The Subways - Money And Celebrity

The Subways - Money And Celebrity
Genre: Indie/Rock
Rating: 8.5/10

The Subways first sprang to the attention of the general public way back in 2005 with their moderately successful debut Young For Eternity. This year the band return with their follow up to 2008's stellar sophomore effort All Or Nothing with Money And Celebrity the bands first independent album funded through the revolutionary Pledge music platform which allows bands to fund albums and tours directly from their fans whilst also raising some money for charity. This innovative platform has been gaining some quite heavy publicity as of late as a number have bands have begun to endorse it as a new method of getting around record label funding.

The Subways, for the un-initiated, are an indie band from Hertfordshire and produce raucous garagey rock filled to the brim with poppy hooks and euphoric dual harmonies from front man Billy Lunn and bassist Charlotte Cooper. The band really pushed themselves with their sophomore album All Or Nothing displaying a great level of craftmanship and variety, from the poppy highs of Shake Shake to the beautifully sombre Strawberry Blonde and the outright shockingly aggressive Obsession, the band proved themselves to be a world apart from the one trick pony antics of bands like Artic Monkeys who were riding high on the charts at the time. So expectations were high for another slab of indie rock bliss when Money and Celebrity finally reached me and the Subways didn't disappoint. The album kicks off in trademark Subways style with the punchy "It's A Party" and starts as it means to go on providing pop infused rock that is accessible catchy and memorable. From start to finish the album is very consistent with each song easily being strong enough to make a decent attack on the singles chart. Highlights include "Celebrity" which is a sort of fast paced ballad about a girls cravings for fame with a huge catchy chorus making the song simultaneously uplifting and quite sad, a song that is no doubt a brilliant addition to the bands canon of work. Other highlights include the fearsome "Rumour" that see's the band throw themselves full tilt into the rock and roll spirit with astonishing skill and finesse, Lunn's howls towards the end are quite a treat. The main strengths aside from the bands general aptitude towards their individual roles comes from the backing vocals of Charlotte which turns a plain old chorus into a fiesty chant with real power. Another improvement comes from frontman Lunn's guitar work which seems to have developed further and even includes some solo's. The only slight disappointment is that "Money and Celebrity" lacks some of the range and versatility of the band's second LP but this is only a faint grumble.

Overall the Subways latest album is a brilliant all rounder and a great addition to an already impressive discography. Whilst the range isn't as diverse as the bands last album the bands boistrous charm and passion for what they do fills "Money and Celebrity" with genuine warmth. Highly recommended.

Download: "Rumour" "Celebrity"