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When the idea for Rue Morgue Records The Label was spawned and ultimately unleashed to an unsuspecting public, I really didn’t know what sort of bands would contact me.
I didn’t care the genres that would approach me, all I was concerned about was the artist blow me away. And that is not easy to do. Depending on a person’s frame of mind at the time it certainly takes quite a skill for an artist to render the listener – the aforementioned blown away. But that is exactly what Adelaide’s Subtract-S managed to do to me.
Listening to the recordings they sent me my mind was flooded with a waft of music that I just quite couldn’t put my finger on. There were so many elements combined in such a way that the band made them all sound unique and part of a whole. Certainly the synth-pop element thrives throughout their sound but to merely label them as synth-pop is quite insulting. An element of darkness and punk-like attitude envelopes their sound so nicely. There’s electronic pioneer Gary Numan in there. There’s all the good things of Joy Division brimming at the surface but there is also a marriage of digital and analog sounds that make these guys sound like one of the most exciting prospects coming out of Adelaide.
I for one cannot wait till we fully release this record to the hands of discerning music punters. I proudly stamp the Rue Morgue Records insignia on this and will watch with glee as this band grows and grows. And they will…
Subtract-S will be releasing the single (alone on a) Monday and On The Line in February through Rue Morgue Records. As we speak, we are awaiting our test-pressings to return from the record plant. Once we ok all that, we will be launching an order page right here at Rue Morgue Records where you can grab a copy of the record.
We debated long and hard as to which song should be on the A side as both songs merited that distinguished placing but ultimately (and with a lot of push by yours truly) Monday is the A side with the equally magnificent On The Line adorning the flip.
More on Subtract-S
“Most of us doesn’t really need to know much about Subtract S. They’re playing nearby, you go down and, unlike the rest of the crop of bores, Subtract S have you dancing in spite of yourself. Everyone who sees them recognises what they are, buckets of enthusiasm and great songs you seem to recognise (which, as they’re mostly original, is no mean feat). And it’s damn hard to stand still. Drinks are spilt or simply dropped and the throng pounds up and down.
Local bands don’t get most of the audience dancing; apart from a band’s few die-hard mates, that’s always been something of a rarity. Big name bands tour and huge crowds turn up but that’s more often like witnessing the oracle. Again, dancing doesn’t seem to be on the agenda. Maybe that’s why people discovered e’s and rave, just so they could dance without paying homage to the oracle.
Tom’s synth and excitable vocals are the focal point, and his personality is the engaging, instantly likeable kind which disarms you from the start. Sam has always been a dancer while he plays his bass, and he’s in perfect sympathy with Iain on the drums. Paul’s guitar treats Tom’s synth like a second guitar, so they swap rhythm and lead regularly.
There have been bands with synths as the key many decades ago in Adelaide and yes, they were either grim, emotive sorts of things or rather ridiculous. Subtract S get your blood pumping from the moment you see them, and all of a sudden you’ve reached the end of the set, everyone around you running with rivers of sweat, and you realise you’ve been dancing like a loon since you walked in.
Last I heard the band were recording so with luck everyone else can hear what a few hundred have discovered for themselves. Subtract S, worth blowing your cool for (not that you have a lot of choice, mind)”.
Robert Brokenmouth BA, Grad Dip.
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Press
“An outstanding Australian Band”
— Rob Lind, The Sonics (US)September 26th, 2016
“Subtract-S are the premier support band of choice these days. They’re unsigned. They’re great fun, have a swirling, varied sound… They’re always worth seeing, and many of us have travelled inordinate distances and gone to some inconvenience to dance at their feet. Get to a record company, boys, and get something out.The world awaits.”
— Robert Brokenmouth, i-94 Bar September 24th, 2016
“A steady dance beat underpins the whole shebang and gets the audience moving.”
— Timothea Moylan, scenestr.com.au September 26th, 2016
“If you’ve not caught Subtract-S, you must. In the audience tonight was a gentleman who’d come all the way from Hamburg just to see Adelaide bands. And he loved it.”
— Robert Brokenmouth, i-94 Bar May 23rd, 2016
“So there’s a little bit of everything in Subtract S and some people have started to call us a synth punk band because it is a fairly heavy sound.” Tom/Subtract-S”
— Robert Dunstan, B-Side Magazine February 24th, 2016
Subtract-S are tight beyond what you have any right to expect, and like the Buzzcocks they’re four blokes making a wonderful racket. Subtract-S make you want to run out into the night and hug and kiss strangers.”
— Robert Brokenmouth, i-94 Bar March 23rd, 2016
“An Adelaide Keyboard-meets-Guitar band that has oodles of energy and enthusiasm, and infectious songs that are guaranteed to get you moving…”
— The Advertiser
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