Widely unknown until Celebrity Big Brother, a rickety career ladder to stand on, The Ordinary Boys are back on the road after a 5 year live show hiatus. Armed with a new guitarist, bassist, keyboard player and pet cat, lead singer Samuel Peston is ‘freaking out just thinking about how fun it’s gonna be.’
Getting their name and hair from Morrissey, The Ordinary Boys were once happy foundations of the British neo punk scene (walk away from the Google browser, I just made it up). Influenced by Britpop and the mod revival, the musical equivalent of photocopying Dickens, their first album was a screaming tirade of teen angst and BO. Songs like ‘Maybe Somebody’ and ‘Talk Talk Talk’ gained them a certain notoriety in certain circles, whilst the rather obviously titled ‘Boys Will Be Boys’ from their second album nudged them into the limelight.
Then in 2006 Preston entered Endemol’s house of fame death, married the winner, stormed off Never Mind The Buzzcocks (oooohh Amstell, you big bully you) and flushed the whole thing away. Now, 3 years after announcing the band’s official break up and carving a path into writing and production, he joins drummer No2 – Simon Goldring, for eleven dates across the UK. A reunion tour the O2 Academy Music Group bill as ‘giving their hit tracks the send off they deserve in a string of loud and fast live shows’.
The terms ‘hit tracks’ or ‘reunion’ may not be appropriate, The Ordinary Boys never achieved significant chart success and 60% of the line up are new, but it’s the word ‘deserve’ that sticks out the most. The Ordinary Boys’ Maybe Somebody Tour won’t be the original line up, there’s no public pretentions about a comeback, no ‘previously unreleased’s lurking in the background, and other than the O2 Academy bar takings it’s hard to see any gain. So what’s this really about? Rewarding support or just public masturbation?
And The Ordinary Boys have maintained a fervent fanbase, one that seems to be doing a better job of promotion than their label ever did. But if this tour is really for them why has it taken the life span of my niece?
And whilst I duck the flag waving retorts from The Ordinary Army, riddle me this. What happens if the gig sucks? You know, bubbles can be both blown up and burst. And again all that’s left is a sticky mess of regret.
Ceri Black will be at the O2 Academy, B’ham on Dec 9th for the Birmingham Review
For more gig info visit http://www.o2academybirmingham.co.uk