What year is it?In the end, it was the washing machine that did it. Not the swagger, not the sneers, not even the sibling warfare that made Oasis the biggest band in the world for five magnificent, messy years. It was, metaphorically at least, the washing machine cycling endlessly in the background of the Gallagher family home, that Noel claimed he could no longer bear to share with his brother. ″I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer,” he said, and fifteen years later came the reunion announcement with all the fanfare of that same appliance’s instruction manual: a simple black and white image, a date, the sound of a million middle-aged hearts collectively skipping a beat.But Oasis getting back together is just the most obvious symptom of something bigger happening in 2025. Britpop – that glorious, ridiculous, utterly unsustainable moment when British bands ruled the world by acting like they already did – is having what the marketing people would call “a moment.” Virgin Radio has launched a dedicated Britpop station. Robbie Williams is back with a new album and tour literally called “Britpop”. Pulp have the number one album with More