AbsolutePunk.net interview

BREAKING NEWS: BRIAN FALLON IS A HUMAN BEING

ffs, i think i'm a pretty goddamn nice person, but i can't imagine having to be what people expect you to be all the time. and personally, i think if i were Brian, i would find it strange to have a whole thread discussing this point. people, get over it. you really think he's so obsessed with what people in school treated him like? i'm sorry, this is absolutely no offense to anyone of you in particular, but i think we've gone a bit astray in our love for Gaslight when we are so fucking concerned about stupid crap like this.

Quote :

we probably only know (at best) like 25% of the person he actually is.

If you're going to judge Brian, the man, I'd go by how he is when you meet him and speak with him personally and by what kind of show/music he gives you. But even then, you could have caught him on a bad day.

Interviews are just two people shooting the breeze. It's impossible to judge his character without being in an actual relationship with him offline and out of the press anyway.

I get the impression the Mercury signing is freaking people out and that's guiding opinions a bit in terms of how his statements lately are being perceived.

StitchesOnTheRadio wrote:

stepsandnumbers wrote:

Yeah, I've noticed the same thing that Alex and Andrew are talking about. He just seems to have changed a little bit over the years, which is completely normal and understandable, but it's just kinda weird to see. He seems, for lack of a better term, more cynical. Not saying he's a total dick or anything, because I still think he's a great, great guy, but maybe now he just sees things a little differently than he used to, and of course that comes across in interviews.

cynical sounds like a good word. I always think back to what he said about when he was writing Elsie how it dug up some old things that he'd buried and it made him kinda weird for awhile. I think between that and adjusting to a rise in popularity has made him really guarded. He behaves kinda like he thinks someone's out to get him. And he even talks about being careful not to get screwed over or lose himself a lot, so maybe he's even paranoid about it. Idk I think he's just got a lot on his mind right now.

I agree with what you're saying here. Cynical is a good word and what you said about someone being out to get hime seems to make sense. Look, I know we don't know the guy well but from the lots of audio and footage and meeting him in person idk, Im kinda good with getting a vibe about what a person is like and I always got a good vibe on Brian but lately Ive seen this difference.

Personally i though lying on camera about bands like he did on Red Bull was a little childish but I can understand his motivation. Ive mentioned on other threads that he seems to be struggling to adjust with becoming increasingly famous, maybe he'll learn to deal with it better as time goes on. He just needs to relax and let the good times roll.

It looks like Ive kicked up a right storm after reading all this. Not what I intended just expressing an opinion. I think if we ever say anything bad about Brian or Gaslight on here that we all feel we also need to cover our backs to show that we still love them or that we don't want to upset anyone. On the other hand some of us just won't hear a bad word said which is ok too. At the end of the day we're just expressing our entitled opinion. I love this band so much but at the same time I can look at them objectively and admit when something doesn't seem right to me.

I think controversial debates like his are interesting. If anything I I'd say there are several people who agreed with me that perhaps wouldn't have voiced it otherwise and thats great. Say what you feel guys

If he saw this thread he would probably get even more mad with everyone analyzing him.

Personally, I think it's fine to discuss stuff like this on here because we are intense fans. Maybe some of us don't care about any of the individual members beyond whether or not they put on a good show and that's fine but I think it's okay too to care about them more than that, and wonder what's going on when they do something that seems out of character.

Sure Brian probably would be like "what the fuck" if he saw this but it's not like we're on here calling him a douchebag. Also it comes with the attention, and if he doesn't know by now that there are a lot worse things being said about him (as in creepy stalker stuff) and he takes more offense at this then well, he's got a long road ahead of him.

At least we're not discussing things that were never meant for public viewing. Every bit of content on here is out in the open. And honestly, if you haven't noticed, the dude shares A LOT so these conclusions don't come out of nowhere.

Anyway, it's probably best for everyone if we basically drop it at this point. That's just my opinion.

Since Brian has clarified some of the things he said in that interview and what his motivation was, I don't think you can necessarily say he was lying. He was just being what I like to call "Sassy."

Quote :

he better hope that people relate to his experiences because that's one of the reasons he bought a house off his music career

He just said that he tried to write from a girl's standpoint so not all of his songs are directly pulled from his own life. So...?

Gossip girls can definitely be a little sassy

Rizz1048 wrote:

Gossip girls can definitely be a little sassy

Exactly!

NeverTrustAJunkie wrote:

Rizz1048 wrote:

Gossip girls can definitely be a little sassy

Exactly!

Basically I think actions speak louder than words...or in this case, a video. I'm not saying he's changed or whatever, but back then he just always looked...giddy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Byb2ecrpOg

That video makes my point perfectly. Brian doesn't interview like this any more

steph wrote:

BREAKING NEWS: BRIAN FALLON IS A HUMAN BEING

ffs, i think i'm a pretty goddamn nice person, but i can't imagine having to be what people expect you to be all the time. and personally, i think if i were Brian, i would find it strange to have a whole thread discussing this point. people, get over it. you really think he's so obsessed with what people in school treated him like? i'm sorry, this is absolutely no offense to anyone of you in particular, but i think we've gone a bit astray in our love for Gaslight when we are so fucking concerned about stupid crap like this.

