A game of ‘Spot The Inspirals Fan’ – round 1 was spent in the local Wetherspoons (don’t go there; The Beehive is a garishly-bright and soulless place). I feel I did very well. Round 2 spent in the pub opposite. Did quite well there too.

Next game is ‘Try To Get In’. Expecting an
“I’m on the list”
“No you’re not”
situation, nothing of the sort occurs. I have my ticket, I’m going in. Rah.

Pre-show entertainment #2:

They’re called Coin-Op, and they’re nowhere near ready for the big stage yet. Coin-Op are an indie band but they are indie as in they sound like very, very, very early Blur, which is very indie indeed. There’s a bit of Velvet Underground in there and some messy synths. Bad things; opening with an instrumental; they play their new single, which is shit (don’t let the guitarist sing); Nick has a haircut which will be ridiculed in the same way the Inspirals haircuts from 10 years ago are ridiculed (so, a good match there then); they suffer from the guff sound system. But that’s about that for the bad things. Good things; the song which sounds a bit like ‘The Banana Splits’ theme tune; ‘Democracies’ (SQUELCHING-SYNTH FANTASTIC); the drummer standing up to pose; tunes, tunes, tunes. Today, the Academy, tomorrow… er… probably back to the Camden Dublin Castle.

By now, the Inspiral Carpets are probably regretting choosing a slogan that sounds like people are shouting “boooooo!” at them. The cow logo is projected onto the screen backdrop (which will show a series of cartoons and video clips throughout the set). The crowd, inevitably, goes wild. Blah blah blah… well what did you expect? They’re back (for a bit) after nine years and it feels goooood. Moo!

“I’ve never seen so many happy faces,” says Tom Hingley, and the happy faces cheer and “moo” (hmmm). With only a couple of exceptions, the greatest hits get rattled off. From ‘Joe’ through to… well… we’ll come to that in a bit, the ‘kids’ (read: 20 – late 30 somethings) go mental. A few songs in, the mobile phones are getting thrust into the air (“mate! Guess where I am!”) for ‘This Is How It Feels’. The 1990 song is a classic from its era, more so than the rest. It’s the Inspirals formula of an instantly-recognisable intro courtesy of Clint Boon on the Farfisa, and the twin vocals of Boon and Hingley. Its dark lyrics do nothing to dampen the mood. The happy faces just get happier. Weird, when you think about it.

Whether they’re going through the fast songs such as ‘Generations’, ‘Directing Traffic’, a blinding version of ‘She Comes In The Fall’, or slower tunes like ‘Sackville’ and ‘Move’, there is a celebratory air surrounding tonight. Whatever their reasons for reforming, they appear to be enjoying the moment (particularly Martyn, who has no lead stuck to his bass and has free roam of the huge stage). If this is them ‘finishing’ things properly after disintegrating in 1994 then releasing that half-arsed ‘The Singles’ album, then they’re doing a good job of finishing things now.

A minor distraction occurs when DiS companion, Richard Kershaw, and myself have a disagreement on whether or not The Clint Boon Experience were any good. [I get the final say in this cos I’m writing it. Hah! They were good.]

Way to go then for the Inspirals, when a token cover version rears its unexpected head. It’s ‘Pounding’ by Doves, and it’s fucking good. Way to go, when they play a ‘new’ song, which is good too, and for getting a bit of crowd interaction for baggy oldie ‘Commercial Reign’. Way to go, by playing two encores, although Kershaw was worried that the 2003 Brixton Riots would be started by the Inspirals NOT playing ‘Saturn 5’, we are greeted with the super pop tune and white outfits at the very end. It’s one of the greatest singles of the 1990s, make no mistake about it. Indie disco-tastic!

They’re highly unlikely to headline the Reading festival again but, for a short while at least, it’s good to have them back.