Album Review
The Subways - The Subways
3 StarsIt’s a rough, two-fingered salute to expectation.
“Everything I ever cared for is right here,” howls Billy Lunn at the opening of The Subways self-titled fourth album. After boldly declaring “Everything I always wanted to be, don’t mean nothing to me anymore,” it seems The Subways are taking the unspoken rule about self-titled albums as a vessel for reinvention to heart.
Gone are the rock’n’roll pretenders and in their stead stands an energised and acrobatic band of hope. ‘Taking All The Blame’ twirls with the air of upbeat folk as Billy and Charlotte Cooper lay their vocals atop one another with precision while the garage punk of ‘Twisted Game’ sees that marriage set at odds with screams and serene frustration. ‘Because Of You (Negative Love)’ is a hauntingly beautiful moment of simmering emotion and grand refrain which follows on from the hip-shaking stomp of ‘Good Times’.
‘The Subways’ is a collection of twelve bold and invigorating ideas that see the three-piece branch off and reinvent themselves with every assured step. The band sing of defiance and celebrate their own awareness at every snaking turn. “You’re the saviours of Rock and Roll,” snarls Billy during the rampant ‘We Get Around’, which is swiftly followed by Charlotte’s mocking laugh. The attack steps up a gear on the blood curdling ‘Twisted Game’ with the band begging for you to “wake up.”
There are no frills to distract from the immediacy of the fluid riffs or ebbing vocal play on ‘The Subways’. It’s a rough, two-fingered salute to expectation and sends a powerful message of self-belief. The Subways have approached their fourth album with an anything goes attitude and the resulting collection is as stunning and open ended as imagination. ‘Is That Enough’, they ask at the album’s curtain fall. Taking a moment of quiet reflection, you couldn’t really ask for more.
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