Sanctuary
2003
North Atlantic Drift
About This Album
Part of the problem of being a traditionalist band is that you emerge with a sound that sounds fairly mature from the outset -- by emulating classic bands at their peak, you wind up sounding older than your years and, no matter how hard you fight it, a little bit stodgy. Then, because you hold the classic rock tradition so dear, you wind up becoming bound to it, rarely exploring new territory and, even then, it's usually just new tonal, textural, and emotional ground, which is so subtle that only dedicated fans will notice -- which, of course, is the only kind of fan that will pay attention through several similar-sounding records. This fate has befallen many bands, both British and American, many lesser than Ocean Colour Scene, who at least were fortunate enough to ride the post-Oasis zeitgeist in the mid-'90s, which meant they not only had some hits, but that they could cultivate a reasonably large fan base and that the best of their songs -- "The Riverboat Song," "The Day We Caught the Train," "Hundred Mile High City," "Travellers Tune" -- became part of the pop culture of the time. Once that time passed and "Noelrock" became passé, OCS still trudged on, delivering journeymen-like records to a steadily decreasing audience (admittedly, they were hurt by a record deal that kept their records from regular release in the U.
Track List (try tracks 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 and 11)

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