In front of a crowd of flag-bearing poms hamfistedly singing the songs of their youth, Britpop tribute band Noasis brought ‘90s lad culture to suburban Adelaide for one special November night.

A wall of punters leap to their feet in front of the stage, thrusting empty pint glasses in the air and blocking the bright lighting.

Enthusiastic fathers and sons, even strangers, sway arm-in-arm, singing their guts out to the song that activates something deep inside every person of the English-speaking world – ‘Wonderwall’.

This is the zenith of the set performed by Noasis, who describe themselves as “Australia’s #1 Oasis Tribute Act”.

The band’s November show has brought out a crowd of die-hard 1990s Britpop music and culture fans.

The room is a sea of blue, white and red stripes. Bucket hats are highly prevalent, as are Fred Perry polos and vintage windbreakers. The din of the crowd is thick with northern English accents, with many punters brandishing the aesthetic and cultural hallmarks of their home country.

It’s unclear how much the crowd’s attendance is determined by a desire to see Noasis specifically, or simply to keep in touch with their sense of identity.

Noasis doesn’t solely focus on delivering a convincing music performance; they commit to the Oasis bit through authentic costumes and mannerisms

Noasis’ lead singer, Darren Spiby, who started the cover band in 1996 in Derby, England, takes the stage wearing a navy Umbro hoodie, white bucket hat and Ray Ban sunglasses. At the microphone, he adopts Liam Gallagher’s iconic pout and lean, hands held behind his back.

Tom Spiby, Darren’s son, plays the role of Noel Gallagher. Wearing a red and white pullover, he strums his Union Jack Epiphone guitar – modelled on Noel’s own.

Every so often, Darren will slink back to the drum riser and take a seat while Tom sings, just as the Gallagher brothers would (except without the bickering energy).

Phil and Tom Short, another father-son duo, play guitar and bass respectively, and Christian Teusner plays drums.

As the night wears on and the never-ending stream of ale flows from the bar, the band rotates through all the other non-‘Wonderwall’ Oasis hits: ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Star’, ‘Cigarettes & Alcohol’ and ‘Champagne Supernova’ among them.

As the show ends and the house lights come up, fans of the tribute band rush to have photos taken with Noel (aka Tom). One passionate punter plants a kiss on his cheek.

Darren Spiby

Backstage, Darren tells CityMag he’s dedicated 10,000 hours to perfecting this routine. To him, Noasis isn’t just a gig – it’s a thoughtfully produced experience.

“That coat Tom’s got on is [rare as] hen’s teeth,” Darren says.

“That thing is worth probably $1000. It’s 35-year-old Penfield pac-a-mac. That jacket was worn at Main Road in the UK when [Oasis] did their two nights at Main Road. This top here is what Liam would have worn at Main Road.

“We go really deep into the detail.”

Darren, who has blistering blue eyes and speaks with a permanent grin on his face, formed Noasis in the UK because it was “impossible” to see the original rock band live. They were too popular.

“We just had this idea of if people can’t buy tickets to see Oasis, we’ll create a band covering Oasis,” he says.

Darren: A master of the Gallagher lean

Darren immigrated to Australia in 2013. With the scene change, he started pursuing new, original musical projects. He says his band Leiberman supported Coldplay once.

Noasis was put on hiatus intermittently, but the jangly riffs and anachronistic lyrics constantly followed Darren in his new city. He figured other British expats in Adelaide would be hungry for the Noasis experience, too.

“I could see there was not much of a scene going on for it, and I just thought, ‘Okay, it could probably work – there’s lots of expats living in Australia’,” Darren says.

Not all those who come into contact with Noasis are admirers. Darren says his band regularly receives online comments denigrating the group for not playing original music. He understands and accepts this perspective.

“When I used to be an original artist… you do tend to look down a little bit on people who play covers and play in pubs,” he says. “It’s quite a natural thing.”

The real Gallagher brothers, to this day, are infamous for trading insults, sometimes within the band and sometimes without. There is a similar dynamic between the bands of the current-day Britpop tribute scene, albeit at a lower level of animosity.

Noasis are currently in a feud with Australian Blur cover bands, “other Oasis tribute bands too, as well as The Smiths,” Darren laughs.

We ask drummer Christian, who’s snuck into the room to pinch a beer, if he thinks his love for the music of Oasis is greater than that of the punters, whose singing from the floor drowned out the band on stage.

He experienced the band in person while living in the UK.

“That makes Oasis a really massive part of my life,” he says. “It was a real period of music that will stay with me forever.”