NOSTALGIA for the 90s is back again, but for every Wonderwall there’s a Mike Flowers Pops version of Wonderwall. These bands of the era are still going despite a surely ever-diminishing fanbase.

The Boo Radleys

Name a Boo Radleys song. You might have got Wake Up Boo! Now name another. Yeah. With a whopping hit-score of one, it was surprising that after splitting in 1999 they reunited in 2021 and started releasing new music, sadly to the interest of basically no one. It’s almost as if no amount of college-level American literary references guarantee musical success.

Skunk Anansie

The 90s idea of an ‘edgy’ band. After initial success, Skunk Anansie predictably split in the early millennium, only to come back together in 2009, due exclusively to fan demand, of course, rather than the members’ dwindling bank balances.

Shed Seven

Quite possibly the most irritatingly 90s band name ever dreamt of, Shed Seven nonetheless had an impressive run of hits. In the 90s. Just in the 90s. Nothing since then. Their jangly guitar and pretending-not-to-give-a-f**k-vocals might be exactly what God had in mind when he created indie, presumably when he was a bit sad and a girl in the sixth-form wouldn’t go out with him.

Blind Melon

With an impressive three whole albums in nearly 35 years, Blind Melon are not a band to be rushed, although having your frontman die during the height of your success can put a dent in a band’s forward momentum. Queen, please take note. Christ, please take note. Still, No Rain is a nice ditty, kind of.

Cast

From the dying embers of one forgettable 90s indie band – the La’s – came Cast. Odd to think that a quarter of the way through the 21st century they’re a band still on everybody’s lips. Well, it would be if it were true. But on they trot, to ever-smaller festivals until one day in the near future they’ll essentially be playing village fetes, presumably as they did in their halcyon days of youth. But now with bad knees.