5 trends that will make a comeback along with Oasis

With the arrival of Brat Summer and the resurgence of clubbing culture, the aestheticization of musical genres, and the glorification of gossip in pop songs, the return of Oasis was almost predictable. They have everything that appeals to new listeners: a past marked by drug use, a backstory that would make any writer envious, but above all, an iconic look (and therefore easily imitable). Exactly thirty years after the release of their debut album, Definitely Maybe, and fifteen years after the “Paris altercation” that led to the band’s breakup just hours before a live show at Saint-Cloud Park, the Gallagher brothers have announced they are ready to reunite on stage, much to the delight of all BritPop fans. Tickets will go on sale on Saturday, August 31, from 10 AM Italian time. While waiting for the fateful hour, let’s review together which items might make a comeback in street style thanks to Oasis.

The Parka

When you think of the Gallagher brothers, Liam and Noel, the first image that comes to mind is a green parka, an essential icon of English fashion and the BritPop genre. Introduced into London fashion from the 1950s, thanks to the mod subculture and its passion for military jackets, the parkas worn by Oasis in the '90s are not a stylistic invention of the band but an integral part of the history of their homeland. Whether they helped bring it back into vogue is another story. Anyway, there’s no Liam without a parka: in July 2017, the singer went viral on X for asking a fan who had stolen some Stone Island items from his dressing room to return them with a Tweet. If it weren’t for the initial insult, it would have been a gentlemanly gesture.

The Bucket Hat

Oasis’s style is casual but not accidental, even though what the Gallagher brothers wore on stage often happened to be whatever they found in their dressing room that day - in 1996, when the band had two live shows in Manchester, for one of the evenings Liam famously wore a drill-shirt from Umbro that he had found shortly before in the stadium's locker room. This relaxed and nonchalant attitude towards their stage looks is an integral part of BritPop culture, a trend that is particularly evident in the 90s rave culture. The bucket hat is an example of this, a hat that seems to have nothing to do with parkas, polos, and football jerseys, yet somehow managed to infiltrate the style of the most fanatic clubbers.

The Polo

Like the parka, the polo is one of those items that became part of English fashion long before Oasis picked up an acoustic guitar, and it even came back into fashion before the Gallagher brothers announced their return to the stage, thanks to aesthetics like quiet luxury and bloke core. The polo originated as a trend in English stadiums starting from the 1970s, as a stylistic code of Terrace Culture, but it was later adopted by artists like Amy Winehouse, Damon Albarn, and even Kanye and Pharrell. Needless to say, in the Gallagher brothers’ wardrobe, the polo is the classic English football supporter’s shirt, tight, with the collar down but all crumpled, usually branded Fred Perry.

Cool Britannia

When you think of the '90s, you think of the Spice Girls, and when you think of the Spice Girls, you think of the Union Jack minidress worn by Ginger Spice at the Brit Awards. It’s no coincidence that the rise of BritPop coincided with the success of the Union Jack in fashion: during those years, the whole world went crazy for the United Kingdom, a phenomenon that was dubbed Cool Britannia, and which could make its comeback thirty years later. Music began romanticizing the British flag from the 1960s, with bands like the Who and the Sex Pistols printing it on their clothes and instruments to mock the government, while in the '90s, it symbolized the glory that the United Kingdom was experiencing. Then, that Oasis also used it for provocation is just another detail.

Mod-Style Hairstyles from the '50s

It’s impossible to talk about Oasis’s style without mentioning their haircut, that short bob with bangs, straight and combed, which invariably ends up sweaty and curled at the temples by the end of the concert. Again, the look finds its roots in the English mod subculture of the '50s and '60s, and before landing on the heads of Liam and Noel Gallagher, it also appeared on icons like the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, and the Beatles. Like many of the stylistic codes that make up '90s BritPop fashion, the mod-style cut has already made its comeback among current trends, on runways and also on TikTok, thanks to hairdressers and content creators who appreciate the vintage charm of the look. With the much-anticipated return of Oasis to English stadiums, we can only expect that bangs for men will become even more popular.