Noel Gallagher is capable of giving his peers a lot of credit, even though he is perhaps one of the harshest music critics around. All he is a guy who knows what he likes and doesn’t mind sharing it. He could have claimed that he was happy to be alive when System of a Down was, allowing him to enjoy the honour of hearing “the shittiest band of all time.” He has, however, also stated that he would be willing to give up all of his writing in order to have his name attached to the Sex Pistols album Never Mind the Bollocks.
This hate/love is also diverse. He embraces a wide range of subjects with his mockery and adoration without distinction. Sadly, Gallagher is always pulled in by a song’s hooks. He told Greatest Hits Radio, “I’m a huge fan of The Pet Shop Boys actually, which people are disgusted by when they find that out.”
The North East-based British synth-pop group may not sound all that similar to Oasis, but Gallagher joins people like George Michael, a man with good taste in music, who said that they produced “the most beautiful music” of the 1980s.
For some pop perfection, the frontman of Oasis wandered to the Other Stage at Worthy Farm in 2022 instead of the Pyramid Stage. He recalled, “I was at Glastonbury last year, and as the entire festival is walking one way to go and see Kendrick Lamar, I’m going the other way to see The Pet Shop Boys. Everyone’s like, ‘Are you not coming to see Kendrick?’ and I was like, ‘I’m not interested in that’.”
He continued, “So, I dragged a few people with me. And I was like, ‘Just be amazed at how many hits you’re going to hear here'”.
The group has four number-one hits in the UK, but their impact goes far beyond that figure because their lyrics’ poignant social commentary severely limited their commercial potential. They are the masters of hooks, and Gallagher obviously loves the way they combine their sharp humour and rave attitude.
When evaluating their body of work and selecting the song that is one of his all-time favourites, he stated, “I’m going to pick ‘Love Comes Quickly’ by The Pet Shop Boys, an incredible song. The melody… it’s just to die for, I wish I had written it.”
This is especially high praise because Gallagher’s work is built upon melody.
This 1986 song perfectly captures the band’s infectious appeal. Something profoundly euphoric exists beyond the hook, evoking the middle finger to the working week that Oasis would soon embrace.
Now, the star’s song “Think of a Number” from the Council Skies album has been remixed by The Pet Shop Boys, who demonstrate that their affection is shared by saying: “The aim is to work with someone who makes you sound ten times better. I would like more good singers to sing more of our songs, as I think they have great potential.”