While Bryan Adams had the summer of 69, most of todays mid-twentysomethings fondly remember the summer of 96.

The sun shined, Britpop was at its boastful, beer-guzzling pomp as Supergrasss Alright blasted from every stereo and Oasis swaggered around like the best band in the world.

Ocean Colour Scene were as part of that summer as cheap, strong cider.

Sadly, the years since havent been kind and the veteran band were thought to have gone the way of tamagochis and Old Labour relics of the bygone age.

But suddenly they are back, with a brand new album and nationwide tour.

Wisely, the majority of the set comes from Shoals, as tracks such as The Riverboat Song and Day We Caught The Train are classic moments of pop rock which got the enthusiastic crowd dancing and hollering along like teenagers again.

If they had been consistent they could have been as big as Coldplay, though this was never their strong point.

At times, lead singer Simon Fowler can howl like Jagger.

At others, he whines like Neil Finn from Crowded House. And while lead guitarist Steve Craddock can certainly play a great lick, his awkward, one-knee bending dance and terrible sense of style make it seem as if he has picked up the wrong instrument.

He looks as incongruous as Jimi Hendrix playing the tuba.

But the great thing about nostalgia is you can ignore the bad times and OCS, at their best, were just as good as that scorching hot summer.