Gaslight taking a hiatus

I don't know how many of you have already heard but Gaslight is taking a break after this year I believe for 1-2 years. For the the full story (in German) go to this link:

https://www.kreiszeitung.de/events/hurricane-festival-2015-ere317251/brian-fallon-saenger-gaslight-anthem-interview-ueber-springsteen-gunner-records-5149399.html

If any of our German speakers here would be willing to take a crack at a solid translation, that would be greatly appreciated. Internet translators leave something to be desired.

I am bilingual so I can translate this interview later tonight.

I'd just caution that the interview in itself was obviously not conducted in German so what Brian may have said in English may not necessarily be what I am reading here in German.

Generally nothing bad and probably expected. A break of one to two years depending how strongly they feel about new material. The interview says that they felt coming out with a new record each year, selling merch and touring was asking for too much from fans and fans should get a chance to go out and see other bands. That sounds a little odd but just translating what I am reading. Overall it goes with the hints about solo acoustic shows I'd say.

Brian thinks seeing them all the time is too much for us?

Thanks! Yeah that sounds about like what I got from google translate. I'm mostly wondering specific wording because I feel like there's a difference between like if he said:

"yeah we're gonna take a break, maybe see what else we can do in our own lives and come back in a few years and see if we have anything else to say"

and like, "yeah we're gonna take like a 1-2 year break so we can do a couple other things, then we'll come back and make a record that sounds more like the 59 sound or something gritty"

Not that he said either, but example A would make me think the band may not come back together, and example B makes me think this is just them deciding to give it a slightly bigger breather than usual. But you're right, obviously it's already been translated once. I wish they'd release the english version as well.

Rose1991 wrote:

Brian thinks seeing them all the time is too much for us?

^hahaha my feelings exactly. Also I'm a little taken aback that he doesn't think we all go see other bands as well? I feel like something got slightly miss translated there.

Below is my stab at the translation - as I said before I had to rely on the German translation of an interview in English so it's really a double translation and other things may have been said that did not make it in the interview. So I wouldn't read to much into any of this.
On a personal note I may say, though, if we don't get to enjoy any shows next year, can we have a DVD from one of the sets from this year please! We promise we are not going to spend any money on it, I am sure Santa's helpers will take care of it    

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(Translation) By Pascal Faltermann – When I meet up with Brian Fallon for this interview, barely 15 minutes have passed since he finished his set at the Hurricane festival. He looks relaxed. We talk about changes in the world of music, himself and his band.

Q: You used the label Gunner Records in Bremen to record “Sink or Swim” in 2007 and then again for the “Señor and the Queen” EP in 2008. How did this come about?
Brian: It happened through a friend of a friend. We met Gunnar Christiansen through Against me! and Gunnar helped us with our first shows in Germany. He set up our first European tour.

Q: Back in 2007 and 2008 you played in front of crowds of not more than 100 people at what used to be Club Nook in Bremen. Then, in 2009, you played an afternoon set at the Hurricane Festival. And this year you are one of the headliners on the Main Stage. What do you think contributed to this rise in popularity?
Brian: I don’t know. A few things, a lot of things really. We put out albums, went on tour and came over to Europe year after year. As a band it’s been taking one step and then the next step. Fans tell their friends about us and so on, and it’s just grown organically from there. It’s a steady and consistent path that all bands should take. Play shows. Play a lot of shows. It’s not been an overnight thing, it’s been step by step.

Q: A lot must have changed for the band during these years. How have you changed as a person?
Brian: Everything. Pretty much everything. I have learnt a lot growing older. In your mid-twenties you realize that you don’t know everything but you believe you know enough. When you get to 35 you realize that you really didn’t know anything then.

Q: As a musician, have you established some sort of routine over the years?
Brian: I wouldn’t say it’s a routine. We go on tour, come home and record a new album, then head out again to tour behind the new record for two years. What may make it look a little bit like routine is that we keep doing it. What we really enjoy the most is going out to do shows and play live. We try to do that as much and as well as possible. It’s not really that different now from the early days. We try to enjoy it all and not become lazy or complacent.

Q: I have been told that you wrote more than 30 songs for “Get Hurt” but only 12 songs made it on the record. What happened to the other songs?
Brian: Yes, there were quite a lot of songs. I threw them away, they were terrible.

Q: Did you really throw them away?
Brian: I don’t think we had more than 30. Probably more like 25. Out of those there were quite a few we never finished. A few of the songs may make it on the next record.

Q: When do you expect the next record to come out?
Brian: It won’t be next year. We are going to take a break. We don’t want to keep asking our fans to spend money to see us because we keep touring. They shouldn’t be spending money for the same thing all over again. That’s why we are taking a break. How many shirts of the same band can one person own? How many shows of the same band can one see? Let other bands get their turn. We are pretty much punishing people if we put something out every year that they feel they need to buy. Give me your money, come see my show … I think that’s too much.

Q: How long of a break are you planning to take?
Brian: I think one or two years. We will give ourselves some time until we have a good concept for a new record and we all believe in it.

