SINCE rising to fame in the 90s as one of the leading lights of Britpop, 2017 saw Shed Seven release their first new album in 16 years, Instant Pleasures, which went top ten and achieved acclaim across the board.

This winter, the band’s comeback continues with a marathon stint of UK dates which sees them performing at some of the nation’s most spacious halls throughout November and December 2019, including a home county show at Leeds First Direct Arena – their first ever headline arena show.

“We put these shows back on sale in February and now all of a sudden we start on Thursday night,” laughed singer Rick Witter. “The big one is obviously Leeds and although we’ve played arenas in the past it has always been as second fiddle so in terms of standing on a stage and singing my heart out, I’m looking forward to it.”

This October also saw a vinyl re-release of the band’s greatest collection Going For Gold which adds as a handy reminder of Shed Seven’s incredible run of twelve Top 40 singles in the mid-90s.

“I feel lucky and proud that after all these years we’re still performing,” said Rick. “We like to put on a show which I like to think is one of the main reasons we’re still here doing it. I remember being nine-years-old and all I wanted was to be on Top of the Pops. I stood in front of the mirror with my hairbrush singing along to the hits of the day and nothing’s really changed.

“The reason me ad the other guys picked up instruments when we were 11 was because we wanted to show off and stand on a stage. Thankfully we wrote a body of work back then which people still love coming to see and hear and it’s great the songs we wrote have stood the test of time and people want to come and singalong to Going For Gold or On Standby. For that reason alone I’ll never tire of doing it.”

While they never attained the degree of mainstream success achieved by the likes of Oasis and Blur, the York five piece played an important supporting role with hits like Ocean Pie, Speakeasy and Getting Better all becoming popular Britpop anthems.

“When we writing all this stuff we were so caught up in doing it that you never really had the time to stop and think what was happening,” said Rick. “It was only when we reformed in 2007 that I realised what we had done actually meant something to people rather than just being a collection of throwaway pop songs. I get an awful lot of people tweeting me with videos of weddings or even funerals where are songs are being played and it really shows what we wrote has got into people’s hearts.”

This tour, which calls into Blackburn St Georges Hall on November 26, also marks the 25th anniversary of the band’s first album release and will feature a mix of Sheds classics and choice cuts from Instant Pleasures including fan favourites Room In My House and Better Days.

“Instant Pleasures was a bit of a happy accident,” said Rick. “We inadvertently started writing some new songs when we were just mucking about and suddeenly I was on my hands and knees scribbling out lyrics and thinking of melodies. It was like we 14 again!

“We were just doing it for fun and I’m very much of the mindset that we will do another album when we are good and ready thank you very much. I’m sure a lot of our hardcore fans will be happy to wait!”

With so many of the band’s contemporaries from the 90s still on the road or recently reformed, Rick is happy for the band to keep entertaining fans old and new.

“The 90s was such a great time for music and I think people of a certain age want to get the babysitter in and relive their youth,” he laughed. “It’s the same for us - everyone wants to let loose a bit because there’s so much pressure on people and we feel fortunate they’re happy to put their hands in their pockets and part with their hard earned cash to see us. It’s a lovely feeling.

Shed Seven play Blackburn St Georges Hall on November 26. Tickets from kinggeorgeshall.com