The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang
Rating
RIYL
Tom PettyBruce Springsteen
The Hold Steady
Release Date
06/15/2010
Label
SideOneDummyTracklist
1.American Slang2.Stay Lucky
3.Bring It On
4.The Diamond Church Street Choir
5.The Queen of Lower Chelsea
6.Orphans
7.Boxer
8.Old Haunts
9.The Spirit of Jazz
10.We Did It When We Were Young
Users Rating |
Your RatingCreate an account or log in to rate this album |
Recent Ratings |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Gaslight Anthem’s last CD, The ‘59 Sound, was a brilliant record filled with nods to that seemingly lost Tom Petty / Bruce Springsteen type of rock. It was a refreshing breath of air into a stagnant year of the same old bullshit. The ‘59 Sound became my go-to record and was a constant soundtrack to my everyday life. Imagine when I heard they were working on a new album; to say I was ecstatic would be an understatement. American Slang is an amazing album that will have you singing along for days to come. It's hard not to come off as pretentious by saying this, but that good old rock n roll sound has found a new home on American Slang.
The Gaslight Anthem’s music is anything but subtle; they wield lyrics with the emotion and strength of those great rock pioneers that have come before. Frontman Brian Fallon’s voice has never been better, I am going to avoid the usual musical allusions to Bruce Springsteen and say Brian has hit his stride creating both moments of nostalgia mixed with heart thumping lines. The comparisons to The Boss are simply an easy way to write off this band. So they write stories of blue-collar people existing in this world filled with hardship and love - how many other bands have done this before? It is Brian’s delivery and knack for creating sensitive and full-blooded lyrics that are the key to this band. For example the line, “I'm a cannonball to a house on fire,” invokes a certain feeling in me while singing along with it in my car. That is the main draw of this band: they create great sing along songs.
Many of the songs clearly take cues from tracks on The ’59 Sound. For example, “Stay Lucky” has a similar start in the same vein as “The 59’ Sound.” On first impression these tendencies would implicate a lack of direction or change within the progression of the band, but this isn’t necessarily so. The Gaslight Anthem have taken what was successful on their previous record and built upon that sound.
The Gaslight Anthem is not merely another throwaway band rehashing the same trite throwback style. They are skilled musicians creating good rock and roll that I wouldn’t be afraid to recommend to my dad or "older" generations that are sick of these groups with no sense of where they came from or who broke ground for them. All in all this is an amazing album that will be staying in my playlist for a long time to come.
--Corey Mack
Comments
Lehigh Valley, PA
I think this album is absolutely perfect. Nothing is wrong with this album. THIS is American Rock. The way it should sound.
San Diego, CA
Very good album. It's been interesting to see them evolve out of a more punk style into Springsteen-style rock n roll. I'm surprised you didn't list the Bouncing Souls in the RIYL, though.
Too old to bother, too young to give a shit.
Washington, DC
I don't think it is possible for this band to put anything out that would rate below a 5/5.
"Standing still is where we've gone wrong" - The dingees
www.twitter.com/stephenharris09
http://www.last.fm/user/tunemyheart
Green Brook, NJ
not as good as 59 sound, but definitely interesting. this band makes me even prouder to be from new jersey than i already am.
Minnesota
Maybe it's because I'm not a huge Springsteen fan, but I have a hard time really getting into this band. They're a decent listen and I want to crack open a PBR and stand around my car with the hood open while I listen to them, but I don't get much of a want to re-listen to them. Oh well, must not be my thing.
Find me EVERYWHERE:
This band turned itself into one of my all time favorites in just a couple of years, there's nothing bad I could say about them musically. While I still prefer their first two LPs, this is, by far, way better than most of the releases I've listen to all this year.
Baton Rouge
Gave this a week to sink in, and it is definitely awesome. I like that it is leaner than '59 Sound (even though I can't think of a song from '59 Sound that could be cut). I really like the way Fallon is pushing his vocals on The Diamond Church Street Choir especially. Little moments like that make me feel like, miraculously, this band's best work is still ahead of it.
Boobs
http://thenicsperiment.blogspot.com/