Review - Subcity Dwellers at the West End Cultural Centre, Oct 17 2009

– review by Eugene Osudar

i don’t know how many times
i’ve seen Subcity
play

and i’ve danced at every
show

Except

this one

their very best one

(!)

beginning
hot,

cymbals
triggering
The Heavy,

bass and
Kevin’s killing
keys

“Shots ring out…”

Too Loud For This City

a perfect
song

(tingling me
Now
as i write this)

horns
arranged
gorgeously
Rob on trombone
Allison on trumpet
Darryl on sax
grinding
guitars
Matt and Ian
Darwin’s
breakdown
the spine
bass,line
Ian’s Joe Strummer
inspired voice
and the percussion,
always
perfection
Alain!

but i couldn’
t dance
to their perfect
set,

my back’s done
(internal stresses)

it’s time
to

s
t
o
p

dancing
and allow
myself
to

h
e
a
l

if only
i could let
go

of her.

my
so,
v
e
r
y,
slowly
acting

poison

p
ill.

so there i was
right up front

all around me

kids dancing!

kids,
they’re in their
twenties

they call me,

Sir.

and i wasn’t
the leader
the catalyst
the inspiration
for the dancing
during Subcity’s set

(okay, i danced as
much as i could
to the openers
Hot Live Guys
and
40 Thieves
before my back spasms
became
simply
Too
Intense)

(maybe
i was a smidgen
of the inspiration)

i was up
front,
just
listening to
perfection

and watching
the dancers!

i Love dancers!

oh wait, i noted one
tiny
complaint

something about the ending
of Gasoline
the Beatles-ish
lingering
refrain.

(i Love The Beatles
just not
in the ending of Gasoline)

but i’ll add this,

after the show
two girlfriends
who love this
supreme
Winnipeg music
scene
asked me
who wrote
1st and 55
and
Gasoline.

ah, both songs
are Subcity
originals. when you have a good
song
a good thing goin’
there’s always a hint
of somebody before you,

we build on
strong
foundations.

as Novillero
finds inspiration
in Motown
and Stax

Subcity
finds theirs
in The Clash
in ska
in reggae
in Stax
in Otis
Kevin on the keys
Loves great R n B,

they all do

1st and 55
and
Gasoline are so good,
that my friends
thought
someone else
had written them.

and normally
Subcity
will play
Clash covers
Elvis Costello covers
and even
Bruce Springsteen!
(the last time
they played WECC)

Saturday night
was a celebration
of their own songs

songs that they’re so
proud of

i remember
a conversation
with bassist
Darwin
last winter
after the recording
of the new CD
Where’s The Noise?
was finished,
and he spoke
of His Pride
in the new songs
on the new CD

he was adamant
he was proud.

i felt it

i just wished
the mastering
wouldn’t fail
the songs

all the hard work.

check the myspace
and you
decide

the new
songs
are great

Saturday night,
Subcity
played
with Pride
and passion
(that’s always there)

it was The Pride
that was truly
evident…

they positively
beamed
and shone
(Allison
Darwin
Ian
Matt
Darryl
Rob
Kevin
Alain)
and were
(Walt Whitman’s)
the
body
electric

i sing
here
and
now
the praises
of Subcity
the
band
electric
!

and yes,
Gasoline
begins with a hint
of The English Beat
but that hard-edged
guitar of Matt’s
no way could the Beat
find that in them
they were just too sweet
too neat
Matt’s guitar is messy
fuzzy chopping
hard,edged
razors
and
the drumming,

Alain is one of my favorite
drummers
in Winnipeg

every time i see Subcity
i know i can dance
because his beat
is rhythm
is movement
is power
finesse
grace
is,

d
a
n
c
e.

i’ve seen Subcity
play
countless times,

there’s always
something
not quite
in the right

that’s fine
because
that’s rock n roll

it should be a little off
to the side
a little sideways
but then again
when perfection
comes along

like The Weakerthans
and their perfect hometown
set back in April

or Subcity
and their Pride and Joy
in playing songs
that they Love
and feel is The Very Best
of who they are
as musicians
and performers

then, yeah
let’s celebrate perfection.

