Heathen Chemistry

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Heathen Chemistry is the fifth studio album by English rock band Oasis. It was released on 1 July 2002 by Big Brother Recordings. It is the first Oasis studio album recorded with guitarist Gem Archer and bassist Andy Bell, who both joined the band after work on previous album Standing on the Shoulder of Giants had been completed. It is the last Oasis album to feature longtime drummer Alan White, who left in early 2004, with Noel Gallagher citing White's lack of commitment to the band as the reason for leaving.

Recording

Heathen Chemistry was recorded between 2001 and early 2002 and is the first Oasis album to have significant writing contributions from members other than chief songwriter Noel Gallagher. Front man Liam Gallagher contributed three songs, and new bassist Andy Bell and rhythm guitarist Gem Archer contributed one song each as well.<ref>Wiederhorn, Jon. "Oasis Turn to Heathens, Hedonism for Inspiration on New LP" Template:Webarchive. MTV. 3 April 2002.</ref>

Although most of the song's instrumentation was complete by mid-to-late 2001, Noel indicated that the release date of the album was being needlessly delayed by Liam's apparent reluctance to lay down his vocal parts at recording sessions, and went on to state that he was "livid" at the lack of work being done:

I was really happy with (the album) until recently, but I'm fucking livid now. I finished my bits three-and-a-half months ago, and then we handed it over to Liam, and in three-and-a-half months he's done nothing. Just concentrated on his drinking habit again. It's just drifting at the moment.

All the backing tracks are done and it's a fantastic album of instrumentals. Hand it over to the singer and it just slows down and becomes this one really long, drawn-out, painful process. So, to be honest with you, I don't know when it'll come out now. It's down to him.<ref>"Noel 'livid' as Liam delays new Oasis album", NME Online, 11 October 2001</ref>

Despite the setbacks during the recording process, when the album was finally complete Noel was confident that it was the group's second best album to date, behind their debut Definitely Maybe.<ref>Downey, Ryan J. "Oasis Set Up U.S. Tour Whether Liam Likes It Or Not" Template:Webarchive. MTV News. 16 May 2002.</ref>

The title of the album, according to Noel, came from a T-shirt he bought in Ibiza which featured a logo reading, "The Society of Heathen Chemists". Similarly, the name of the first single, "The Hindu Times", originated from a logo on a T-shirt that read the same thing, which Noel saw during a photo shoot for GQ's 100 Greatest Guitarists edition. The name was given to the track when it was just an instrumental and the name stuck once the track was finished.

Cover

The cover image was taken by photographer Andrew Macpherson,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> who was commissioned by Simon Halfon to spend a week in Paris with the band in February 2002. The photograph depicts an informal moment as the band members wait for a Métro train at the Gare de Lyon Métro station, on February 13th 2002.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Release

The release of the album was overshadowed by an Internet leak of all 11 songs almost three months prior to release, which was evident at a Las Vegas show the group performed where fans knew the words to several new songs before the album's release.<ref>Goldner, Jonathan. "Oasis Badger 'Thieving' Fans At Las Vegas Gig" Template:Webarchive. MTV. 29 April 2002.</ref> However, listeners of the commercially released album heard slight differences to two tracks, "Little by Little" and "Better Man".

The length of track 11, "Better Man" is 38:03; this is because of a hidden track called "The Cage", which begins after 30 minutes of silence. In the Japanese and digital versions, "Better Man" and the hidden track "The Cage" were separated and the 30-minute silence was removed.

The album was certified four times platinum selling over 1.2 million in the UK,<ref>Heathen Chemistry certification Template:Webarchive. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 January 2009.</ref> and 154,000 copies in the US.<ref name="U.S. sales">Cohen. Jonathan. "Oasis Pledges New 'Truth' In May" Template:Webarchive. billboard.com. 7 March 2005.</ref><ref>Trust, Gary. "Ask Billboard: "English Beat" Template:Webarchive. Billboard. 23 January 2009.</ref> Upon release, Heathen Chemistry went straight to number one in the UK, though it fared rather poorly in the US, only entering at number 23.

It spawned four singles, each of which made the top three in the UK charts: "The Hindu Times", their sixth number one single in the UK; "Stop Crying Your Heart Out"; "Little By Little/She Is Love", the double A-side sung by Noel Gallagher; and "Songbird", the first single written by Liam.

Reception

Template:Music ratings Reception for the album varied wildly. On Metacritic it had a score of 55 out of 100 based on reviews from 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref name="metacritic">Template:Cite web</ref> Some reviewers noted that it was better than the band's last effort, Standing on the Shoulder of Giants, with Blender writing that Oasis was "a band back on track".<ref name="Blender"/> However, a number of other reviewers offered scathing assessments of the album; notably, Drowned in Sound,<ref name="DIS">Template:Cite web</ref> Pitchfork,<ref name="Pitchfork"/> and Stylus Magazine.<ref name="Stylus">Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2017, Liam Gallagher ranked Heathen Chemistry as his least favourite Oasis album.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Track listing

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Notes In the Japanese and digital versions, "Better Man" and the hidden track "The Cage" were separated and the 30-minute silence was removed.

Personnel

Oasis

Liam Gallagher – vocals, tambourine, acoustic guitar
Noel Gallagher – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals, lead vocals (2, 6, 9, 13), drums (11)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Gem Archer – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals
Andy Bell – bass guitar
Alan White – drums, percussion

Additional musicians

Paul Stacey – Mellotron (track 1), piano (tracks 2, 3, 11), Hammond organ (track 6)
Mike Rowe – piano (tracks 4, 10), pump organ (tracks 5, 9), Hammond organ (tracks 8–10)
Johnny Marr – guitar solo (track 8), slide guitar (track 10), guitar and backing vocals (track 11)
London Session Orchestra – strings (track 4)

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Chart performance for *Heathen Chemistry*
Chart (2002)	Peak position
Argentine Albums (CAPIF)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	2
European Albums (Music & Media)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	2
Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>	12

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Year-end charts

2002 year-end chart performance for *Heathen Chemistry*
Chart (2002)	Position
Canadian Alternative Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)<ref name = "CANALTYE02">Template:Cite web</ref>	67
European Albums (Music & Media)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>	30
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	82
Italian Albums (FIMI)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	40
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	33
UK Albums (OCC)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	10
Worldwide Albums (IFPI)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	44