Blur vs Oasis, one of the biggest rivalries in music history, the battle for the throne of Britpop. You were either team Blur or team Oasis. However, it’s nearly 30 years since the peak of this rivalry back in 1995 and looking at it now, I think it is more obvious than ever which band came out on top.
You can not live in this country without being incredibly aware of both band’s music, especially living in Manchester, some people talk about Oasis as if they were Gods. There are a certain few songs in the world that can instantly bring a room of people together in singing, if not shouting along to every word, and both of these bands have multiple. Yes, it has become a bit of a joke to hate on Oasis, or to pretend you don’t like them, especially for songs like Wonderwall, but I challenge anyone to not sing along to it. I even think it’s fair to say that if you are just looking at the top songs, Oasis probably do have the more popular songs, but Blur are not far behind at all.
Yes, Oasis have obviously released some amazing songs, and I don’t want to do a disservice to them, but I think Blur will go down as one of the best British bands ever, the longevity of Blur is honestly incredible. Releasing masterpieces like Park Life and The Great Escape in the 90s to releasing their 7th consecutive number one album in The Ballad of Darren earlier this year really shows the adaptability of the band to stay current while adapting to the changes in the industry. Where as Oasis were more just one trick ponies, don’t get me wrong it’s a very good trick, you know exactly what you’re getting from them, but I just don’t believe their discography holds up when you compare it to the variety that Blur’s discography accomplishes while very rarely dropping in quality.
I also believe that Blur’s musicianship was better, this can be seen so easily in the variety of the music they’ve released as I’ve just talked about, but also in the members other projects like Gorillaz (who are almost as big as either of these bands in their own right) or their solo projects. Honestly, I think we forget sometimes how it incredible it is that Damon Albarn has two completely separate musical projects in Gorillaz and Blur that are both as commercially successful AND loved as they are.
I don’t mean this to be against Oasis particularly, as I’ve said they have some incredible songs, I just don’t think they can hold a candle to Blur’s works when looking at the overarching careers. I don’t dislike Oasis at all, I enjoy their music, this is just praise for Blur. I think its okay to be at the point where we can say they have come out on top of this old rivalry, I don’t think many people would mind being beaten by the immense talent that is Blur and Damon Albarn.
