U.K. Subs at Sub89 Reading, Friday January 10th 2025

Just before Xmas, the U.K. Subs announced that guitarist Steve Straughan was to leave the band after nine succesful years due to upcoming surgery, of course, we wish him a speedy recovery and hopefully, he'll be able to continue with Hi-Fi Spitfires in the very near future. Somewhat selfishly after reading the news I got a bit concerned as we had tickets for the Subs gig at Sub89 in Reading and I wasn't sure if the show would be going ahead. But, at short notice in stepped Abe Inglis, guitarist with Criminal Mind and any trepidation we felt of how such a late replacement would cope was soon put to rest as he put in a hugely impressive performance considering his first show with the band was only the night before at the 100 Club. I suppose I needn't have worried, as after the show I overheard frontman Charlie Harper talking to a fan about the latest line-up change, "I'm a football fan" he said "...and no matter who is in starting line-up, you still support the team and that's what it's like with the Subs". It was an amusing analogy and I had to smile as the band who have probably had more members pass through their ranks than The Fall and The Blue Aeroplanes put together have only gone and done it again. 

 

 

I asked Abe how many rehearsals he'd had before the 100 Club show and he said "none, the gig was it!" He told me he'd been a fan and friends with the band for some time now and knew most of the songs, although he had to check recent YouTube videos as often the live versions were different to the original recordings. He admitted to a brief attack of the nerves when he went to smash the opening chord to first number "Rockers" at the 100 Club, "I just looked down at my hands and suddenly realised I'm playing in the U.K.  Subs". When he hit that very same chord at Sub89 in Reading as the atomic explosion of intro music "World War" faded, nerves were certainly something that Abe didn't seem to be troubled by, in fact his supremely confident display was mightily impressive throughout the show. I don't think anyone would have guessed it was only his second ever gig with the band, he fitted in perfectly, not just with his playing but it was a superb visual performance too, reminding me of Mick Jones of The Clash. Funnily enough, he also reminded me of former Subs bassist Paul Slack from back in their heyday of Top of The Pops!

 

 

Of course, current bassist Alvin Gibbs is still one of the coolest bass players around and you can see why he fitted in so well with Iggy Pop's band in those great days around his "Instinct" tour. Clad all in black with a low slung black Fender bass, his meaty John Entwistle riffing during "Down on The Farm" and "You Don't Belong" in particular were a delight. Drummer Stefan also impressed and I loved the quick fire drum beat in the middle of "Endangered Species", very cool. The legend that is Charlie Harper continues to amaze, it's almost impossible to believe he celebrated his 80th birthday last year, he looks and sounds fantastic. The iconic and charismatic Punk Rock rabble-rouser is on fine form, leading us all in a singalong of "Warhead" and I feel 16 years old again, punching the air and humming along to the bassline that hundreds of young bass players (myself included) taught themselves to play back in the day. 

 

 

Talking of Subs basslines, the classic "Tomorrow's Girls" has always been one of my favourites, and of course it got an outing tonight. In fact, the riff was used in "Throw It To The Universe" by Swedish Psych Rockers, The Soundtrack of Our Lives. In our Retrosonic Podcast with frontman Ebbot Lundberg, he told me that they incorporated the riff into a track on their final album as an homage to the band as they actually formed their legendary pre-TSOOL band Union Carbide Productions after meeting at a Subs gig in Gothenburg back in 1981. It was a nice and heartfelt touch, paying such a tribute to one of their influences. Some personal highlights of the Subs' Reading show for me included "Barbie's Dead", "Limo Life", "Emotional Blackmail" and of course the classic "Stranglehold" but there was something for everyone in a brilliantly paced set-list. The appreciative and good-natured Reading crowd were treated to a triumph of a show that proved exactly why live music can be so very special and life-affirming. Long may the Subs continue to do what they do best. 

Check out our review here on Alvin's latest fantastic book "Diminished Responsibility - My Life as a U.K. Sub and Other Strange Stories Vol. 3" (published by Time & Matter) and the good news is that I hope to be speaking to Alvin about the book in our next Retrosonic Podcast, so please subscribe to make sure you don't miss out on further news. Charlie's memoirs are also completed and discussions with publishers will be taking place once he gets back from the "Tokyo Rock 'n' Swindle" JP Subs show in Japan. This looks like a great event organized by the wonderfully named Punk/vintage store More Tea Vicar and also features Gaye (Advert) Black, Tenpole Tudor and various other Japanese bands and DJ's.

You can subscribe to our Retromanblog65 YouTube channel here for free to see more videos from the U.K. Subs Reading Sub89 show and loads more original live videos too...