Madison Groove Rock band Subatomic are an underappreciated contribution to the local music scene. I consider myself very aware of what is going on the the local music scene and they managed to slip under my radar for years. This is a shame because they fall right into my favorite kind of music.
Subatomic is a three piece that has a very classic and organic sound. They cover an area of Stoner Rock that I think is often forgotten about. They crank out riff driven rock with a soulful feel. I would more liken them to Steppenwolf and Foghat more than anything current. This is a good thing because I have been craving that solid “Freedom Rock” feel. Besides the three piece, Subatomic brings up a friend of theirs to play harmonica/blues harp on some of their songs. Also, he plays didgeridoo, yes, didgeridoo.
I saw Subatomic open up for Droids Attack at The Dry Bean out in the Verona, WI area. It’s a country bar that is trying to get a rock night going apparently. They need to do a better job of promoting, but enough about the club. Being a big fan of Droids Attack, I always put them on my calendar when I see they are playing. I was going to skip the show but read that Subatomic was opening and checked out their myspace page. Liking what I heard, I decided to go. I’m very glad I did. Subatomic has become one of my favorite Madison bands. Anyone who has asked my opinion in the past 6 months has heard of Subatomic at least once.
At the Dry Bean, Subatomic played their own material. It was a great show. It was an all around solid performance. Any band opening for Droids Attack could easily get lost in the mix, but Subatomic did a good job of standing out on their own.
I had the opportunity to see them play again another night and they played a few covers as well as origionals. Again, a great show, the covers showed depth and showcased the roots of their origionals. I would highly recommend that you get out and see this band if you get the chance.
