Stripped Back and Up Close: The Subways Reignite Their Songs in an Intimate Night at The Jacaranda
- ANDI CALLEN
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
The Jacaranda, Liverpool 7th March 2026
WORDS / IMAGES ANDI CALLEN
Q: What do I, Rupert Grint and The Subways’ front man Billy Lunn all have in common?
A: we all went to the same secondary school, Richard Hale in Hertford. Sadly, that’s where the similarities end in terms of stardom. Worth noting that we weren’t there at the same time!
Tonight’s acoustic show at The Jacaranda stripped the band back to their essentials and proved just how powerful their songs are without the usual volume. In the venue’s intimate basement setting, every chord and lyric landed with a clarity that felt both raw and revealing. Whilst not strictly acoustic, Billy still strummed his bright red Gibson guitar, shorn of his effects pedal board and replaced crunching riffs, allowing the songwriting to take centre stage and giving familiar tracks a warmer, more reflective edge, whilst Camille completed the picture with understated drums and backing vocals.
They were only here 5 months ago doing an 8 song “in-store” to celebrate 20 years of “For Eternity”, so it’s a quick return. Thankfully the set is longer tonight but half of those 8 tracks are re-imagined tonight. Billy explained at the outset that his was going to be a mixed bag of Subways songs, old and new and garnished with a few choice covers to taste. There were a few raised eyebrows when as early as the second song he shared with us that both he and Camille are big fans of Pat Benatar! I think many in the crowd thought this to be a joke but sure enough they launched into “Love Is A Battlefield”, a huge No.1 hit everywhere except the UK, where it only just crept into the Top 50 singles chart of 1983, a full year before Lunn was born!!!
Further covers peppered the set, with Nirvana – Come As You Are, Weezer – Say It Ain’t So, Mitski – The Only Heartbreaker and a particularly joyous rendition of The Nerves – Hanging On The Telephone, originally released in 1976, but made famous by Blondie 2 years later.
Despite the fact that a third of the set was non-original material, it was still hit heavy with 3 of the bands 4 Top 30 singles given an airing. The passion was still there for Rock & Roll Queen despite the stripped back format.
Without Charlotte Cooper’s bass, the band’s natural chemistry remained intact despite the quieter format. Between songs, relaxed onstage banter added to the sense that this was a special, one off performance rather than a routine tour stop. To quote Elastica, “the connection was made”. Camille’s backing vocals added another layer to the overall experience.
Without the barrier of volume, the connection between band and audience felt immediate and genuine. With a capacity of only 80 you got a real sense of being part of something special.
SET LIST
1. Black Wax
2. Love Is A Battlefield(Pat Benatar cover)
3. My Heart Is Pumping to a Brand New Beat
4. Popdeath
5. The Only Heartbreaker (Mitski cover)
6. Uncertain Joys
7. Mary
8. Say It Ain't So (Weezer cover)
9. Lostboy
10. Blossoming
11. Come as You Are (Nirvana cover)
12. Oh Yeah
13. Rock & Roll Queen
14. Hanging on the Telephone (The Nerves cover)
15. With You
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