PHOTOS: The Mad Sugars at The Local

Posted on May 2, 2019 by Gerard Longo Leave a comment

Monday night in Nashville was a fun, full-circle kind of affair.

I’ve known The Mad Sugars since their days back in New York City. They were the first band ever played on The Quinn Spinn — not this version, but the 2013-15 version that predated and, eventually, turned into UMC. Frontman Adam Lawrence and I go even further back than that. All the way back to middle school, in fact.

So, in the midst of a three-year hiatus that saw us all end up in Nashville, Adam rebuilt the band for the here and now. On Monday, the band’s Nashville era began at The Local as part of The Nashville Masquerade’s recurring showcase, and I knew I had to be there.

What I experienced was a tight, upbeat set of dance rock about the follies of nightlife, presented with a cool confidence led by the frontman’s collected, “suited up” onstage persona. These Mad Sugars gave new life to tunes from the band’s New York-era releases, which included EPs “Amateur Hour” and “Last Call,” alongside a live rendition of carefree new single, “We Want the Night.”

There should be more news coming out of The Mad Sugars’ camp soon. For now, photos from their triumphant re-debut are below!