I can see where you're coming from, and agree that Brian might be a bit weirded out if he were to read this, but I don't think any of us were out of line with what we were saying. We were just pointing out something we've been noticing, and other people happen to notice it too. We all understand that Brian is human, and I don't think anybody said otherwise or was disrespectful, or meant any harm.

I'm turning this thread very positive. Pow!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyaoiPZkN-A&feature=related

stepsandnumbers wrote:

steph wrote:

BREAKING NEWS: BRIAN FALLON IS A HUMAN BEING

ffs, i think i'm a pretty goddamn nice person, but i can't imagine having to be what people expect you to be all the time. and personally, i think if i were Brian, i would find it strange to have a whole thread discussing this point. people, get over it. you really think he's so obsessed with what people in school treated him like? i'm sorry, this is absolutely no offense to anyone of you in particular, but i think we've gone a bit astray in our love for Gaslight when we are so fucking concerned about stupid crap like this.

I can see where you're coming from, and agree that Brian might be a bit weirded out if he were to read this, but I don't think any of us were out of line with what we were saying. We were just pointing out something we've been noticing, and other people happen to notice it too. We all understand that Brian is human, and I don't think anybody said otherwise or was disrespectful, or meant any harm.

Yeah all anyone is saying really (fundamentally) is we've notice that he does his interviews in a different spirit, than he used to, lately. And i think the videos Johnnyc posted really contrast the difference between now and then.

Just commenting on that we noticed a change, and perferred the old spirit, nothing more nothing less

I HATE YOU ALL. YOU'RE ALL WRONG.

NeverTrustAJunkie wrote:

Since Brian has clarified some of the things he said in that interview and what his motivation was, I don't think you can necessarily say he was lying. He was just being what I like to call "Sassy."

Quote :

he better hope that people relate to his experiences because that's one of the reasons he bought a house off his music career

He just said that he tried to write from a girl's standpoint so not all of his songs are directly pulled from his own life. So...?

Quote :

whatever I'm feeling, I'm putting on that page

so...?

with American Slang Brian told the media that it was the first time he'd really used his own words to tell personal stories. with the Horrible Crowes he told the media that Elsie was inspired by a time when he broke up with his girlfriend and he "lost his mind" and "literally went insane." this time he's saying that he's writing about whatever he's feeling.

your point is taken about Here Comes My Man. but in the interview he states that he had his own experiences regarding "not connecting" that, together with Marry the Night, inspired the song.

so either his songs are inspired by his own experiences or he just tells the media that so people find a deeper connection with his band. if it's the former, i don't see why he wouldn't want his fans to relate to him.


i saw in another thread that you're going to the show tonight. have fun; i have a feeling it's gonna be something special.

I agree with you guys that he has assumed a slightly different attitde in some recent interviews but i think its a very reasonable reaction taking into account that he is now in the spotlight and is constantly being bombarded with all sorts of information. Whats missing here guys, is that I think you guys are maybe not looking at the big picture, he's done some pretty cool stuff lately as well. He did the JADED PUNK HULK interview, which was great, he's been communicating actively through tumblr (and with a good sense of humour), the set in the stone pony and the kindness in the nme session. I think he's just realising how fucked up the media is and being in the middle of everything should be a bit hectic.

Anyways I understand your point of view but I think it is just a phase and his "bad attitude" has been only directed to some of the media.

I'm just gonna quote Andy Richter from today's Howard Stern interview:

"If you look for people to disappoint you, you won't be disappointed."

I wasn't looking to be disappointed by Brian, nor was I disappointed by him.

I haven't posted here for quite a while. Anyway, there was just not enough time to track all the Gaslight Anthem stuff happening. Maybe I also got a little bit tired of their songs, because I listened too much to the American Slang tracks...but that's really off topic.

The recent discussion over here really catched my attention. Possibly I've got to blame myself for reading not enough Gaslight interviews. But I think I never read an interview with Brian, in which he was that much affronting and direct. Accordingly my first impression was pretty much the same as jerseyrain's.

Just speculating now, but for me that interview and especially the sentences about people relating him or being pissed off the fact he believes in Creation (I'm from Germany and over the years I met a lot of Gslight fans..I really heard nobody being as much pissed about that as Brian mentions), seemed to me like his way to say: "This is me. Maybe I'm not the person you (-->some fans, the press) want me to be, but I don't care about that (anymore)." I mean maybe Brian just doesn't want his character to be shaped by his public appearance. Then it could be possible that he wants to show the people some more personal side of him.

