‘Oh! The Ocean’ by the ocean: The Wombats at CHALK Brighton

Just over 100 meters from lapping waves on the Brighton beach, and the dazzling lights of Brighton Palace Pier, is legendary music venue CHALK - and where else would be a better place for me to watch the iconic Liverpool-originating band The Wombats play their sixth and newest album, ‘Oh! The Ocean’.

For their first major release since 2022, The Wombats (made up of Matthew Murphy, Tord Øverland Knudsen and Dan Higgins) have returned with a smooth and musically adventurous record, with lyrics touching on topics of “social anxiety, internal strife, and the tribulations of LA life”, which is where lead singer Matthew Murphy (know as Murph) lives.

Even from first listenings, it is clear that the band departs from their previous more electronic synth-sound, to a more natural and warm tone. However, the lyrics still have touches of the adequately bizarre and perpetually profound that make the tracks unique to The Wombats. This makes for a thoughtful and enjoyable listen through an album treading through a multitude of genres and a variety of themes.

And expertly, this warm feel is present during the live performances of the songs too. At CHALK, The Wombats provided us with a brilliantly curated mixture of recently dubuted tracks, topped with a sprinkling of some of the classics. To quote Murph, of course they were “going to play the oldies and not take the p*ss”.

Starting off with the first single released from the album, ’Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want To Come’, the band sums up a sense of isolation that can come from fame, of being aware of a mindset that inevitably focuses on the individual, and the consequences of this.

This somewhat melancholic-sounding theme is performed in the same deceptively cheery tone that the rest of the album holds, and from the moment the band arrive on stage, a fantastic energy radiates off them and makes the audience immediately alive.

The Wombats then perform a string of songs from the album, with each song sounding just as good live as it does on the record. In the first half, I have to highlight out ‘Kate Moss’ as a standout and personal favourite track of mine. While commenting on the state of relationships in our modern society, through this song the band calls back to a more electronic approach which contrasts the increased guitar use in the majority of the album tracks. Performing this song live, Murph nails its cynical delivery and the beat resonates within the crowd.

Reaching the half way point of their 13 song set (technically 14 if we count the ‘Happy Birthday’ interlude performed on the request of a fan), The Wombats play one of their most iconic hits to date: ‘Greek Tragedy’, and just after hearing the first few synths the fans go wild, screaming each and every lyric as loudly as they possibly can.

Through the track, both the band and the audience are simultenuously re-living both the indie synthpop days of 2015, and the pop-motivated lockdown days of the 2020 remix that led to the tracks renewed popularity. Either way, it is clear to see that both the audience and the band on stage are having an awesome time.

The Wombats then lead into another number of tracks from the new record, including another stand-out favourite track of mine: ‘Blood On The Hospital Floor’, which recounts the effect of excessive overthinking leading to anxiety from scenarios that have yet to occur. Once again, the band delivers an upbeat performance, getting the whole crowd to jump up and down to the deceptively cheery tone of the track.

To close off an awesome show, The Wombats send us back in time firstly with ‘Turn’, a song off their 2017 album ‘Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life’. The energy of the crowd has been climbing throughout the whole set, with it reaching its pinnacle during their final song ‘Let’s Dance To Joy Division’, which unsurprising sends the audience into scenes of mosh pits and thrown drinks (and an awesome set of jumps buy guitarist Knudsen!)

Overall, a brilliant show by an iconic band who have been releasing hits for multiple decades now, and a fantastic series of live performances for their awesome new album.

Listen to The Wombats new album ‘Oh! The Ocean’, released 14th February 2025, following this link!