OCS have always claimed to be a band that enjoy playing live, and after seeing them it is easy to see that they genuinely mean it. The chemistry between Steve Craddock (guitarist), Simon Fowler (singer), and Damon Minchella (bass) is explosive; their energy just seems to bounce off each other.
Steve Cradock always impresses me every time I see him play the guitar, he plays with such aggression and fury that it is amazing to watch. Other music magazines have been known to criticise him for coming across as arrogant, but if you were that talented wouldnt you want to flaunt it?
Looking round the audience, it was easy to see that OCS have an extremely loyal following that will stick by them no matter what the media say about them. However it was only when the classic tracks were performed like The Circle and Profit In Peace that the audience became extremely vocal and joined in with the lyrics.
As soon as Simon Fowler (singer) gently sang the classic line I never saw it as the start, its more a change of heart the audience went hysterical, jumping up and down and screaming like crazed teenage fans at a boy band gig because they knew that The Day We Caught the Train was just about to be performed, and it was performed brilliantly, made even better with the audience putting their arms round complete strangers and singing along.
The only downside to this show was that the encore was just too predictable, dont get me wrong I still enjoyed the songs they played Robin Hood and The Riverboat Song but I like to have an element of surprise when watching bands play.
Once again OCS demonstrated that they are still up there with the best of the best live bands around today. Hope it wont be too long before they tour again...
review by: Luke Seagrave
photos by: Luke Seagrave