It's A Party - The Subways Live @ The Tunnels Aberdeen

The Subways killed it at The Tunnels in Aberdeen on Friday night. Absolutely killed it. I've seen a lot of bands, and paid a lot more for tickets, and not a lot of them match the energy and talent of The Subways. They've been a favourite of mine for years, and for some reason I've never got around to actually seeing them until now. I already can't wait for the next tour.

The Tunnels is a relatively small venue, and when the dates were announced I was surprised they weren't playing somewhere bigger. But I do love a smaller gig, and to be honest they could have been playing in a pub to 10 people and still been fucking brilliant. Billy and Charlotte spent the entire set jumping and bouncing about the stage. It was obvious the band was having just as good a time as the crowd was.

The opening beats to "Oh Yeah" started and the crowd went wild. Singing along, jumping about, dancing, everyone was clearly loving life. Myself included. The set list was full of the classics, which there are a lot of, as well as including some of the songs from their up and coming album. The older material went down a total storm, and the new songs were received well.

A strange move though,"Rock & Roll Queen", one of the bands biggest and most popular songs, was played half way through the set list. Most bands save the biggest hits for the end, the encore, but then The Subways are not most bands. "Rock & Roll Queen", unsurprisingly had the crowd going mental. 

Another change from the normal gig format, there was no encore. Billy took to the mic near the end stating they think that encores are bullshit, and they were just going to play through instead. More bands should try this. It saves that whole awkward 5 minutes where everyone stands there knowing the band will be back. That and with the whole having to leave stage through the crowd in The Tunnels thing would have just been unnecessary hassle. Ending the night with "It's A Party" properly set it up for a night out after the gig, and had everyone bouncing again. 

All in all, the venue was a great choice, the crowd was decent (not the usual drunken arseholes pissing people off and that person constantly taking photos/videos of the entire thing) and The Subways were fantastic. Please come back to Aberdeen soon guys!

The new self titled album is out in February 2015, but if you pre-order it the first half is available for instant download. Head to thesubways.net for details.

And just because I love the song so much (I've been told it sounds like a description of me...) here's a video for "No Heart, No Soul."

The Best Cover Songs

So moving on from Sixx Am's Modern Vintage, there has been a lot of talk about their cover of The Cars song "Drive." I will admit I had never heard of the song before, and have no idea what the original sounds like, but I love the cover version. Ironically right now I'm sitting listening to Alice Cooper, "Poison," that I only first heard back in 2004 when Groove Coverage did a cover/remix of it. Sad but true.

This has left me thinking, there are some brilliant cover songs out there, some bizarre cover songs, and some truly terrible ones. So here goes my top cover songs.

• Seether - Careless Whisper

George Michael's "Careless Whisper" is not something you would ever find me just casually sitting chilling listening to. Ever. Pretty much I would never be voluntarily listening to it. Add in some heavier guitars, Shaun Morgan's vocals (which in my opinion sound's hotter than George Michaels...) and I'll be singing along. Find it on 2007's "Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces"

• Bullet For My Valentine - Welcome Home (Sanitarium) 

Metallica is not a band that should be covered lightly. Many people have tried, many have failed. Kerrang! managed to get it right with their "Master of Puppets Revisited" tribute album. And while the whole album was a fitting tribute to an amazing band, the only cover that has stuck with me over the years is Bullet's cover of "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)". There are a lot of similarities between the two, but they've still managed to make it their own, while keeping the haunting feeling Metallica inspired all those years ago.

• Nirvana - Lake of Fire

I had no idea this was even a cover until recently. And no offence to Meat Puppets, but Nirvana have totally owned it. Listening to the original version of "Lake of Fire" it sounds like one of those totally horrendous youtube covers that people still insist on uploading. Check out the video of Nirvana and Meat Puppets playing it together at MTV Unplugged in 1993 here, or find it on Nirvana's "MTV Unplugged in New York" album.

• Aiden - Drain You

From Nirvana covering a song to a song by Nirvana covered. Seattle goth-rock band Aiden covered Drain You (I could be wrong with this) for another of Kerrang! Magazine's tribute albums, and gave the song a heavier sound, more like their own style than Nirvana's grungey chilled out vibe. The song works both ways, and I totally love both versions, depending on the mood I'm in. I can't remember which Kerrang! tribute album (if it actually was any of them) it was on, but find it on youtube here.

• Marilyn Manson - Tainted Love

I always thought that "Tainted Love" was a cover of Soft Cell, but after googling it just now, I've discovered it was actually released in the '60's... Please tell me I'm not the only one who didn't know this?! And the original... Well it's a lot more upbeat.. After years of Manson's cover it sounds strange. Good but strange. Manson's darker, heavier version is more to my style, like with Careless Whisper, I wouldn't listen to the original but the cover is great. Find it on "The Golden Age Of Grotesque"

• Metallica - Whiskey In The Jar

First of all, having to spell whisky in the (very wrong) Americanised style kills me a little on the inside. "Whiskey In The Jar" was actually a traditional Irish folk song back in the day, before being recorded by The Dubliners, released by Thin Lizzy then Metallica performed it, and people just kinda forgot about any other version. Metallica's is definitely my favourite version. Find it, with other covers, on 1998's "Garage Inc."

