alex Cropper
Catch Liam Gallagher and John Squire on tour now and DO NOT MISS Liam on his Definitely Maybe anniversary tour later in the year. Info, dates and tickets here.
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