Lots Of Info

Oasis fans can expect a new album close to the millennium. Noel Gallagher has told The Net he's started working on new material and that Liam and the rest of the band are writing songs for the next record! Noel was among the thousands who turned up at the V98 festival in Chelmsford this weekend. Noel was tracked down backstage while the Lightning Seeds were playing and asked if he'd had any contact with the evening’s headlines, The Verve, recently: "I‘ve lost contact with them over the last six months - I thought I’d better just leave them to it to get over their problems they’re having, but I’m sure it’ll be good. The rest of the band are pretty good!" Being close to the Verve camp, Noel knows a little bit more than the general public on the state of affairs with the Wigan wonders: "It’s not for me to say, but from what I’ve been told, they’re enjoying themselves, and they’re trying to get through it the best they can - there’s not a lot else they can do."

Plans For Oasis
Noel Gallagher isn’t rushing out the next Oasis album. He told The Net about his current activities: "Just writing. Writing and having parties!" Oasis fans shouldn’t hold their breath: "We’re not starting back until next year. We’ll probably start recording next year, and however long that takes, it takes. We’ll maybe put an album out for the millennium."

At the moment, he doesn’t think there’ll be much of a change of direction for Oasis? "Not at the moment, it’s just the same old rubbish! But things may change when we get in the studio..."

A Bit Of Help With The Songwriting…
Noel’s got a bit of extra help this time round, when it comes to the songwriting duties, but he hasn’t got very high hopes for the end result: "I’ve always written on my own but the rest of the band are going to start contributing this time, so the next album will be worse than the last one, I would imagine!" He does rate Liam’s attempt though: "He’s written a good song! It’s really good! It’s called ‘Little James’ - sounds like a nursery rhyme, but it’s really good."

Noel Says ‘Don’t Buy’ His B-Sides Album!
Oasis release ‘The Masterplan’, a compilation of previously released b-sides, on November 2nd, but Noel himself sees it as a cynical marketing exercise by the record company: "I’ve never been a fan of b-sides albums, cos I think it’s just like fleecing the kids for money really. It was originally going to come out in America and South America and places like that, where you can’t buy the singles except on import and they’re really expensive, and then record companies being record companies, they stepped in and now it’s going to get released all over the place. I’d say to the people who’ve got the singles, don’t bother buying it! We don’t need the money and you don’t need to hear the records again!"

So Who Is Noel Working With?
There have been many tales floating around about various collaborations Noel is supposed to be working on, including Paul Weller, Cornershop, and Goldie, but he told The Net that the stories are actually a load of rubbish! "Every time I pick up the paper I’m working with someone else, but I’ve actually not been working with anyone. I’ve just done a few gigs with Weller but that’s been it really. Every one I can think of at the moment, I’m supposed to being doing an album with someone else, or a single with someone else; people just talk about the shit they read in the papers, don’t they!"

Noel To Keep Low Profile Shocker!
Noel plans to keep out of the public eye over the next year, if he gets the chance, "As much as you can, being in Oasis, and having a big mouth! I think it’s pretty hard to keep a low profile. But I’ll try and stay in a bit more, and not get in to so much trouble!" 1