Having released ten studio albums and selling millions in the process, this tour was billed as a celebration of 25 years of Ocean Colour Scene, and for hard-core fans of the band (such as myself) it was no surprise when the first two Scottish dates sold-out quickly and a third was added. The surprise came when it was announced the tour would feature only the three founding members of OCS – Simon, Steve and Oscar – and they would be accompanied on this acoustic tour by Q strings (a classically trained string quartet).
Fans began to question if Dan Sealey and Andy Bennett were no longer part of Ocean Colour Scene and in the case of Andy, The Birmingham Mail revealed on the eve of the tour that he’d formally quit the band. The future of Dan remains a bit unclear and hopefully he will return to the fold for the next tour with both having joined the trio following the departure of Damon Minchella in 2003.
Being a Friday night, the Concert Hall bar was packed prior to OCS taking the stage and it was somewhat a surprise when the bars were closed following the band taking to the stage. Being an all seated venue, one can only assume this sensible call was made to ensure those keen to enjoy the music were not constantly interrupted with thirsty punters going back and forward to the bar during the performance. The music itself kicked-off when Simon, Steve and Oscar took to the stage and the place thundered with opening number ‘Better Day’. Featuring on the Marchin’ Already album, the song always reminds me of the two gigs I was fortunate enough to attend at Stirling Castle back in the late ’90s. For me a return to Stirling Castle this year either during the summer or at Hogmany would be the perfect way of celebrating 25 years of Ocean Colour Scene.
As the crowd itched to get on their feet and with Simon in fine voice, ‘So Low’ followed the opener. Drummer Oscar switched between bass and piano throughout the set, with Steve also downing his guitar at times and taking to the piano ensuring there was never a dull moment. ‘This Day Should Last Forever’ featured early, sounded great and for me was a highlight of the opening tracks.
The strings certainly added to the atmosphere and being an acoustic celebration of 25 years, fans were treated to many songs outside the traditional “greatest hits” such as ‘Village Life’ and ‘Have You Got The Right’. Lead single from One From The Modern and fan favourite ‘Profit In Peace’ got everyone off their seats as the audience bellowed the words back at the band. ‘Charlie Brown Says’ followed and was one of a number of tracks to feature in the set from the B-sides, Seasides and Freerides collection.
Undoubtedly the biggest cheer of the night occurred when a frequently disappearing front row couple returned after a lengthy absence. Simon had ‘teed-up’ the crowd Robin Williams style and the place erupted with cheers with the couple only eventually ‘sussing-out’ the reaction when Steve made a little gesture with his hands towards the couple. It was almost Valentine’s Day after all!
Towards the end of the main set the band took it up a notch with their classics ‘One For The Road’ , ‘Travellers Tune’, ‘Get Blown Away’ and ‘The Circle’ as chants of “OCS, OCS” rang out between songs. Simon then returned to the set to open the encore with the brilliant ‘Robin Hood’ with the fans joining him in a mass sing-a-long. ‘Albis’ and ‘Families’ also featured before the night was brought to a rapturous finale with ‘The Day We Caught The Train’. With OSC set to return to Glasgow next Friday the big question is will Dan be returning to the Concert Hall next week? Hopefully…
Bazza Mills
@bazzamills
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