The conventional wisdom is that Oasis lost the plot on this, the Britpoppers’ third album, in a blizzard of cocaine and fame-induced hubris. That view informed Be Here Now’s reputation for years – that it was one of rock music’s all-time disasters and flops. Far removed from its moment, it doesn’t quite reach the level of the two classics that preceded it (not much does), but Be Here Now has flashes of brilliance that are propped up by its excess, epic song lengths and endless instrumental overdubs.

“D’You Know What I Mean?” recycles those “Wonderwall” chords with NWA drum samples into a monolith of glammed-out paranoia. The rampaging “It’s Gettin’ Better (Man!!)” and the circular melodies of the title track are also excellent. They’re also examples of how even Oasis’ uptempo songs felt slow and powerful, like a steamroller flattening everything in its path. 

The overlong “All Around the World” sees the band finally succumbing to the Beatles worship they’d always been accused of, but even with its faults, Be Here Now is intriguing and compelling. And when the quality of the songs reaches the same heights as the excess, it’s a worthy successor to the first two Oasis records, showing the group pushing its sound as far as it could go.