The Subways
The
Subways
Great Scotts
December 3, 2005
By: Steph Shim
The latest import from across the waters has proven to be very promising. After winning last year's Glastonbury Festival Unsigned Performers Competition, The Subways' status on their British home turf has quickly risen from obscurity to near stardom establishing themselves as the next big thing in garage rock and roll, but now they venture on American soil to win over the crowd on this side of the Atlantic. With a guest appearance on this generation's teenage guilty pleasure "The O.C." and several successful shows on the west coast, the Subways are well on their way. The trio is made up of brothers Billy Lunn on vocals and guitar and Josh Morgan on drums and Lunn's sweetheart Charlotte Cooper on the bass.
Before the show started, the members of the band could be seen wandering around the bar seeming to find it entertaining that they could so freely walk around the venue whereas they would have been ambushed at any club or bar in England. After the opening band, The Twenty-Twos, The Subways finally took the stage around 11:30, late enough so that the 21+ crowd was appropriately inebriated to enjoy such a rock show. They started the show with their first single in the UK off of their album "Young for Eternity" entitled "With You." Immediately I realized that this was one of those bands whose recordings do not do them justice as they exploded onto the stage with their raw energy. This was followed by the albums title track then by most of the songs off of their debut album. The combination of such head-bopping tunes as "City Pavement," "I Want to Hear What You Got to Say," and the infectious "Oh Yeah" with lighter songs as "Mary" and "My Goodbyes," kept the small yet energetic crowd hooked. When, after promising to be back in Boston on their next US tour, the set was capped off with the addicting first US single "Rock and Roll Queen," the crowd grew even livelier as people recognized the catchy song.
The
natural chemistry between the couple worked to their advantage on stage as
they repeatedly gravitated towards each other every moment one of them wasn't
glued to the microphone. Cooper managed to stream brawny bass lines while
simultaneously shaking her blonde head at alarming rates and running back
and forth on the stage. Morgan's energy on the drums made it obvious why his
parents presented him with the drums to funnel his hyperactivity. Last, but
certainly not least, Lunn provided the distinctive vocals. The trio's connection
with the audience was just as tangible, which may not seem like such a challenge
in such a small venue, but nevertheless they won over a crowd, many of whom
did not have a clue who they were, as they rocked hard while consistently
expressing their gratitude with polite "thank you's" after each
song. After the set, the band obligingly chatted and took photos with fans,
old and newly acquired, including me. It was obvious that a lot of the people
there knew that they would be able to gloat about how they saw this great
band in such an intimate setting in a few months when The Subways have received
the recognition in America that they well deserve.
