well, a repeat gig for me, look you see. as the title of this post gives you every indication, i did indeed get chance to go and see Simon and Oscar out of Ocean Colour Scene once more. them and a friend, who they opted (or elected) not to actually introduce. yes, again, in my era of exile, i went to this gig alone, and am comfortable with such. needs must, as some might say.
for those with an interest in such things, here you go - click here for details of the first time i went to see them. should you have nothing much better to do i guess you can compare the two. doubt my writing has got any better, and the same sounds true for pictures and video.
as you can (vaguely) work out from the above i was a good deal closer to the stage in this instance. well, if you did end up looking at the post for the first gig i suppose you could see that. last time i only found out about the gig a short while before it happened, in this instance i was able to get a ticket well in advance. four or so months in advance, i think.
getting closer to them was, of course, quite class. mindful of not wishing to stalk and what have you, being able to see people you respect and admire in such proximity is boss. but also some things become all the more visible. whatever is going on with Simon that sees him struggle to walk or move about seems to be getting worse, whilst Oscar looks like he has aged about ten years in the two years since i last saw him. oh.
the image above features their unspecified, and so far as i can recall never introduced, friend. perhaps it was so they did mention his name and i missed it. sorry. well, he was a most smart addition for the tunes he joined them on. no, he didn't play on each and every song.
how was the gig? to be honest (as i vaguely try to be) no, i didn't enjoy it as much as the first. quite possible that this was down to me maybe not being in the right frame of mind, with some things going on, but that's a story for another time, if ever. but, still. the set was somewhat more mixed up and a bit different from the first encounter, with me (as a humble fan, not an expert) feeling that they had the set list perfect the time before.
still, they did all of my favourites what make sense to do acoustic. i suppose i should make the effort to go to an Ocean Colour Scene full tilt gig to get, say, Hundred Mile High City live. but then it's ace, and yes there is video below, that they do my all time favourite, Traveller's Tune.
video done off of a camera welded to a phone tends to be poor anyway, but it does feel like this is worse than usual, sorry. i am not going to go spend a fortune on a phone with a tres uber camera welded to it just to film bits of gigs. should you make it to the end of the footage above you might notice the camera dip a bit. that's because the two ladies sat next to me felt compelled to get up and dance in the aisle to this one. certainly there was a temptation to join in, but that would seem rude. it was enough to see people visibly as thrilled, as moved and as touched by this song as i always have been. some sort of reassurance, or affirmation, i suppose.
rather a different crowd at this gig too. one member of the audience was very keen (as in at every chance he could get) to show off that he knew Simon's nickname (or what have you) is Foxy, calling it out as he did in the presumably strange hope he could have a conversation then and there. others in the crowd were, for whatever reason, using the evening to have a bit of a private social meeting with perpetual loud chatting. this did appear to annoy Simon somewhat, but ultimately, well, those people have paid for the ticket, off they go, i guess.
indeed i did carry on filming the (splendid) performance of Traveller's Tune after the ladies had passed me to dance. and here, below, is that extra bit of video.
don't worry if you are a fan of (really) poor video bits off gigs, as there is one more at the end. i did film some other songs, like bits of Profit In Peace and the entirely predictable finale of The Day We Caught The Train, but much better recordings of these likely exist out there on the internet. mostly i would recommend, or suggest, you buy some tapes, discs or records of them.
if it is so that Simon and Oscar tour again, and this would appear to be a regular thing for them, will i go again? likely yes, even if for all sorts of reasons this one was something of a disappointment. should i remain in my place of exile and they perform within walking distance, well, it would be frightfully stupid of me not to go, would it not? exactly what else would i do with that time?
not really sure i have all that much else to add here. i elected (or opted) not to watch the support act, instead enjoying a glass of coke zero (they had no regular stuff) or two whilst nipping outside momentarily for a cigarette or two (sorry).
well, more (bad) video as promised. if for some reason you wished to hear Simon do a little bit of the classic Live Forever off of Oasis, here you go.
yes, i do have some other gigs lined up for the remainder of the year (2024). another three, as it happens. rather likely some pictures and (bad) video shall get posted from at least some of them.
i would suggest not reading too much into any negative comments about this gig. should the chance ever come along yes, absolutely go see Simon and Oscar for a smart night. much of what was at fault was me (moi), not them.
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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