Oban’s Homecoming Hogmanay rockfest. Fantastic gig. Wrong venue.

Yes, it’ll be the start of the Year of Homecoming and Oban plans to get it moving big time with an estimated audience of 8,000 for a genuinely exciting Hogmanay gig.

The headline act is the Red Hot Chilli Pipers who chose Oban in preference to requests from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Stirling and Perth. Hard to think of a hotter band to rock Argyll into 2009.

Then there will be last year’s headliners, Tiree’s Skerryvore, this time with the addition of the brass section featured in their new CD, On the Road.

And one of the top bands on the Scottish rock circuit in the 1980s, local band, The Works, is reforming exclusively for the night, contributing a mix of energy and nostalgia.

The Gaelic culture will have a strong part to play with the Oban Homecoming Gaelic Choir and the Oban High School Pipe Band, taught by former world champion piper, Angus McColl.

Literally topping it all off will be a massive fireworks display fired on the stroke of midnight from McCaig’s Tower by Oban Fireworks Team. From this crown of Oban, the fireworks will light up the sky in celebration of the incoming Homecoming year. The boats in the harbour hoot their horns and the entire experience can be quite magical.

The big downside to the galvanic programme is the location. It’s held in a cordoned off arena in the local Tesco supermarket car park at the back of the town. This is an uninspiring location which is blindsided to the town, McCaig’s Tower and the Bay. Unless there’s a good wind blowing in the right direction, the boats in the harbour can hoot all they like and only the people on the Prom and not at the party will hear them.

This event needs to be on the streets, embraced by this soaring, wraparound town, in sight of the Bay with its sheltering island of Kerrera on the far side – imagine an answering fireworks display from there? Why not use the car parks and streets around the Corran Hall, the Esplanade and the North Pier where there would be a great view of McCaig’s Tower, the town and the Bay? Tesco Car Park just doesn’t cut it.

It will still be a good night but it’s not going to be the memory of a lifetime – which it could have been. As an event, it’s not setting the benchmark for ambition which Argyll needs – and it could have done.

Event Director & local Councillor Neil Mackay says: ‘Last year’s inaugural Oban Hogmanay was an amazing success and Oban are again delighted to be joined by such wonderful acts at this year’s event. As the event will launch the Argyll & Bute Year of Homecoming Scotland 2009, we invite Scots & ex-pats from all over the UK and the world to come home to Oban to join in the Hogmanay celebrations’.

The Oban Hogmanay Homecoming Street Party is a fully licensed event, catering for families with a food area where visitors can try some local delicacies and a small family fun fair. Tickets are £11.50 for adults; £6.50 for children from 5 -12 years-old; and under-5s go free. Go to the website for all information and tickets.