• Johnny Cash - Hurt

Eight years after Nine Inch Nails released an emotional "Hurt," Johnny Cash covered it. And had a lot more success with it. Cash's cover is haunting, full of pain, and quite frankly makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up every time I hear it. It's gone from a soulful gothic rock song to a (for lack of a better word) depressing country rock song, that will never be forgotten. (And we are deliberatly going to ignore Leona Lewis butchering the song on X Factor...)

• HIM - Solitary Man

HIM have got a fair few cover songs in their discography, and I am completely biased but there all great. I am a total fan though! "Dark Light" was the first album I bought after going through that whole awkward I love dance music stage... Anyone else remember DJ Rankin? No just me then.. Neil Diamonds version is just too... cheesy for me. HIM have taken it and put their "love metal" spin on to it like they do with every other song they've covered (and created) and it just works. End of. HIM are great. 

• Faith No More - War Pigs

I am in no way a fan of Faith No More, they've got a couple of alright songs, and they were just plain fucking weird at Hyde Park. Still not sure why the hell they were dressed as ministers. Anyway moving on, War Pigs is probably my favourite Black Sabbath song. I'm not the type to take well to bands who slaughter my favourite songs in covers, so lucky for Faith No More their cover is actually pretty good. It's not Black Sabbath amazing, no one will ever be able to sound like Ozzy, but it is acceptable for an cover.

High On The Music

Sixx AM, commonly referred to as Nikki Sixx's "side project," are a ban unique in their formation. Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx, producer James Michael and Guns 'n' Roses guitarist DJ Ashba got together back in 2007 to form Sixx AM, to release a one off album to accompany Sixx's heart wrenching tale, "The Heroin Diaries." Now, 7 years on the band have released their third studio album yesterday, and today announced a first headline tour. Guy's feel free to bring this to the UK please, just saying.

"The Heroin Diaries", both the book and album, is brilliant, and after hearing "Life is Beautiful" for the first time on Kerrang!'s music channel I was hooked. Years later and I still am, and can recite passages from the book, I've read it that many times. Not only does it give a pretty insane insight to drug addiction but it scares the shit out of you. A great anti-drugs tool.

Second album, "This Is Gonna Hurt," also served as an accompaniment to a book, again with the same title. This time, the book is filled with breathtaking photos taken by Sixx, with his commentary on life in general, and the stories behind the images. The lyrics from "This is Gonna Hurt" remind me a lot of the post modern culture ideals I studied at uni. Please no one ask me to explain that one, I still don't know how the hell I passed the exam.

Nikki Sixx Instagram

Now, onto "Modern Vintage," the third album, released yesterday, and I've already lost track of how many times I've actually listened to it already. Little bit obsessed maybe, but that's what I do with music. I can't actually decide on a genre that it fits into, the name itself, being an oxymoron, suggesting exactly what it sounds like. "Before It's Over" sounds like something you would have heard in decades past, or at a circus. It's not a song you'd quite expect from them but it works. A refreshing change to the usual dark and deep lyrics from Sixx AM.

"High On The Music" is the type of song that can describe the way I feel about music, that it's an addiction. The debut single from the album, "Gotta Get It Right," is an inspiring anthem that has the potential to stand the test of time. 

All in all "Modern Vintage" is a great new album from Sixx AM. It's a change in direction from their previous releases, but they still make it work for them. A lighter sound, but still with meaningful and inspiring words.

Been Far Away For Far Too Long...

It's been too long again. Between work getting crazy for a while, going on holiday again, way too many hangovers to even try to count and breaking my laptop... again.... 

The rest of my review from Hyde Park will be coming (I know it's been months...) but my poor tired ill brain just can't cope with that today.

Like I said, it's been a busy summer, with a lot of exciting things going on.... I know that's no excuse for neglecting this blog, but I'm back, and I plan on keeping it going this time... 

So a quick (and probably boring) update of my life in the last few years...

I graduated.. with a 2:1, after a very stressful few months. And I got a bit overly excited to throw the hat in the air... Cause what's the point in graduating if you can't do that? Now it's the totally depressing search for a "grown up" job. Someone please just give me a job?

I also went to Marmaris twice, not quite sure why we were allowed back into the country after the first time. Both times were pretty wild, but what happens in Marmaris stays in Marmaris so I will not be sharing any of the stories here.. Despite how hilarious my friends think some of them are.

There has been way too many nights out, some for a reason, most just for the banter or to relax after work. I feel like I may drink too much.

But that's enough about me... I'll get on with the real posts now!