Speculation has been mounting for weeks that the rift between the Gallagher brothers in Oasis had reached an unmanageable level. But did anyone really expect this to be the end? Noel has issued a statement on the official Oasis website, Oasisnet, declaring he has left the band due to a breakdown in communications with Liam.
"It's with some sadness and great relief to tell you that I quit Oasis tonight," he wrote. "People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer." The statement comes shortly after Oasis canceled a show in Paris at the Rock en Seine festival.
Naturally, there’s plenty of time for Noel to back-pedal on this statement, and it was only in July this year that he said he would never quit the band (see video clip below). But as things stand, the concept of Oasis carrying on as a Rolling Stones-style outfit, relentlessly pumping out the hits for years to come, seems distinctly unlikely.
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Am I the only person whose reaction to this news is a hearty 'whatever'?