posted by Stuart Oldham

In a shocking case of rock rage, Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher was assaulted on stage Sunday night during the band's headlining set in Toronto. The veteran English group were performing hit song "Morning Glory"  at the Virgin Music Festival when a rabid concertgoer (identified as Daniel Sullivan from Pickering, Canada) emerged on stage and shoved Gallagher into his monitor, fracturing the 41 year-old musician's ribcage and reportedly tearing a few ligaments.

After security apprehended the 47 year-old man, Oasis returned to the stage and resumed the concert with Gallagher in tow.

The band issued the following statement on its website Monday:

Oasis', Noel Gallagher was attacked by an unidentified man during the band's show in Toronto last night. While Noel and the band were performing 'Morning Glory', the assailant ran on from the back of the stage and pushed Noel from behind, who fell heavily on to his monitor speakers.

Despite his injuries, Noel returned to the stage a few minutes later to complete the band's set but was taken to hospital after the show to be examined for a suspected fractured rib and ligament damage. The assailant was detained in police custody and will be charged with assault.

No decision has been made regarding Tuesday's concert in London, Ontario, but fans are urged to keep checking the band's web site Oasisinet.com and local media for updates.

Oasis has booked a club show in New York and an open air show in Cornwall prior to the Oct. 7 release of "Dig Out Your Soul" through Warner Music's Reprise in the U.S. 
Oasis will perform at Manhattan's Terminal 5 on Sept. 12 and  the Eden Project in Cornwell on Sept. 27. The U.K. show will be filmed by MTV for a later broadcast.
Getting tickets requires registering on the band's website. Applications for the New York ticket purchase will close midday Wednesday; U.K. applications will be taken until midday Sept. 5.

Story by Matt Kivel

This past weekend, Jay-Z made his hotly-anticipated headlining appearance at the Glastonbury music festival. The controversy and subsequent debate about whether or not a rapper should headline a predominantly rock 'n' roll festival, reached a fever pitch a few months ago when Noel Gallagher of Oasis publicly derided Glastonbury organizer Michael Eavis for his decision:

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If you start to break it than people aren't going to go. I'm sorry, but Jay-Z? No chance. Glastonbury has a tradition of guitar music ... I'm not having hip-hop at Glastonbury. It's wrong." (NME)

Now, the Gallaghers have always been endearing for their seeming obliviousness to modern trends in both music and culture -- they still parade around like it's the golden age of rock stardom, engaging in drunken punch-ups and a host of other shameless cliches -- but never has Noel seemed more out of touch and startingly irrelevent than he does in this situation.

Despite the groundswell of protest created by the controversial remarks, Jay-Z was greeted this past weekend by the Glastonbury faithful (100,000 strong) with an overwhelming display of enthusiasm. The hip-hop titan strutted onto the stage with a Fender strat strapped around his neck as Oasis' "Wonderwall" blared through the main stage PA.

He ended up doing a karaoke rendition of the tune, singing along haphazardly, forgetting words and laughing while the crowd cheered him on. It was a not-so-subtle flipping of the bird to Gallagher and everyone else who rejected the notion that the Brits were ready for something a little bit different than the NME-centric Glastonbury fare.      

Jay Z's "Wonderwall" Glastonbury 2008 / Oasis' "Wonderwall," Glastonbury 2004

Story by Matt Kivel

Somehow, due to no fault of my own, this has turned into a Brit-Pop themed day on The Set List. We've heard about Coldplay, The Verve and now ... the brothers Gallagher. NME reports that Oasis will release their new album "Dig Out Your Soul" on October 6 in the UK on their own Big Brother label. The first single is called "The Shock Of The Lighting" -- it will be released on Sept 29 in the UK. No US release dates confirmed as of yet. Dave Sardy, who helmed their 2005 album "Don't Believe The Truth," produced the album, which was recorded at Abbey Road Studios.

In case Set List readers are unaware, Oasis bassist Andy Bell was once a member of the acclaimed shoegaze outfit Ride. Their debut record "Nowhere" is one of the better albums to come out of that short-lived scene, which is often remembered as My Bloody Valentine plus a bunch of other sad-looking British bands.

Ride "Nowhere" Live in Brixton (1992)

Classic Gallagher Acceptance Speech!

This giving away music thing is getting contagious in England. The Charlatans, a fine band that found few Yanks interested in their reunion a couple years back (they played pretty good in the rain at SXSW),  has a catch involved with their free music; and Madness is eyeing the move, too, though no one is quite sure who asked them. In a story that clearly involved a reporter asking a music industry professional whether bands without contracts, say Oasis and Jamiroquai , might consider  going the free download route, the answer was  an unqualified "yes."

A day after word got out that "Nirvana: MTV Unplugged" will make its DVD debut Nov. 20, Universal Music Enterprises announced that it would release the Oasis documentary tour film "Lord Don’t Slow Me Down" on Nov. 6.
The two-DVD Oasis set will feature stereo and surround sound; audio commentary from Noel, Liam, Andy and Gem; a Noel Gallagher Q&A session with fans alongside out-takes from the film; and a film of a concert at City of Manchester Stadium on July 2, 2005. Bonus disc also features footage and pictures sent in by fans who attended the concert.