Substitute tackles 'Tommy'

Substitute features, from left, Matt Farrell, Jerry Hefner, Mario Tombasco and Chris Tombasco. Missing is Andy Kuklis.

Substitute performs The Who’s “Tommy,” Sat., Jan. 7, 9 p.m., Donahue’s Frogtowne Grille (23 W. County Road, Sybertsville). Info: substituterecords.net, 570.788.1447

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then cover bands are the biggest compliments to ever come into existence. Reviving the songs we’ve come to love, sometimes years after the original bands have long gone. Some mimic with near perfection, right down to the proper dress and hairstyle. Others add their own twist, freshening up an old favorite. But when boiled down to the basics, it’s just one band’s way of saying thanks to another band for being a source of inspiration in some way or another.

Paying tribute to classic-rock legends The Who Saturday, Jan. 7 at Donahue’s Frogtowne Grille in Sybertsville, Substitute will be performing the album “Tommy” in its entirety. Released in 1969, “Tommy” tells the story of a deaf, dumb and blind boy who eventually becomes the leader of a religious movement.

Mario Tombasco, lead guitarist for Substitute, said that while the rock opera is very well-known, the band isn’t extremely nervous about performing it at the upcoming show.

“We’re well prepared for it, so that takes away some of the nerves,” he said. “It is a lot of work. What made it easy for us is because we’re such fans of The Who — we’d been listening to this and playing these songs forever. Stuff like ‘Pinball Wizard,’ ‘See Me Feel Me,’ ‘Christmas,’ even the ‘Overture,’ we used to jam to. We just decided it was time to perform it.”

And while doing “Tommy” is a big step for the band, it is not its first time undertaking a major album, having performed The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” back in August. Though Substitute normally does a mix of classic rock and music from the ’90s, with “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” being a regular part of the set list, Tombasco said that a few original songs are tossed in from time to time.

According to Tombasco, the Hazleton-based band began playing publicly about a year and a half ago with himself on lead guitar/vocals, Chris Tombasco on bass/vocals, Jerry Hefner on rhythm guitar/vocals and Andy Kuklis on keyboard, recently welcoming drummer Matt Farrell to the mix. Named partially for the band’s love of The Who, he said that Substitute is also named for a certain pattern the band has followed in the past.

“When we were jamming, we never had the right equipment, so we were always making substitutions,” he said. “It kind of describes our attitude. And we’ve had enough people fill in that it’s also appropriate.”

Describing the band as “perfectly adequate,” he said that he knows the band isn’t perfect, but all of the members are passionate about what they do and that makes it fun for everyone.

“We all have a self-depreciating sense of humor,” Tombasco said. “I never liked it when someone says, ‘Hey, come check out my band, we’re really good’ because then you’re over-hyping it. I try to be honest. We’re not the best band out there. We know we’re not, and we don’t act like it.”

While Substitute has plans to cover other big albums, Tombasco said the performance of “Tommy” is not going to happen again and that he hopes people come out to see it. He also said that to add a bit of fun to the night, there will be a pinball machine at the show in honor of “Pinball Wizard,” and that the person who gets the highest score during the show will get a free drink.

“You’re not going to see anybody else doing something like this, especially not anybody local. There’s no cover, the food and the drinks are cheap. We have a pinball machine. What more could you ask for?”