Ocean Colour Scene perform blistering summer set of 90s anthems and Britpop bangers for Glasgow crowd
Read on for our reviewer's thoughts on the gig below.
GOT BLOWN AWAY Ocean Colour Scene perform blistering summer set of 90s anthems and Britpop bangers for Glasgow crowd
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
IT'S a big year for 90s music nostalgia.
There's comebacks galore in the air - Oasis, Pulp, Supergrass are all touring again.
Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter
Sign up
3
The band in their 90s pomp
3
Simon Fowler performing in 2014
But some bands from the era never really went away.
And judging by the crowd at Ocean Colour Scene's gig, there's plenty out there who don't want them to - even after all these years.
The band are playing at the Summer Nights On The Southside festival at Glasgow's Queen's Park recreation ground - a return to the city after April's O2 Academy gig.
To read much of today's musical criticism of the 90s, you'd be forgiven for thinking OCS were mere also-rans of an era where there were many.
But you simply can't argue with the wealth of incredible music they produced at their height - and you can't escape the feeling that history has been unkind to them.
There are fewer greater examples of this than The Circle, a stunning anthem that still holds up to this day.
It's one of their more enduring songs from classic album Mosley Shoals, released in 1995.
The album propelled the band to new heights and it's easy to remember why when they delve into it - It's My Shadow and One for the Road are among the highlights.
It's my first time at the Queen's Park venue but it's easy to see why it's become a fixture of Glasgow's summer festival scene.
The Big Top tent is packed with fans who would fall into the "Oasis da" category - bucket hats, a pint in each hand and leaving their rough and ready masculinity at the door to put their arms around each other.
But there's a whole younger crowd here too, and not just men.
The enclosed tent roof is perfect for raucous tracks like Hundred Mile High City and it's razor blade riff, memorably used in the opening of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
And it's also ideal for sing-a-long anthems, of which OCS have many in their arsenal, like Robin Hood and Go To Sea.
Frontman Simon Fowler even gives the crowd a brief burst of Oasis' Live Forever.
The gig's not just a showcase for Fowler's vocal and songwriting talent, but lead guitarist Steve Cradock's skills too who surely stakes a claim to being the most talented of his generation.
In terms of memorable riffs of the last 30 years, there's few than can touch The Riverboat Song.
OCS even include 2007's powerful anthem Go To Sea, it's hard to see how they couldn't given it's inspired by young Glaswegian men being left with no career prospects after the closure of the shipyards.
The band close out the night with arguably their finest moment, The Day We Caught the Train, and an army of people joining in with every word and then serenading the band off the stage with the epic chorus.
Craddock recently said of the 90s: "People get nostalgic about it because it was such a good time."
It's hard to disagree - but OCS can feel satisfied that their fans, at least, are still having one. And their kids are too.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Godiva Festival brings back local talent stage after cash boost
A third stage to showcase more local musicians will return to a Coventry music festival, enabling it to also celebrate its twin city of Kingston, Cov ConneX Kingston Stage will be back at the Godiva Festival after organisers secured funding worth almost £30,000 from National Lottery through Arts Council 40 city-based artists will take to the stage over the weekend with styles ranging from rap, grime, afrobeat and reggae to DJs and MCs, all about celebrating local inspiration alongside the sounds of Abdul Salam Khan said the stage's return will add "something extra special and I know it will be a big attraction for all music lovers". The headliners this year have been confirmed as Marc Almond, Clean Bandit and Ocean Colour in Coventry's War Memorial Park the council-organised festival runs from Friday until Sunday.A second stage, called the Cov Stage, will also host local Naeem Akhtar described Coventry as a "great musical city.""Godiva is loved by so many, and with the music stages supported by a host of other attractions for families and visitors of all ages, it's going to be another memorable weekend for the city," he said. Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Oasis and me: How the Gallaghers changed the lives of their fans
