Last night’s sold-out Bangkok show from Liam Gallagher saw the former Oasis frontman deliver a rock 'n' roll masterclass before abruptly cutting short his set.

After barely an hour on stage at BITEC Bangna, Gallagher declined to return for an expected encore, much to the disappointment of fans who paid upwards of B3,600 to attend (an elevated VIP lounge with free-flow booze: B6,000).

From the offset Gallagher appeared in good voice, launching the show with pitch-perfect performances of Oasis staples like "Rock n' Roll Star" and "Morning Glory."

For much of the concert Gallagher was his usual inanimate, if captivating self, receiving rapturous cheers for merely shaking a set of maracas or mumbling barely-decipherable expletitives—but you'd never go to an Oasis concert for the small talk.

The set was punctuated with tracks from the veteran rocker's 2017 solo debut, As You Were, but the night's biggest applause was reserved for when a hoodie-clad Gallagher delivered '90s-defining Oasis hits “Cigarettes & Alcohol” and “Wonderwall.” 

The latter was to prove the final song of the night, as Gallagher threw his tambourine into the crowd never to return. Even as a Sex Pistols track came over the PA, the crowd continued to call his name in anticipation.

“He always comes out for an encore,” one confident British expat told us. “He’s been playing ‘Live Forever’ at every show this tour."

However, as the house lights came on to a collective groan, discussion turned to what went wrong, some attributing Gallagher's surliness to his reported latest failure to rekindle relations with his brother Noel and reform Oasis, one of the biggest bands in the UK from their breakthrough with Definitely Maybe in 1994 until their split in 2009. Oasis last visited Bangkok way back in 2001.

Despite a set that fell a good half-hour short of recent performances in Australia and the UK, most fans appeared content if not completely satisifed. "That’s just Liam being Liam,” one long-time fan, first-time concert-goer told us. “I’ve been waiting for this for over 10 years.”
 
This morning, Gallagher acknowledged the unsatisfying end to his Bangkok performance on Twitter. "Thank you Bangkok for lastnight [sic] I was struggling with sound hence my moody chops," he explained.

 

In the end, though, what's rock 'n' roll without a little drama?

Happier times: Gallagher arrives in Bangkok on Thursday