Uncut.co.uk - Submit Questions For Brian

"Next week, Gaslight Anthem singer Brian Fallon will be answering your questions in our An Audience With… feature.
And what we need from you are some questions to put to him! Here’s a man who’s shared a mic with the Boss, has the greatest collection of tattoos we’ve ever seen and who loves The Clash. And their last album, The 59 Sound, was one of our 2009 Albums Of The Year. What’s not to love?
So, what would you like to ask Brian?"

http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/the_gaslight_anthem/news/14079

hmm i can never think of any good questions to ask

what is he saying at the beginning of old white lincoln? ask him that

vamike wrote:

what is he saying at the beginning of old white lincoln? ask him that

Haha I like it! Doubt they'd ask that though.

Not surprising that their three "suggested questions" are all ones that have been answered in interviews prior.

I sent one in asking whether we'd be getting any Solo shows soon in the UK, considering it was a Brian only interview. Not that I'll be getting the magazine anyway.

I asked something along the lines of "Which bands would you be willing to open for on a tour?". I know there was rumors of them touring with Green Day last year -- not sure if they turned it down or they were just rumors. I also know the guys enjoy headlining/giving their fans a fair ticket deal, but at the same time a larger tour would get them more exposure.

Just rumours on that note I think, came about after some guy said he spoke to Brian who mentioned it...which was obviously bollocks.

I actually sent a mail today, just to do it, questions are as following:
When did you find out that music was the thing for you and would you tell us a little about your history with music?

What is your favorite song of all times?

Are you scared of not having the music come to you, I know there were a period in 2009 where you hit a writers block?

How many of the "stories" in your previous albums are stories regarding you? How many personal stories will we find in "American Slang?"

What is your least favorite Gaslight Anthem song? What would you do to improve it?

Will we ever see a re-release of your older stuff? A lot, if not all, of "The Coffeehouse Sessions" and Every little secret" is great stuff?

Or will you at least play "Let me tell you 'bout heartbreak" at Øya Festivalen in August (The only time this summer I will be able to see them)

How big is your CD/LP collection?

Gave Uncut full rights to rephrase thought as my English might not be the best

This issue (July 2010 ) is out now. It's a three page feature titled ' An Audience with ... The Gaslight Anthem'. Brian answers 11 questions from readers and 5 star questions, one from Alex R., though the picture is of Benny (duh).











And in case you thought of asking, I haven't got the time right now to OCR this.

Possibile Hi-Res scans?

Instead of cramming for my last exam of the year tomorro morning, I thought I'd write up what was asked/answered.
Uncut also have a full page review of AS and have it as album of the month. I'll try scan that at the weekend.


AS leaked on the internet nearly two months before it's official release. How do you feel? Steve Loddo, New York
I'm more upset about the person wwho did the leaking. If I came face to face with him, I'd be like, dude, that wasn't cool, what's your problem? I wouldn't punch him in the face. But at the end of the the day, like, whatever. The kids that have downloaded it, well, I'm kinda glad they want it. I'm still at that point in my career where I'm thrilled for someone to want my record. I'm still shocked people have heard of us. Maybe this is finally a career!

Did you really have a first wife? What's the story there? Chastity Anderson, Manchester
That's a common misconception. I wasn;t actually married before! I refer to an earlier wife in lyrics. That's because I had a very serious relationship when I was young. I thought I was going to be with this person forever. So, by describing her as my wife, I was trying to get a point across that it was deeper that a teenage fling. I'm taking artistic freedom. But, Jeez, people dig into that! They really look for some dirt there! I'm impressed by how obsessive they get.

Do you have any specific technique or rituals when it comes to writing? Graeme Shaw, via e-mail
That's a weird thing. I keep a little book with me, and write down any ideas when I see them. There's a song called 'The Queen of Lower Chelsea' on the new record. The germ for that was being in London, around last year's Hyde Park, and seeing this shirt that said "We hustle in London". I thought, oh man, that's cool. And maybe six months later it came out in the song. The songs kinda ocme in these divine inspirations, these lightning bolts. I tend to write on my own, then I come down and show the guys the basic structure of the song then they all add to it. I write all the time, htough. I just have tons of demos stacked up on my computer. GarageBand on Apple is great for recording ideas.

Do you take inspiration from the politics of your heroes like Woddy Guthrie or The Clash? Justine Ward, Glasgow
I don't understand much about organized politics. For me it's about personal stories, the politics of the heart. I'm more concerened with the state of a guy in his working situation. The Clash's 'Straight to Hell', about Chinese immigrants. It's political, but it's personal. It's about how hard it is for them to come over here. And they were just looking to make a new llife. Immigration is a strong topic for me. I feel for people coming to a new country and trying to fit in. I support them and I welcome them. It's kind of the foundation to our county and I don't think we should shut them out.

Who's your favourite tatoo artist? Jenni, Syracuse, NY
My favourite is this guy Petey at Fat Kat Tatoos in Keyport,New Jersey. He's got this real cool style about him. He did the lions on my hands. There's a cool black and white picturem someone snapped of me playing the guitar and you can just see my hand. What's the attraction of tatoos? It's an art form and a personal statement, a huge never-go-back commitment. Who's got the coolest tatoos in rock? Hmmm, Henry Rollins, he's got a unique style. And the guys form The Deftones, they're great. But it's gotta be Mike Ness from Social Distortion. He has really cool tatoos. He's a walking work of art.