Q:When people talk about your musical influences, Bruce Springsteen and Hot Water Music are always immediately mentioned. What other music do you like?
Brian: I like a lot of bands. I like U2 from the Joshua Tree period. The Clash are fantastic. But most of all I like the type of rock Springsteen personifies. I see myself at home in this genre of rock and I look at him how to sustain a long-lasting career. He is the best. No disrespect to U2 but Bruce has found a way to keep people passionate about all his music for such a long time. With U2 a lot of people will like their music during certain periods but with Springsteen it’s really all his music.

Q: You have been streaming shows online and you use Twitter and Tumblr. Where do you see the importance of social media channels for bands?
Brian: I consider them very important. It helps people understand the artist. I use social media to communicate with fans, to find out how they liked our set and which songs they are hoping to hear.

Q: You have performed on stage with bands like the Foo Fighters, Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam. Who is left on your wish list?
Brian: I’d like to play with U2. Bob Dylan would be extremely cool. Or Elvis Costello. But Tom Petty would be really awesome. He is the best.  

Q: Now back to the songs that didn’t make it on the record – how about releasing them with Gunner Records?
Brian (laughing): We are still under contract with a major label. But let’s see what comes after that.

I think this situation calls for a DSS in-depth Q&A!

Honestly though, if Brian thinks taking a break is good for OUR sake, with all due respect, it's a little misguided. I mean if he wants to take a break for himself then that's his choice, but if he thinks we look at going to shows and buying merch as some kind of financial obligation, he's being absolutely silly. We love going to shows, and I for one would much rather spend $80 at a Gaslight show than say, a shopping trip or a night at the bar. I mean if that is indeed what he's saying (and maybe it's not) I can understand where he's coming from, but I don't think that it's a reflection of reality. How many times can we pay for "the same thing"? As many or as few as we want to. He's not twisting our arm to go to shows by any stretch of the imagination, nor do I believe he's taking away from other acts we might see instead.

Like I said, if he needs a breather, who am I to tell him no, but if he thinks we need one, please... don't be ridiculous.

As disappointing as this is from a selfish perspective, they deserve a break. I guess this July will be the last time I see them for a long time.

I see nothing wrong with that. They just said they'll took a small rest from all of this to come out clean and fresh and make a new record later when it's the right time and the right idea. That's the way to do things.

Disappointing in that I was ready for a new album in 2016. I'm greedy!

Glad I got to see them at PNC last September. Hopefully one of Brian's side projects can fill the gap between now and the next Gaslight.

Solo? Molly and The Zombies?? Dare I dream The Horrible Crowes??!!?

Not too shocked by this. Obviously we're splitting hairs with terminology, but a hiatus with bands generally makes me think of a long stretch of time off. This seems more like, we've been going non stop for a while, now we're just going to take a little time before putting out another record, rather than immediately starting the cycle over again. I'll be sad to not catch them live in 2016, but in 8 years we've gotten 5 full albums, and an EP. They've been an extremely prolific band, and I can live without a new album until 2017. Hopefully they'll come back from the time off as strong as ever!

They've literally been on a pace of touring for a year and a half, recording a new record in a couple of months, and then doing it again, going back to 2008. That's a long time to tour that heavily. On the current pace, they'd be heading back into the studio this winter to record the next record, and maybe they just felt like they don't have anything interesting to say right now. They tried some different things with Get Hurt and have mostly abandoned the songs that didn't sound like classic Gaslight, so I can understand the hestitation to rush back in.

Also, Brian's said a number of things about his future in the past and then changed his mind - so we'll see.

My thoughts. I think that after the 2014 part of the tour was over the band was'nt all that excited about the Get Hurt album. When they started touring in 2015 they pretty much abandoned most of the album including singles Rollin and Tumblin and Get Hurt. It seems as if they have just played what they felt like. Promotion for the Get Hurt album has stoped. Now we have this interview about the band taking a break. First everyone don't overeact the band is'nt breaking up or going on a long hiatus. What this means is there not gonna make a record tour for a year and a half take five months off and do it all again.
The band clearley needs a break. I think Get Hurt did'nt work out for them. It looks like there ready to move on.Who even knows what record company they will be this for the next record? What I take from this based from the hints Brian has given us. There will be a Brian Fallon solo tour and I'd assume a record. So Gaslight takes a little break and Brian does his thing for a little After that the band can't figure out what type of album they want to make next.

Argh, another lost post. Something about the server timing out.

Anyway, what was I saying? Oh yeah: When we met the guys back in March, my brother asked Alex (R) if they were starting the next album soon, and I don't remember what he said word for word, but it was definitely to the effect of, "Oh man, that is way too big of an undertaking this year. We need some time." Which is understandable, considering that they just came off Get Hurt, but I was hoping for some more shows in the meantime. But if they need a break they need a break. We'll see how it all plays out.

First off Thanks for the translation! That actually cleared up a couple confusing translations from google.

