"All or Nothing" -- The Subways 6/25/08 @ Blender Theater

I always seem to get a bigger kick out of a show when I know the band I'm seeing is visibly enjoying itself on stage. Veteran acts like Weezer and The Shins, whose respective stage appearances duel it out for worst in my book, should take notice of some of the baby bands that are more or less "fueled by ramen". I guess hunger can be a huge motivating factor in this business. In any event, I saw a band Friday night that exudes everything that is (or was) exciting about rock and roll. Hailing from jolly old England (where they are appently MUCH bigger than they are stateside), the Subways are a young, exuberant trio that brings back the swagger of 70's garage rock acts like MC5 and The Stooges. If their accents weren't dead giveaways, you'd swear this band was from Detroit (and that it was 1973 all over again). The Subways' new album is called All or Nothing, and it looks like this is a credo they live by (yes, in a good way). The band played the (gorgeous) Blender Theater this weekend to a crowd that was a little over half-full -- but this didn't seem to bother the trio, who rocked it out as if it was the show of their lives. Bassist Charlotte Cooper, who from my view was a dead ringer for Debbie Harry, bopped around the stage throughout the band's hour-long set, while shirtless singer/guitarist Billy Lunn performed countless stage lunges from Josh Morgan's drum set.

The band played a host of new songs from All Or Nothing, including the punky "Kalifornia," the droning leadoff track "Girls & Boys," and hooky single, "Alright". In between all of the new material (which hasn't been officially released in the U.S.), the band squeezed in some of their more familiar catalog, which included "Mary," "I Want to Hear What You Have to Say," and "With You". Apparently stage diving is not a lost art after all, as Lunn did not hestitage to get involved on a couple of occasions. The band was extremely receptive of the crowd, and even admitted this was the best NYC show they had ever played. Before calling it a night, the trio returned to play an encore of their mildly successful hit, "Rock and Roll Queen". If this band's live energy radiates onto the new album, then this may very well be the last time I see these guys play an unsold out show.