The Subways biography
The Subways are an English indie rock band. Their debut album, Young For Eternity, was released on 4 July 2005 in the UK and 14 February 2006 in the U.S. Their second album, All or Nothing, was released on 30 June 2008 and their third album Money and Celebrity debuted on the 19 September 2011. Although the band have not experienced a great deal of commercial success, they have gained a loyal cult following amongst attendees of the annual Reading and Leeds festivals, in which on each occasion they attracted a crowd big enough to fill the second stage tent beyond capacity, resulting in the band becoming main stage regulars. Their debut album was certified gold in January 2007 for 100,000 units shipped.
Members
- Billy Lunn - guitar and vocals
- Charlotte Cooper - bass and vocals
- Josh Morgan - drums
History
Beginnings, 2002-2004
The Subways, whose name comes from the time Lunn used to wait outside a subway station, began playing at an early age, in Lunn and Morgan's homes (who are brothers - regardless their different surnames) in Welwyn Garden City. They first played Nirvana, Green Day and other punk songs, under the name of Mustardseed. They later changed their name to Platypus, and began to tour small, local venues, such as The Square in Harlow, Essex. An early CD of the band playing live was recorded at The Square which they sold at gigs.
The band released many demos and EPs in their early days when playing the London circuit in the UK. With every batch of new songs that The Subways would compose, Lunn would insist that the band record them. However, at such a young age the group had no money with which to go into a studio to record consistently, so they came upon the idea of buying their own cheap recording system at home. Eventually, the band had their own website, http://www.thesubways.net, which Lunn himself constructed and maintained, where they put all their new songs. Through the use of their own home recording system they now had roughly eight demos worth of songs both on the internet and being sent out to local and London promoters at various venues. The Subways then began touring in the local and London area playing regularly at the Buffalo Bar in Highbury and Islington.
Having the home recording system also proved useful for production. The band felt that it would not only benefit themselves, but other local bands who could not afford the studio prices, even in the Welwyn Garden City area. It was here that Billy and Charlotte both stumbled upon the opportunity that would eventually prove significant for the band. "I was producing a local Welwyn Garden City band in my front lounge one day and I noticed that it was quite good so I asked if they were going to send it to any London venues, because I knew a few that would like it. They said that they were going to send it off to Michael Eavis who runs Glastonbury Festival, and I asked why..." Michael Eavis that year was running an unsigned bands competition to play on the Other Stage, and The Subways decided that would be a great idea. "It was really just another address to send one of our CDs off to. All we wanted was to play shows and this was another great opportunity. The CD we sent off to Michael Eavis was literally one among a bunch of 30 that were being sent out to London promoters for a load of gigs we wanted to book. "We never expected the phone call saying that we'd won and were to play Glastonbury," said Cooper on radio. The Subways remain friends with Eavis today, and have suggested that other upcoming bands should send demos to Eavis.
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