Following waning U.S. album sales, Oasis should probably call on high for divine inspiration. Instead, the perverse Brits are naming their fifth record Heathen Chemistry.
The album will come out in July, and the first single, “Hindu Times” – part of which sounds like a psychedelic spin-off of Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” – will be released to radio in the next two weeks. A black-and-white video for the song was directed by Wiz, and features shots of the band onstage juxtaposed against images of a gun barrel, a sign flashing “pills or bombs,” and X-rays of vocalist Liam Gallagher, including one of him drinking milk. Wiz told English weekly NME that the video is a commentary on the rampant hedonism the band has witnessed since 9/11.
Heathen Chemistry was produced by Oasis and mixed by Mark “Spike” Stent (Björk, Madonna, U2), who worked on the band’s 2000 record Standing on the Shoulder of Giants, a publicist for the band said. Vocalist Liam Gallagher wrote three songs for the disc, including “Songbird,” and guitarist Gem Archer contributed some tracks, including the punkish “Hung in a Bad Place.” Bassist Andy Bell, who co-fronted the psychedelic band Ride in the early ’90s, also contributed music. Of course, Oasis wouldn’t be Oasis without main guitarist and songwriter Noel Gallagher, who again spearheaded most of the songwriting, including “Little by Little,” “Stop Crying Your Heart Out” and “Force of Nature,” on which he sings lead vocals. The latter ditty was originally featured in the 2000 U.K. film “Love, Honour and Obey.”
On April 26, Oasis are scheduled to play the Hard Rock Hotel’s Joint in Las Vegas, and two days later they’ll perform in Indio, California, at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which also features Foo Fighters, Prodigy and others.
