The big comeback is making a big comeback. Having owned the culture section news cycle — and your gobby uncle’s wallet — for weeks, the Oasis reunion is now expanding into North America, Asia, Australia and South America, en route to a rumoured £400 million rake-in. Meanwhile, rap metal titans Linkin Park are overcoming controversy around new singer Emily Armstrong replacing Chester Bennington, tragically lost to suicide in 2017 (fans approve of Armstrong, Bennington’s family object) to step up to stadiums by year’s end.
All this in the wake of reformed acts like Blur and Pulp playing some of the biggest shows of their careers in 2023. The age-old tactic of a farewell tour at the first hint of decline, then a cryptically hyped resurrection when the offers hit eight figures has been standard music industry practice since The Who first “called it a day” in 1982. But this is next level. Unless you’re Coldplay, Harry Styles or Taylor Swift, the heftiest money in the business right now is in the long-fantasised throwback.