70 minutes

Too Loud For This City
Drag Me Down
Give Up The Gun Tonight
Gastown
No More Lies
Gasoline
Soft Hands (a torch song,
Matt’s guitar and Darryl’s sax, a beautiful
instrumental
dance)
After My Heart
The End of the Bottle
1st and 55
Temper
Silence

encore,
the gorgeous,

The Hounds Part 1 and 2

Sweet Misery
Hey Brother

www.myspace.com/fourtythieves

40 Thieves
from
Edmonton

Peter Prescott
and
Grant Hart

that’s who i compare
who i dare to com[pare}
drummer Grant J. Callaghan’s
songs and singing to

(Shawn Conner
you must see Grant J
live to believe
what this band
has)(if only
they could
grasp it!)
(the power
of him singing
and the band
free
to be,
mayhem)

this is the second time
I’ve seen
40 Thieves
and both times

i’ve been absolutely
completely
thoroughly
blown to smithereens
by his songs
his singing
he is So on the tune
and into the melody
as he pounds
away
on the drums

he’s a singer.
a singer you want
to sing to you
every song.

his songs
live
are simply
pop
wonder
devastations

and bassist
Lee Klippenstein
and guitarist
Caleb Neumeier
are free to engage
the audience
in their intensity
and passion
when Grant J
sings

Kevin from Subcity
joined the band
with a set list
that included
chord notations
in every song
so he could play
their songs
(Kevin is amazing!)

The Highlights
of their 40 minute
set,

Bangarang
Capo
Living Lies
MIA
Woodcrafty
Freight Liner
Ghosts (Subcity joins their brothers 40 Thieves on stage, Beautiful)
Ring The Alarm

www.myspace.com/hotliveguys

The Hot Live Guys
setting the table
with the hardest
opening set
i have ever seen
at the WECC

harder than
The Hold Steady
Elliott Brood
Trampled By Turtles!
no one is harder than
The trampling turtles!

Try The Hot Live Guys!

Joe
go!
ready set!
Julian
sing it
bring it
on
Sterling heaving breathing
fireballs
banging it
behind the drum kit
always watching Joe’s
antics
Bassthoven
smashing bass strings
whipping his dreads
against his face
ah, dread,lock
self-flagellation
congratulation
s

hey Joe,
flow man
just go man
writhe and jump and kick at
the beats and jump off jams
fly the stage and rage
Rage Rage Rage

feedback in the hands
of this band
is magic
is symphonic
is screeching and screaming
ear/piercing
drum/breaking
earth/quaking
these guys ain’t
faking it
they’re taking it
straight through you

it’s all pirana
rock n roll
you’re meat
to be eaten
to be
devoured
and might as well be
deflowered
yeah, you’re screwed
alright

my favorite live act
in the city

no one can touch them

it’s not just
the Anarchy
it’s the songs
the singing the passion

and then after
the show

to discover

they are about to break
up

oh my

another mistake.

The Quiffs
were my favorite
Winnipeg band
when i returned
in the summer of 2004

and they;’re gone.

and now
The Hot Live Guys

i remember telling Shawn
about this band
this the Most Amazing Live band
Ever!!!!!

and how he doubted

well, he never saw The Hot Live Guys
he saw
Joe and Julian
in a Nirvana
tribute
band

and his jaw fell
on the floor

when he realized
oh my!@!!!!!

WTF

The Hot Live Guys

are The Bomb
Nuc;lear
destruction.

and why!

one last show?

in December
at
The Albert

if you’ve ever doubted me
and never seen
them

You’re a donkey

You’re a poseur

a faker.

you’re not punk
and
you’re not alt

and yeah, you’ve lost
cuz you never allowed yourself
to feel it
experience
a Hot Live Guys
set

it’ll be The Show of Forever

it’ll be Monotonix

we have ours!

had

ours.

great songs
Massive
intensity
Massive
passion

The Hot Live Guys.

35 minutes
10 songs

Workin
Missing Children
Robbin a Bank
Spanish Itch
Bird of Prey
Creamy Delusion
I’m a Killer
Old Boy
Sock It To Me
Concrete Shoes

knees back,bending
Joe on the floor
explosion
mountain
feedback
like Everest
i can’t see his eyes
smelling the band,mates
smelling the noise
tasting the sweat
head,banging with a fan
so nearly smashing
pumpkin,skulls
lost strap
all tigers
big cats
feedback frenzy
feedback killers
rioting band
this is mayhem
this is anarchy
whip hands
like lightning
lacerations
this is

The Hot Live Guys

one last time.

Subcity
40 Thieves
The Hot Live Guys
October 17
WECC.