Ocean Colour Scene are on their way to a brilliant career behind the accolades of Noel Gallagher of Oasis fame. How can they go wrong? Noel is one of the most popular musicians in Britain, and has already bolstered the careers of such acts as Northern Uproar and the Boo Radleys. Besides, if a band is so bland that reviewers can't remember their music long enough to trash it, people will buy the album.
Ocean Colour Scene are yet another harmless band trying to cash in on the mod revival in England -- and they do it so well that they blend into the likes of the Who and The Jam and become indistinguishable from either band, back when its members were half-taught teenagers singing into their mirrors in their bedrooms. Or, as a friend of mine rather succintly put it, "Ocean Colour Scene basically sound like Paul Weller trying to sound like the Beatles trying to sound like Roger Daltry."
While they make nice background music to an afternoon of power sawing and welding, what Ocean Colour Scene have not grasped, unlike either the Who or the Jam, is that in order to make memorable music, music that will stand the test of time and bring millions of screaming women to their shows, throwing their skimpy underwear on stage in a frenzied passion, a band also needs some element of originality.
A band needs potential for growth. Good music does not come from merely imitating ones heroes. It also helps to have some talent. Ocean Colour Scene lack all things. In the end, you'd be best off spending your dosh on a slurpee and some used Small Faces records. Cause they did it first. And they did it better too.