I believe that you can tell a lot about a band from their hair. For example, one of the guitarists from FLEET- tonight's support band - had dry, lifeless hair which had no real style, and the band, well they weren’t that different.
I had heard good things about Fleet, and so I was rather disappointed when they trooped on stage and started playing some of the most unoriginal, dull-as-dishwater tunes I have heard in a while. The first few songs all sounded very much the same and unfortunately the lead singer has quite a nasal voice that after a few minutes started to grate rather irritatingly on my nerves. I think it was the monotonous quality of the tunes combined with the fact that the group didn’t make any effort to engage with the audience, move around or even smile that got to me most.
On the plus side though some of the songs did have cracking guitar solos, and towards the end of their set, the band did start to perk up a bit and they finished with two rather good tunes. Sadly though this wasn’t enough to win me over and on the whole it was a case of too little too late.
But, in retrospect, this poor performance made OCEAN COLOUR SCENE even better then they would have been otherwise. The gig had been sold out weeks before and everyone in the audience was up for a good time. I had forgotten how famous this band once were, up there with Oasis and Blur and in contention with the kings of Britpop. Their reputation has clearly endured, for at one point everyone was humming along to "The Riverboat Song", but most of all I realised I had forgotten how many fantastic tunes OCS have and what an amazing album "Moseley Shoals" was and remains.
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The band was lively and upbeat (a bit like their hair!) and played all of their hits including a wonderful version of ‘40 Past Midnight’ before finishing with their fantastic cover of ‘Day Tripper’. There were also a number of songs taken from their new album, ‘A Hyperactive Workout for the Flying Squad’ and these were given a warm reception by the crowd. OCS played for about an hour and a half, and by the end of the night they had everyone in the room eating out of their hand. The audience clapped along to every tune, sang along boisterously- and even cheered loudly when vocalist Simon Fowler dropped his microphone on the floor.
The band were smooth and wholly professional on stage and seemed to really enjoy playing for a room packed full of rowdy Geordies. It was a fantastic night and I had a memorable time - and left feeling all nostalgic for the mid 90’s. In retrospect, they seemed to be much simpler times!
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