Since they burst into the public eye more than three decades ago, Oasis have been central to their fans' love stories to heartache, from teenage high-jinx to family drama, from being young, free and reckless to getting older and facing life's challenges, the music made by Liam and Noel Gallagher has been the soundtrack of many of the band's reunion shows, some of those fans have shared the stories of how Oasis have impacted their lives with an exclusive series presented by Noel's daughter Anaïs Gallagher for BBC Sounds. 'Liam gave me a platinum disc' In 1996, teenage Oasis superfans Anthony Lanni and Paul Hannington travelled from Stevenage to London with one aim - to meet their hero Liam Gallagher. Anthony, who is now 43, said what followed was an afternoon beyond their wildest dreams. "I was just 15 when this happened," he said."There wasn't much to do so we just figured let's go on this random quest to London and see if we can go and meet him." The pair had tracked down Liam's home address, but on arrival, their courage was tested as there was no indication the singer would be leaving his waiting outside for about 15 minutes, Paul suggested to Anthony that he should knock on the front door. "I was just this cheeky chappy and just thought 'go on then, why not?'," he said. The response the pair received was typically Gallagher-esque."To say he wasn't happy puts it mildly."I remember him saying 'you don't just come and knock on my door alright'." The door then slammed in the teenagers' faces, leaving them unsure what to do 10 minutes later, the door opened again. "He sort of apologised for being a bit rude and started chatting to us," Paul said. Regaining their wits and warming to the unexpected interaction, Anthony spotted a number of platinum discs on the wall behind Liam and decided to ask for one. "He handed [one of them] to me," he said."He said, and I'll never forget these words, 'if you don't ask, you don't get'."He said I can keep it."It's giving me goosebumps just talking about it. I was in sheer disbelief." Paul said he could not believe what his friend had achieved in that moment."I felt a bit left out and I said 'what can I have?'," he said."I was just joking really and he reached out and picked up a hole punch off the desk beside the front door and said 'how about that? You can have this'."I looked at it and I thought 'yeah – I'll take that'." 'Oasis brought my mum back to me' As a teenager, Karen Kelly would listen to Oasis on repeat, blasting the songs from her bedroom in New Ross, County Wexford in as much as she loved them, the volume was not as warmly appreciated by her mum Helen, who would bang on the ceiling with a brush telling her to turn the music down."She said she liked some of their songs," she said."She couldn't help it, as that's all that was coming out of my house."But when Don't Look Back in Anger came out, I used to catch her in the kitchen with the piano at the start and she would be tapping the toe and the head would be going." Years later, she started to notice her mother was struggling with her memory, before she was eventually diagnosed with dementia."We've got to the stage where she doesn't know who I am at the moment," she said."It's sad because the mother I knew isn't there any more."That's how bad it's gotten. It's hard."It's true what they say with dementia. You lose them twice." One day, her father called to say her mother was having a bad day. She decided to take her on a drive to do "car karaoke" and Don't Look Back in Anger came on."I looked over and the head was going," she said."The next minute she started singing. "My mouth was open." She said with tears flooding down her face, she joined in, singing in unison."She sang every word," she said."She hasn't a clue who I am, doesn't know my name from Adam but she knows Don't Look Back in Anger, which I think is magical."She said it was a moment she would cherish forever. "To have a few minutes where the two of you just connect through a song... I think it's just about the most amazing thing ever." 'Channelling Liam helped me come out' Comedian Susie McCabe, 45, discovered Oasis through her older brother's record collection."I'm a working class little lesbian from the east end of Glasgow who tells jokes for a living and absolutely adores all things Oasis," she said. "I will never forget the first time I heard 'Definitely Maybe'. "I had found my band. "Just from them opening chords, I was absolutely hooked."It was music for me and it was music for my generation." At 17 years old, she said she channelled the swagger of Liam Gallagher to share her sexuality with her family. "His influence gave me the chance to be me," she said. "At this point in time, I'm pretty much aware of what my sexuality is going to be – that's a tough time. "But suddenly you could listen to that music and you could have that swagger and you could have that strut."You knew at some point you were gonna need to strut into your family home and break the news to your family that you're gay." She said listening to Oasis's music made her feel like there were no barriers."What Liam gave us was a belief that people like us could actually make it," she said. "That guy gave you permission to be you."That's probably one of the most important thing he could have ever have done for a generation." 'I wasn't going to be the only Oasis fool' Lily Dimelow could not believe her luck when her father Dean Hughes managed to book Oasis to play at their pub in North had been a huge fan since she first heard one of their songs during a karaoke session when she was nine. "It was Don't Look Back In Anger," she said."My cousin Joey sung it. "It was just the fact the whole crowd got up to sing it with him. It was like everyone was just connected in the building."So when her father revealed the pub's latest booking, she said she was "absolutely buzzing". Unbeknown to her though, things were not quite as they seemed."I remember booking the Oasis tribute," Dean said."I told her it was Oasis [but] I didn't think she would believe me. "She sucked it up like a sponge."As soon as they started, I just looked at Lily and her eyes lit up." Mad For Oasis: Anaïs Gallagher explores the legacy of the band, telling