Ocean Colour Scene, The Garage, gig review: Ecstatic whoops prove these Britpoppers have the best fans

Unfashionable they may be, but the crowd filling out The Garage rightly couldn't care less

Steve Cradock's guitar solos always prove a highlight of Ocean Colour Scene gigs (Rex Features)

Nearly 20 years since the release of Moseley Shoals, Ocean Colour Scene have become synonymous with Nineties Britpop nostalgia and they know it.

Steve Cradock blasts straight into “The Riverboat Song”, its famous riff heralding a full run-through of the album that rocketed them to fame. This Birmingham band might be unfashionable but the lively crowd filling out The Garage rightly couldn't care less and yell along to every word.

Travelling anthem “The Day We Caught The Train” and carpe diem favourite “One For The Road” earn the biggest cheers as pints are triumphantly raised aloft, while Cradock bathes in Guitar Hero worship for his storming solo on “Get Away”.

The thrill of guessing the next song on the set list might have been lost but after a short break the quartet launch into “Better Day” and “Profit in Peace”, proving they were never one-album wonders.

Ocean Colour Scene stick firmly to their trad rock roots and forgo risk-taking to give the fans what they came for. But frontman Simon Fowler’s vocals remain strong and when Cradock closes the gig to ecstatic whoops with another blistering solo on “Hundred Mile High City”, it’s clear that the dedication of their fanbase is an enviable blessing.