Photo: Press
It's been 18 years since the release of Travis' brilliant The Man Who and the Scottish indie legends have just announced that they will pay tribute to the Nigel Godrich-produced record with two special live dates.
The band will play in Manchester's Bridgewater Hall on 8 September and London's On Blackheath on the following day.
The album is one of the most successful British records of the last 20 years and spent 11 weeks at number one. Songs such as 'Writing To Reach You', 'Why Does It Always Rain On Me?' and 'Turn' are, to many, the sound of the turn of the Millenium. Remarkably, the songs sound as fresh today as they did then.
The sales of the record were slow to start with, but the band played Glastonbury in 1999 and gave an incredible version of 'Why Does It Always Rain On Me?' during a moment that it began to pour. It was a moment that captured the nation and vitalised passion for the band.
The recognistion that followed included Ivor Novello Awards for ‘Best Songwriter’ & ‘Best Contemporary Song’ for ‘Why Does It Always Rain On Me?’ and BRIT Awards for ‘Best British Band’ and ‘Best British Album’. And a year later the band headlined the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury.
The Man Who was a freakishly good album that would make them known the world over and everything in their oeuvre that followed has been overshadowed by this. To hear it in full at one of these shows is certainly a healthy dose of nostalgia. Gigwise caught Travis live at The Lexington last year and to see a band of their magnitude in such intimate surrounds was a highly memorable experience.
As for On Blackheath, the festival features Travis headlining with this special performance on the Saturday (9 Sept) and The Libertines headline the following day. Seasick Steve, Jake Bugg, and Metronomy are among the stand-out artists lower down the bill over the weekend.
Blackheath full lineup below. Tickets go on sale 9am Friday 28 April
Travis / The Libertines /Metronomy / De La Soul / Seasick Steve / Jake Bugg / KT Tunstall/ Steve Mason / Craig Charles Funk & Soul Club / Rationale / Fun Lovin’ Criminals / The Chris Holland All Stars featuring special guest Marc Almond/ Acrylic / Ardyn / Bad Sounds / Black Honey / The Cuban Brothers / Cuckoolander / Dan Caplen / Earl / Jesca Hoop / Keir / Idles / Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir / London Soul Choir / Marine / My Baby / Paris Youth Foundation / She Drew The Gun / Stevie Parker / The Mariachis / Tom Grennan / Tom Williams / Tusks / Vant
Tickets for Travis' Manchester gig go on sale at the same time. Keep an eye out for tickets here.
