Feuding Gallagher brothers to share rock bill in Japan

The feuding Gallagher brothers may not be speaking to each other after their acrimonious Oasis split three years ago, but they will share the bill at this weekend's Fuji Rock festival in Japan. A line-up boasting Radiohead, reformed Manchester giants The Stone Roses, Jack White and the respective bands of Liam and Noel Gallagher helped Fuji Rock sell out three-day tickets for the first time in its 15-year history, say organisers. Last year's event carried a subdued air in the wake of Japan's earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster, but this year sales have surged despite the 42,800 yen ($550) cost of a three-day ticket. "Liam and Noel Gallagher both love Fuji so there were no problems getting them on the same bill," said Johnnie Fingers, director of the Fuji Rock festival organising company SMASH, adding that only a few one-day tickets remained for the Friday to Sunday line up. The same weekend will see the Jisan Valley Rock Festival take place in South Korea and Splendour in the Grass in Byron Bay, Australia, with all three festivals sharing acts to make for the biggest rock weekend in the Asia-Pacific region this year. Radiohead will play the South Korean festival on Friday before closing Fuji on Sunday, while The Stone Roses will move in the opposite direction. Jack White will play in Australia Friday and Japan on Sunday. Fingers -- aka John Moylett -- a pop pianist and founding member of new wave band The Boomtown Rats featuring Bob Geldof, said a strong Fuji line-up this year, including a closing headline set by British rock group Radiohead, helped boost sales. The festival is not sited near the famed mountain, instead taking place at the Naeba Ski Resort in Niigata roughly two hours away from Tokyo. More than 125,000 people are expected to attend over three days. Liam Gallagher's Beady Eye play on Friday and Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds perform on Saturday despite the highly public spat between the brothers since Oasis split acrimoniously before a Paris concert in 2009. With Beady Eye scheduled to play in South Korea Sunday, the brothers are unlikely to cross paths. As famous for rainy weather as the bands it attracts, Fuji Rock is also regarded as one of the cleanest and most environmentally conscious events of its kind. "The camp site is usually a golf course and so we have to return that to pristine condition within a week after the festival," Fingers told AFP. "Overseas festival-goers come in and say how clean it is, but we are cleaning the place up constantly in between performances," he said. Other acts include The Specials, Spiritualized, At the Drive-In, James Blake, Inoue Yosui, Elvis Costello and the Imposters and French dance act Justice. Local acts include Japanese electronic duo Boom Boom Satellites and indie band Toe, bolstering a unique festival that sees bands occasionally mix it up with festival goers. "There's no kind of luvvie, backstage VIP section at Fuji," said Fingers. "If bands want to go and see other bands they have to go out and join the audience, so they get to understand the spirit of the festival," he said. Liam and Noel Gallagher (right) front the band Oasis in Munich in 2009. The feuding Gallagher brothers may not be speaking to each other after their acrimonious Oasis split three years ago, but they will share the bill at this weekend's Fuji Rock festival in Japan. Two Japanese music fans at the Fuji Rock festival in 2006. The feuding Gallagher brothers may not be speaking to each other after their acrimonious Oasis split three years ago, but they will share the bill at this weekend's Fuji Rock festival in Japan.