LIVE REVIEW: Ocean Colour Scene, Kula Shaker, O2 Academy, Glasgow, 15/04/2025
Birmingham indie-rock legends Ocean Colour Scene dropped into Glasgow to play two sold-out shows at the O2 Academy, they weren’t long in selling out the first one and quickly added the second night, 90s brit-pop is high on the agenda this year with a certain Manchester band reforming helping to reinvigorate indie-rock back to the forefront of the UK music scene.
We were delighted to hear that the tour support would be Kula Shaker, the 1990s brit-pop band have been on our ‘must see bucket list’ for years now and the night has finally arrived … They didn’t let us down performing an extraordinary eleven tracks during a forty-five minute set, wowing every single person that got down early. The band are famous for their Eastern influences and we could swear there was a burning smell coming from the stage … ah incense, and flowers too with a psychedelic backdrop on a large screen making for a traditional Kula Shaker stage setup. Incidentally the band is now back to the original four that formed back in 1995 with Crispian Mills (vocals & guitar), Alonza Bevan (bass), Paul Winterhart (drums) and Jay Darlington returned to the band in 2022 on keyboard/organ duties after spending a few years touring with Oasis as well as being part of the Magic Bus band.
Mills showcases his guitar playing skills during the opener 303, defying his fifty-one years as he struts about the stage with the energy of a twenty-five-year-old! Towards the end of Jerry Was There the four band members produce a memorable moment as they give everything while Broke As Folk is one of the best of the set. All the tracks the band are remembered for are here tonight including Tattva, a cover of Joe South song Hush and the final song Govinda, as Crispian Mills asks the crowd to participate in a spiritual detox, the crowd try really hard to sing in Sanskrit to differing effects. 8/10
It’s a more casual entrance for Ocean Colour Scene as they take to the stage to Booker T song Green Onions, the roar from the crowd tells us that everyone is right up for this one as the set begins with The Circle with great audience participation. You’ve Got It Bad takes the energy to another level with Steve Craddock showing his mastery on the guitar string while Simon Fowler on vocals interacts well with the fans helping to create a rapport. Go To Sea is one of the standouts from the set and the video backdrop on the screen just begs to transport you back to the 1990s.
When we saw the band play in the very same venue in December 2023 the same message was relayed during Profit In Peace in “we don’t wanna fight no more”, unfortunately nothing much has changed since then as Fowler encourages the audience to join in a mass singalong to the chorus, it is another standout from the night. If that wasn’t enough this is followed by Hundred Mile High City somehow taking the energy in the O2 Academy to another level, Craddock is once again mesmerising on the guitar. The Riverboat Song gets the usual wonderful response from the fans who have turned up to tonight’s show with great enthusiasm, sometimes up in the balcony the crowd response isn’t great but tonight it is special. As we near the end of the main set Better Day and Get Blown Away are played well and Travellers Tune prompts another singalong, the band leave the stage to a rapturous applause after Get Away allowing everyone a moment to get their breath back.
Simon Fowler begins Robin Hood as a solo before being joined by the rest of the band, there are snippets of Oasis track Live Forever in the outro to the delight of the fans, there could only be one song to finish off a great night of music … The Day We Caught The Train somehow raises the crowd connection one last time, it really is a memorable end to the night. It is round two the following night and Ocean Colour Scene are back in Glasgow on 29th June where they will headline Queen’s Park Recreation Ground supported by Glasvegas and Ben Walker, another one to look forward to. 9/10
Written by: Alan Brown