stories of the music through the eyes of the fans Lily, from Warrington in Cheshire, said it was an amazing night, but she did not have the nerve to approach the band."I was really shy as a kid so I definitely wasn't going to go over and say anything to them especially after seeing some of the interviews I'd watched," she then-11-year-old was elated and could not wait to go to school to tell her said that three years later, the penny dropped when she went to watch an Oasis tribute band. "I sent a video to my dad and he was like 'that's the one we had on in the pub, I think'," she said. She said that rather than trying to get even with Dean, she decided to pass the prank along and trick her younger siblings at a family festival years later. "I wasn't going to be the only one who was made a fool of so I had to pass it on," she said. She told her siblings the real Oasis were in fact on stage. "It's nice that she's carrying it on," Dean said."It's becoming a bit of a family tradition."I can't wait for her to get shouted at when they find out." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Oasis kick off rehearsals in Cardiff ahead of the first gig of their hotly-anticipated reunion tour after last-minute change
Oasis have arrived in Cardiff ahead of the first gig of their hotly-anticipated reunion tour, after a last minute change to the plans. Brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher will reunite on stage at Cardiff's Principality Stadium on Friday - in their first gig in 15 years. The iconic Britpop band will perform stadium shows across the United Kingdom, Ireland, Japan, South Korea and North, Central and South America, where it will conclude with a show at São Paulo's Estádio do Morumbi on November 23. And on Monday, fans became convinced that the duo had already arrived in Wales to sound check at the stadium after people heard music coming from inside. It has also been revealed the brothers have enlisted new bandmates for the tour, with drummer Joey Waronker and guitarists Andy Bell, Gem Archer and Paul 'Bonehead' Arthurs on board. A source told The Mirror: 'With a new lineup and it being such a huge first show, the boys will do some songs inside the venue too. 'Some tours would start with a smaller show or take a week or two to get into the groove again- but there is no time for that, and also Liam and Noel want every night to be massive. 'This is such a huge comeback show, and they are taking it very seriously, it all points to it being an incredible comeback tour.' Fans have since reacted to hearing rehearsals for the Gallagher brothers' gig kicking off in Wales, taking to social media. One fan shared a clip saying: 'Hello, so it is Monday, the gig is this weekend and you can probably hear it behind me already - the sound check is happening. 'I'm not sure what song it is but it defintiely sounds like Oasis. There was just instruments earlier but now there is vocals so they seem to be in Cardiff already. Which is very early for a sound check. ' Meanwhile sharing other clips, people said: 'Oasis soundcheck in Cardiff just now, @liamgallagher sounding biblical,'; 'THEY'RE IN THERE!!! @liamgallagher and @oasis are testing @principalitysta speakers in Cardiff and they are LOUD,'; 'Oasis soundcheck Cardiff sounds wicked,'; 'Oasis sound checking in Cardiff ohhhh my god.' Oasis crew members could be forgiven for looking back in anger on Sunday after Liam took a swipe at them on social media. Liam, 52, risked upsetting the tireless roadies responsible for organising Live '25 - the band's first tour since their 2009 implosion - by claiming even their families will be relieved to rid of them this summer. Taking to X, he quipped: 'Our crew members don't have friends and there wife's and husbands are glad to see the f**king backs of them and tell me n rkid everytime we see them they don't know how we put up with them on a daily basis let alone go around the f**king world with them fyi.' [sic] The singer appeared to be responding to claims that Oasis crew members have not been issued free tickets for friends and family members - widely considered to be a perk of the job. 'The crew will be travelling around the country with the band, setting up the venues, and will be on hand throughout the concerts in case they are needed,' one source told the Daily Mail's Katie Hind. 'They'll be away from their family and are usually given tickets to invite them down to join them at one of the shows. 'But the Gallagher brothers have banned any free tickets being given out. The crew are all fuming. Many of them have toured with other big-name artists and have never known anything like it. 'All Oasis seem to care about is making as much money as they can. Is this about fans, or is the truth that it's all about the money?' The band recently confirmed a limited number of extra tickets will be released ahead of July. A statement posted to the band's official website on Wednesday read: 'As the shows are getting closer, Oasis promoters may be able to release a very limited number of additional tickets for sale once final sight lines are checked and the production is fine tuned. 'These final production releases will happen over the coming days.' Following their initial release, thousands of fans waited for hours in virtual queues to get their hands on highly coveted tickets for the band's reunion shows, only to find that prices had jumped in a 'dynamic pricing' scheme.
