Ocean Colour Scene,The Delays Live Review @ Royal Court Theatre (Liverpool) - 26 Sep 2003

Live Review

For the nostalgic people among the crowd who were after a piece of the past with the same desire of Homer Simpson chasing the last doughnut, then the Royal Court Theatre is the perfect venue. It does not look like it has had a lick of paint or been fumigated since the inception of tonight's headline act in the late 80s, with the floor being stickier than Tricky Dicky's ending in Coronation Street.

There was something for everyone though tonight, as the forward looking amongst the crowd had the delights of the young Southampton based support band Delays. Front man Greg Gilbert was quiet and amiable as they pleased the waiting crowd with their bubbly guitar pop. Previous single the 'Teenage Fan Club' styled 'Hey Girl' was a particular highlight and won generous applause. The ethereal 'Nearer Than Heaven' made you forget the sticky floor and smelly venue for a brief moment. It was that good! The tidy set was completed by the forthcoming single 'Long Time Coming'.

The nostalgia hunters had to wait even longer for their booty as Ocean Colour Scene took to the stage and paraded new material first with 'Oh Collector' kicking things off. This also featured the well received single 'All I Need Is Myself' extracted from the latest album 'North Atlantic Drift'. The crowd greeted these tracks as though they were old classics and were clearly "up for it". The crowd was a good mix of young and old, as well as a couple of "Scientists" situated behind me, who were experimenting as to the impact of propelled alcohol through the air on a chose target: my head (to ensure reliability of the findings they did the experiment eight times).

With a touch of irony the start of the old songs was the modern day relevant 'Profit In Peace' featuring the poignant line:

"There is no profit in peace"

Many bands these days would give their right arm for such material. There was a sense of irony that was maybe aimed elsewhere in the cheers received. 'Robin Hood' from what many see as the best OCS album B-sides, Seasides & Freerides got everyone stomping on the dance floor. 'Riverboat Song' was always going to please the masses and ensure everyone left the venue contented. Tonight was a reminder if one was needed, that there is still a place for OCS in modern music.

David Adair