What New Jersey food joint do you miss the most when you go on tour? Melvin F, Peurto Rico
There's this thing called a pork roll you can only get in Jersey. That's like the only thing I miss. It's like Canadian bacon. You usually eat it with salt, pepper and ketchup. but it's real bad for you. Don't eat it. It's very fatty. It's a heart attack in a sandwhich. Elvis would've loved it.

Could you please explain the transition of This Charming Man into The Gaslight Anthem? Daire Mac Kenna, Ireland
Well, This Charming Man were the band I was in. It dissolved. Half the band quit, they didn't want to do it anymore, and we had to restructure the whole thing. The the label we were on at the time suggested we change our name, to start this whole thing from scratch. The main thing was we were named after a Smiths song and we didn't want to be in the shadow of the Smiths. So we changed our name, rewrote a bunch of songs and slowly the line-up mutated and developed into a brand new band. Did we ever sound like The Smiths? As it happens, Alex Rosamilia is much more of a Smiths fan than any of TCM were!

What was the first gig you ever went to? Mazzi Zayed, London
Believe it or not it was Depeche Mode in NJ, in 1990 or '91. They were being supported by Primal Scream, and this was when Primal Scream were a Stonesy kind of rock band. I have to admit taht I had no idea how debauched that tour was backstage! But I loved it. In fact, two weeks ago I saw Dave Gahan walking down the street in Manhatten, and I was like oh my goodness. I didn't say a word to him, because I was so scared. He had this really beautiful lady with him. I heard he'd been real sick lately, but he looked great.

Was your mum really a folk singer? Chris, Aberdeen
Yeah. She was in a folk revival group in the late 60's called The Group Folk Singers. They formed in DC, but she lived in New York for a time, and they played all over the place. I grew up listening to folk stuff from that era. Bob Dylan and Judy Collins and Joan Baez - that was like cereal in the morning for us. I loved it right away. I always loe it. And I guess that got me into Neil Young and pretty much everything/ What does my mum do now? She works for a hospital, raising funds and secruing grants. My dad worked in the Nestlé factory in Freehold, NJ, and then worked in real estate.

There are a few references to Charles Dickens on T59S - What's your favourite Dickens novel? Chelsey Evans, Aberdeen
I had a high school English teacher who was the coolest person in the world and he got me into Dickens. I love A Christmas Carol because it's a tale of redemption. There's a horrible man, Ebeneezer Scrooge, amd he learns not to be that way thorugh love. And I like that kind of redemption story. I'm the only one in the band that's at all religious, I guess, and I love that story of being redeemed. You know, I was blind but now I see. I also love Great Expectations. They're all extraordinary pieces of literature.

What guitar do you play? Konrad, email
I play a Gibson Les Paul. They have this mythhical thing in terms of rhythm and blues music, and I like to convince myself that we're a rhythm and blues band and not just a rock band. I got that from Peter Greeen and Eric Clapton and those guys. That's what the 59 in The 59 Sound is all about. For vintage musical instrument aficionados and nerds like me, the year 1959 was the pinnacle of eras. It was the year Gibson made the Les Paul, and when Fender made the Bassman amplifier. Both are the pinnacle of perfection for us music nerds and both are still used on a ton of great records. I don;t have a lot of guitars, actually, just three electrics and two acoustics, which is pretty much what I take on the road. You should never have more guitars than you use!

Cool. Thanks.

id punch him in the face

Daire wrote:

Uncut also have a full page review of AS and have it as album of the month. I'll try scan that at the weekend.

Shame on me, for not looking through the rest of the issue and thus not spotting this .

Wow, album of the month and a 5* rating. And in Uncut magazine.

Extract: "American Slang is [...] an album of electrifying rapture, massive riffs, songs with verses that sound like choruses and choruses that sound, yes, like anthems, meant to be sung by multitudes. [...] American Slang delivers spectacularly on all expected fronts. Everything that was great about The '59 Sound is here, but the sound is even bigger, epic without getting blustery."

I've added the rating and a 'reception' section to the Wikipedia entry for American Slang, though I don't normally edit those pages, just ocassionally (does anyone on here?).

And thanks for transcribing the Q&A.

Here's that shirt.

Midnight Rambler wrote:

Here's that shirt.

as per my post in https://thegaslightanthem.forumotion.com/song-meanings-f2/the-queen-of-lower-chelsea-background-vocals-t1827.htm

steady now steady now wrote:

Midnight Rambler wrote:

Here's that shirt.

as per my post in https://thegaslightanthem.forumotion.com/song-meanings-f2/the-queen-of-lower-chelsea-background-vocals-t1827.htm

Damn you

Midnight Rambler wrote:

steady now steady now wrote:

Midnight Rambler wrote:

Here's that shirt.

as per my post in https://thegaslightanthem.forumotion.com/song-meanings-f2/the-queen-of-lower-chelsea-background-vocals-t1827.htm

Damn you

Daire wrote:

AS leaked on the internet nearly two months before it's official release. How do you feel? Steve Loddo, New York

Holy crap that's me! I need to Google myself more often... or, ya know, log in here more often...

The Tall Kid wrote:

Daire wrote:

AS leaked on the internet nearly two months before it's official release. How do you feel? Steve Loddo, New York

Holy crap that's me! I need to Google myself more often... or, ya know, log in here more often...

The really creepy thing is, I noticed that....

The Tall Kid wrote:

Daire wrote:

AS leaked on the internet nearly two months before it's official release. How do you feel? Steve Loddo, New York

Holy crap that's me! I need to Google myself more often... or, ya know, log in here more often...

At first I thought you meant that it was you who leaked AS, and it's like, "I wouldn't say that here. The admins are probably computer-savvy enough to really screw with you."

My bad.