It’s always hugely exciting when a band you’re crazy about releases a new record. Given my barely-hidden love for New Jersey punk-rockers The Gaslight Anthem, this is probably a review I should have written about two months ago, when The ’59 Sound, the sophomore album from New Brunswick’s finest was actually released.
The Gaslight Anthem have ridden a wave of unstoppable hype since the rest of the world realised just how superb their first album (Sink or Swim, XOXO Records, 2007) was. You might say they’ve moved up in the world, departing hometown label XOXO for the bright lights of LA and a spot on the roster at SideOneDummy, the same company who represent Flogging Molly, Gogol Bordello and Goldfinger.
TGA are a band from a different era; a time of jukeboxes, Chevys and rock’n'roll. They’re unique in that they make the word “retro” feel like less of an insult. The ’59 Sound crackles from your speakers, echoing like voices on a wireless. Of course, that’s a deliberate production technique, but the sound works. It doesn’t sound tacky, or trite… In fact, it sounds great. The deceptively quiet guitar that introduces “Great Expectations” quickly gives way to a riff that you just can’t help bobbing along to. As always, it’s perfectly complimented by Brian Fallon’s melodic machine-gun vocals.
The ’59 Sound possesses the same air of wistful nostalgia that made Sink or Swim such a charming listen. If anything, it’s more artfully rendered now: their songwriting has become more sophisticated and poetic, and they haven’t lost any of their toe-tapping catchiness. There’s even a surprise guest-appearence from Dicky Barrett, vocalist for TGA label-mates The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, on hook-heavy anthem “The Patient Ferris Wheel”.
With this album, The Gaslight Anthem betray their blues influenes in plain sight: album highlight “Film Noir” gives Alex Rosamilia a chance to shine brighter than ever with some BB King-style guitar-work, and Fallon masterfully drawls his way through melancholy slow-jam “Even Cowgirls Get the Blues”. Interestingly, the band’s folk and country influences are less in evidence than they were on either Sink or Swim or Señor and the Queen (Sabot Productions, February 2008).
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoy The ’59 Sound, I can’t honestly report that it’s better than Sink or Swim. I am earnest in my belief that it was possibly the strongest debut album I’ve ever heard. It still amazes me with its consistency. The ’59 Sound has lost some of that strength: it just doesn’t hold my rapt attention the entire time like Sink or Swim did. That said, this is a very different album in many respects. The ’59 Sound is a very strong album in its own right, it just doesn’t quite reach the high water-mark set by its predecessor. To be honest, it doesn’t feel anything like a disappointment to me: I forsee great things for The Gaslight Anthem, and I very much doubt they’ll let us down.
Our Arbitrary Numerical Verdict:
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Marcus Kernohan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Stereokill.net. Email him at 
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