“Definitely Maybe”, the debut studio album by Oasis, topped the UK charts again on Friday, 30 years after its original release and fresh from the British music legends announcing a reunion tour. The Official Charts Company, which announced the news, said it was the first time in 14 years the band has topped its albums ranking.

The beloved record -- which debuted at number one on its release in September 1994 -- was back at the chart summit following a 408-percent week-on-week spike in sales and streams, it added. It was helped by the release of a 30th-Anniversary Deluxe Edition, which includes originally discarded recording sessions at Wales’s Monnow Valley Studio and Cornwall’s Sawmills Studios, as well as an alternative demo version of “Sad Song”.

The feat comes just over a week after the 1990s Britpop pioneers delighted fans by announcing they will reunite for a series of concerts next year, after brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher ended an infamous 15-year feud. Reacting to the top spot announcement, the band wrote on X: “A massive thank you to everyone who’s supported Oasis this week.”

Ticket sales for the gigs however have been marred by controversy. The chaotic scramble for the prized tickets last Saturday saw sudden big price hikes -- known as dynamic pricing -- hours-long waits online and hopes dashed for some by technical glitches on the Ticketmaster site. The debacle prompted the UK government and the country’s competition watchdog to promise investigations into the ticket sales website and its practices.

Irish probe

Ireland’s competition regulator also announced a probe into ticket pricing against Ticketmaster Ireland after receiving more than 100 complaints.

“If we find that consumer protection laws were broken, we will take action,” Competition and Consumer Protection Commission chair Brian McHugh said in a statement issued Friday.

The band subsequently announced two extra tour dates at London’s Wembley Stadium next September, aimed at fans who missed out. Martin Talbot, CEO of the Official Charts, congratulated the Gallagher brothers on their chart-topping triumph.

“As if the huge demand for their tour dates wasn’t evidence enough, the enduring power of Oasis is underlined by the success of ‘Definitely Maybe’ this week,” he said.The reunion tour announcement helped renew interest in the band’s other albums too, with two further records in this week’s top five.

The 2009 hits compilation “Time Flies... (1994-2009)” claimed third spot while 1995 release “(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?” was in fourth.—AFP