The Wombats Are Back In Toon
- 4 minutes ago
- 3 min read
There is absolutely no secret that there is a soft spot held in everyone’s hearts for British indie music originating in the early to mid 2000’s, especially that of The Wombats who took on Times Square in Newcastle on their “Oh! The Ocean” tour and I had the absolute pleasure of being able to attend and be part of the magic.
The main support of this tour was none other than the absolutely fantastic Red Rum Club, also hailing from Liverpool. I’ve been a fan of Red Rum Clubs music for a few years but never got the chance to catch them live, so this was very good for me personally, but also set the tone for the rest of the evening. The fun, feel good sound of Red Rum Club with their very distinct addition of trumpets to their music got Times Square moving and definitely got everyone ready for what was going to be an evening of non-stop bangers.
Opening their show with one of my absolute favourites, Vibrate, was an absolute statement and really showed Newcastle that Red Rum Club was not here to play around! I’m a big fan of the unique sound that Red Rum Club have created with their implementation of a trumpet, it brings a really big feel good atmosphere to the whole set.
As the sun was setting on Times Square The Wombats took to the stage, kicking off proceedings with the absolutely iconic intro to Welcome to New York which instantly got the crowd moving and ready for an 18 song setlist spanning the bands twenty three year discography – which is something not many bands can pull off with the success that The Wombats can, with the absolute class and decorum that The Wombats do!
The energy on the stage was unrivalled with both front stage members using the full space of the stage with leaps and bounds and playing songs like Kill The Director and Pink Lemonade it comes as no surprise and I think id be doing the same! I caught myself having a bit of a sing and a small (and sensible) dance in the photo pit at points during my first three! It was a given that I was going to hang around and enjoy the rest of the show from the crowd and I’m very glad that I did. If Times Square had a roof it would have been blown off!
Like I mentioned there was a wide variety of songs on the setlist spanning all eras of The Wombats from their first album, “Proudly Present… A Guide to Love, Loss and Desperation” up to their newest 2025 album which was the focus of the tour, “Oh! The Ocean” which had setlist places with songs such as Holy Sugar and Can’t Say No, which the crowd loved equally as much as the old fan favourite classics and were singing every word and really getting involved!
Halfway through the show there was one of the most unique things ive ever seen at a show – a giant wombat came out on stage interrupting Ready For The High to sing Happy Birthday to both Murph and Tord, joined by the whole crowd! What says happy birthday more than a giant marsupial with a trombone!
I’m very vocally against encores at gigs personally, I find they damage the atmosphere, but The Wombats get a pass from me! Announcing three songs left before playing three big songs in the form of Lemon to A Knife Fight, If You Ever Leave, I’m coming With You and Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves) which I felt was a fitting and large end to the show but I was proven wrong! They came back out with another three, this time it was three of their most high energy and popular songs, Turn, Green Tragedy and Let’s Dance to Joy Division which was one last big HURRAH for The Wombats time at Times Square and making the whole place dance for one last song.
I urge everyone given the chance get themselves to a The Wombats show and experience the rollercoaster for yourself! Theres very few bands that have been as consistent as The Wombats for over 20 years, and they do NOT show any signs of slowing down!
Article and Photography By Stephen Cobb
