Gaslight Anthem Take the Honest Approach on 'American Slang'

Posted on Apr 23rd 2010 3:00PM by Dan Reilly
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While the Gaslight Anthem still deliver their trademark straight-ahead, soul and punk-influenced rock on their third LP, 'American Slang,' frontman Brian Fallon reveals to Spinner that there are plenty of subtle differences to be heard in his songwriting. For starters, the fictionalized Virginias and Marys that Fallon frequently sang about on the band's first two albums are noticeably absent.

"There are no names and no quotes from other people's songs. It's all very personal, my story laid out," Fallon says. "There's no mystery to dig into. I'm telling you the truth."

"The record is about the effects of childhood and the recent realizations of what that all means," he adds. "It's definitely about upbringing, about family -- men and boys and fathers -- and that big struggle in growing up: what are you going to do when everything works out and what are you going to do when it falls to pieces?"

And while Fallon isn't quoting such influences like Tom Waits and Bruce Springsteen anymore, fans have been quick to say there is one obvious lift: in the album's title track, he uses the phrase "cut you to ribbons," which was also featured on 'Here's Looking at You, Kid' from 2008's 'The '59 Sound.'

"People instantly said, 'You quoted yourself from the last record on the chorus. Is that your thing, quoting yourself?'" Fallon says with a hint of exasperation. "That's totally by accident. If I say the word 'pizza' twice in a week, sometimes it happens, you know?"

"There's none of that here," he continues. "I used quoting [on previous albums] to describe a mood, almost like a soundtrack to a movie -- if the lyrics were the movie, the quoting was the music playing behind it. This time I said, 'Here it is and if you don't get it, I don't know what to tell you.'"

'American Slang' will be released June 15 via SideOneDummy.