That would also fit to the the things Brian announced about the new record--> more aggressive, more personal, not to sound like others would like (..the Oh my god, Bruce Springsteen will buy this record thing.) but finding your own style

I hope you understand what I mean, it is difficult to explain that in English...Some of that may be even similar to the things some of you mentioned before.

thomas94 wrote:

I haven't posted here for quite a while. Anyway, there was just not enough time to track all the Gaslight Anthem stuff happening. Maybe I also got a little bit tired of their songs, because I listened too much to the American Slang tracks...but that's really off topic.

The recent discussion over here really catched my attention. Possibly I've got to blame myself for reading not enough Gaslight interviews. But I think I never read an interview with Brian, in which he was that much affronting and direct. Accordingly my first impression was pretty much the same as jerseyrain's.

Just speculating now, but for me that interview and especially the sentences about people relating him or being pissed off the fact he believes in Creation (I'm from Germany and over the years I met a lot of Gslight fans..I really heard nobody being as much pissed about that as Brian mentions), seemed to me like his way to say: "This is me. Maybe I'm not the person you (-->some fans, the press) want me to be, but I don't care about that (anymore)." I mean maybe Brian just doesn't want his character to be shaped by his public appearance. Then it could be possible that he wants to show the people some more personal side of him.

That would also fit to the the things Brian announced about the new record--> more aggressive, more personal, not to sound like others would like (..the Oh my god, Bruce Springsteen will buy this record thing.) but finding your own style

I hope you understand what I mean, it is difficult to explain that in English...Some of that may be even similar to the things some of you mentioned before.

your english is way better than i could ever be at a second language. bravo!

Regarding the Red Bull interview, am I the only one who saw all of Brian's "offensive" and "aggressive" comments as humor? He seemed to be being facetious in every single thing he said.

In this interview, Brian does come off as a bit cynical, but I think that's just because this is type and not actual voice. I can only assume he did his goofy looking half-smiles and laughed after all of his digs at everyone and their mothers being engineers and the like.

Maybe it's just a lost in translation thing. Maybe only people from Jersey understand that Brian is a jokester and most, if not all, of his digs are facetious.

Oh, and one last edit, I wanted to say, this:

Quote :

I just gotta write what I'm feeling. Cause what if this record blows up? And I had written a bunch of songs that I didn't really mean, but I thought sounded cool, and then I'm stuck singing them for rest of my life? And I definitely don't want to do that. And if I'm lucky enough that this blows up, I want it to be because I did something that was me, and I didn't want to sell anybody anything that I wasn't going to like.

Is probably one of my favorite quotes by any musician ever.

MattL wrote:

Regarding the Red Bull interview, am I the only one who saw all of Brian's "offensive" and "aggressive" comments as humor? He seemed to be being facetious in every single thing he said.

In this interview, Brian does come off as a bit cynical, but I think that's just because this is type and not actual voice. I can only assume he did his goofy looking half-smiles and laughed after all of his digs at everyone and their mothers being engineers and the like.

Maybe it's just a lost in translation thing. Maybe only people from Jersey understand that Brian is a jokester and most, if not all, of his digs are facetious.

Oh, and one last edit, I wanted to say, this:

Quote :

I just gotta write what I'm feeling. Cause what if this record blows up? And I had written a bunch of songs that I didn't really mean, but I thought sounded cool, and then I'm stuck singing them for rest of my life? And I definitely don't want to do that. And if I'm lucky enough that this blows up, I want it to be because I did something that was me, and I didn't want to sell anybody anything that I wasn't going to like.

Is probably one of my favorite quotes by any musician ever.

No. I took the Red Bull thing as Brian being a bit "sassy" as I said before.

I saw Harry Belafonte in concert once and he said his Mom told him to never write/record a song he didn't like because if he didn't like it, he'd be stuck singing it the rest of his life if it became a hit. Good attitude, cus then you're never doing anything you're not proud of and 100% behind.

MattL wrote:

Regarding the Red Bull interview, am I the only one who saw all of Brian's "offensive" and "aggressive" comments as humor? He seemed to be being facetious in every single thing he said.

In this interview, Brian does come off as a bit cynical, but I think that's just because this is type and not actual voice. I can only assume he did his goofy looking half-smiles and laughed after all of his digs at everyone and their mothers being engineers and the like.

Maybe it's just a lost in translation thing. Maybe only people from Jersey understand that Brian is a jokester and most, if not all, of his digs are facetious.

Oh, and one last edit, I wanted to say, this:

Quote :

I just gotta write what I'm feeling. Cause what if this record blows up? And I had written a bunch of songs that I didn't really mean, but I thought sounded cool, and then I'm stuck singing them for rest of my life? And I definitely don't want to do that. And if I'm lucky enough that this blows up, I want it to be because I did something that was me, and I didn't want to sell anybody anything that I wasn't going to like.

Is probably one of my favorite quotes by any musician ever.

agreed, agreed, agreed