"Subways" is a song by Australian

electronic music Electronic music is a Music genre, genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or electronics, circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromech ...

group

the Avalanches The Avalanches are an Australian electronic music group formed in Melbourne in 1997. They are known for their studio albums '' Since I Left You'' (2000), ''Wildflower'' (2016), and ''We Will Always Love You'' (2020), as well as their live and ...

. The song was released as the third single from their second studio album, ''

Wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant probably is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is in any way different from the ...

'' (2016), on 22 June 2016. The song rose to number 81 on the Australian

ARIA Charts The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offic ...

Composition

"Subways" has been described as a disco- funk song. Like the other tracks on ''

'', it is a mainly sample-based track, which samples "Warm Ride" by the

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era i ...

, performed by

Graham Bonnet Graham Bonnet (born 23 December 1947) is an English rock singer. He has recorded and performed as a solo artist and as a member of several hard rock and heavy metal bands including Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Alcatrazz, and Impellitteri ...

, as well as "Black Water" by

Patrick Simmons Patrick Simmons (born October 19, 1948) is an American musician best known as a founding member of the rock band The Doobie Brothers. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, he has been the only consistent member of the band throughout their tenure. Simm ...

. The main vocals of the song are pulled from a 1980 song titled "Subways" by Chandra Oppenheim, who was 12 years old at the time of its release. She had not previously heard about the Avalanches until they approached her regarding the sample. Featuring strings throughout, the song had been compared to the group's previous work by ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' and described as featuring a "grooving bassline" and "richly-textured sonic layers" by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

''.

Track listing.

Charts

References

{{The Avalanches 2016 singles 2016 songs The Avalanches songs Modular Recordings singles Animated music videos