Then? Broken up, indefinite hiatus, disbanded. Now? Reunited to celebrate the 10th anniversary of The ’59 Sound.
The Gaslight Anthem has planned an extremely limited tour supporting The ’59 Sound, the album released 10 years ago that put this New Jersey band on the map.
DC is fortunate enough to have two of the 14 or so shows that the band will be playing through the summer. These shows are the first that the band has played since announcing their indefinite hiatus at the end of summer 2015.
Between 2007 and 2014, The Gaslight Anthem released five albums, each one with it’s own unique sound befitting the evolution of the band. Their first, Sink or Swim, captured their early punk sound more than any other album, and held the kernels of what would become the defining Gaslight Anthem sound: carefully crafted lyrics, infectious rock melodies that would play non-stop in your ears, and the easy ability to swing between to-the-rafters sing-alongs and quiet, disarmingly bittersweet ballads.
This sound, this musical identity, was captured in near-perfect fashion on The ’59 Sound. The album also brought them into the spotlight without sacrificing any of the musical convictions that carried them there. From smaller venues to festival stages, to getting Springsteen on stage to sing along with the band, this album made a huge mark. They would continue on with three other albums (American Slang, Handwritten, and Get Hurt) before eventually calling it quits in 2015.
Opportunities to see bands with this energy and catalog don’t come around often. It may not be easy to get tickets, but you would be foolish not to try.
Both nights are sold out, but you can try your luck on StubHub.
Doors open at 6:30pm at the 9:30 Club. Matt Mays, Tim Barry are the opening acts.
A DC Journey 