I think the words “break” and “hiatus” sound scary because of the way in which many bands have used them in the past but I think they’re genuinely taking a break in the sense of an actual break. Sort of like how people use “break” for a relationship, which is really just a precursor to breaking up vs taking a break from work by taking a week off. In the latter scenario, you have every intention of going back to what you’re breaking from. But who knows!

Honestly I’m not really upset about this. For one, they seem to be under the impression right now that Handwritten is one of their better records and that Get Hurt is terrible (which I think is crazy) and I hope maybe with some distance and time, they’ll have a better perspective and they’ll go into the studio with a better idea of what their stronger or weaker songs/albums are. (okay this may be a pipe dream) Not to say my opinion is “correct” I just think at the very least they seem to dislike some pretty great songs/albums of theirs.
And for two, I think Brian might finally make the solo record he keeps talking about making. He’ll have the time at the very least.

I'm actually pretty excited about this (assuming this means more solo/side project stuff for Brian).  I don't want to go as far as saying the rest of the band is holding him back, but since Elsie came out, I would say that his side projects(Horrible Crowes, MATZ) have been better than the majority of Gaslight material, in my opinion.  A change of pace in terms of writing partners/band mates could inspire him to write some incredible new music. Elsie is certainly a preliminary indication of his ability to create without the rest of the band.  I'm just hoping there is more like that to follow.

I think what Brian meant it that they maybe need a "break" from touring and album recording...so that doesnt mean sth bad...because a lot of bands take a break after touring... (e.g.The Killers, they are doing a break and Brandon Flowers has released a solo album and as far as I can remember they said that they will always do a break after an album and tour)

This is fine by me, if only because I would be shocked if we don't get a solo album or something from Brian within that 2 year period.

bt211 wrote:

Below is my stab at the translation - as I said before I had to rely on the German translation of an interview in English so it's really a double translation and other things may have been said that did not make it in the interview. So I wouldn't read to much into any of this.  

Q: Now back to the songs that didn’t make it on the record – how about releasing them with Gunner Records?
Brian (laughing): We are still under contract with a major label. But let’s see what comes after that.

Brian's answer to the last question, at least as translated into German and then back again, is actually: "No, we still have a contract for one album with a major label. But we'll see what happens after that."

"Ein Album" is either "an album" or "one album", but the context suggest the latter.

["Nein, wir haben noch einen Vertrag für ein Album bei einem Major Label. Aber mal sehen, was danach kommt."]

We have had a fairly steady pattern of an album one year, followed by a tour taking them through the following year, and then another album. I think we've been quite lucky in that.

I am not surprised that they want a breather, and I for one am happy to wait for what comes next.

It's not as if the last album took them to such a new level, that they have to keep the mega-momentum going.

Not sure what this means for the fan club though.

It's a contract and it could still be a "Greatest" Hits or something silly like that to end it up fast.

On a side note, it seems like the plans are changing as the boat is navigating. Before Get Hurt, Brian was supposed to make a solo record that was aborted, Gaslight was supposed to make a record in the vein of the Horrible Crowes, while they were meant to put an end to the band and none of that happened. Last time I've read an interview they said "the band will never be the same after Get Hurt", and they are putting more punk-rockish gigs lately than they ever did... So I've been quite giggling when I've read in this topic that the next record will be more straight forward or more T59S-like. Brian and the guys will write what they have to write accordingly to their mood and will, and it's pretty damn fine with me.
"Subject to change without notice", that's what they should have written in the end.

steady now steady now wrote:

It's not as if the last album took them to such a new level, that they have to keep the mega-momentum going.

But should it have though? I don't know. I feel like they've done a decent job over the years of making each new album sound distinctly different from the last, but still sound like them. Maybe they could push themselves even further but I'd rather see them continue that evolution, then make some huge leap into something totally different.

StitchesOnTheRadio wrote:

steady now steady now wrote:

It's not as if the last album took them to such a new level, that they have to keep the mega-momentum going.

But should it have though? I don't know. I feel like they've done a decent job over the years of making each new album sound distinctly different from the last, but still sound like them. Maybe they could push themselves even further but I'd rather see them continue that evolution, then make some huge leap into something totally different.

I agree. All I meant was that there is probably no pressure from the label to simply churn out the next thing.

steady now steady now wrote:

StitchesOnTheRadio wrote:

steady now steady now wrote:

It's not as if the last album took them to such a new level, that they have to keep the mega-momentum going.

But should it have though? I don't know. I feel like they've done a decent job over the years of making each new album sound distinctly different from the last, but still sound like them. Maybe they could push themselves even further but I'd rather see them continue that evolution, then make some huge leap into something totally different.

I agree. All I meant was that there is probably no pressure from the label to simply churn out the next thing.

Ohhh okay, I definitely read that wrong. I see what you're saying.

I think we should maybe wait until the band themselves will give an official statement about that...because I think its kinda weird that the only information about a break is made in a German interview so maybe Brian or someone esle from the band will give one day a statement about that and than we will know more about it...