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The Gaslight Anthem w/ Frank Turner show review and interview
| Message Board > Show Reviews > The Gaslight Anthem w/ Frank Turner show review and interview |
| WestCoastWeasel User Info... |  I moved down, into the crowd, a first of the evening. Though I saw The Gaslight Anthem this summer at Lollapalooza, this would be my first proper witness of their headlining set. Benny catapulted into "High Lonesome" with a machine gun snare intro. The boys looked and sounded great, as expected. Playing both their single "59' Sound" and "Even Cowgirls Get The Blues", another fan favorite, early on were both equally surprising. While constant hometown idol, Bruce Springsteen comparisons are made; name-dropping Tom Petty on every chorus in "Cowgirls" gave listeners a solid impression of where else some of this soul came from. While I seem to recall a few more cuts from 2007's "Sink or Swim" during their slightly shorter stint earlier this summer, hearing "We Came To Dance" is always a classic treat. Brian Fallon, like many others before him chose to address the crowd as Canada, reminding us how we have them beat at hockey, as if the 900 person sold out crowd represents the entire nation. This could have been redeemed if the joke that followed had been anything but stale. While I feel that he's one of the greatest songwriters of our time, perhaps he should stick to the songs, rather than fan interaction. It was redeemed though by a solid performance of "The Patient Ferris Wheel", a tune that always paints a picture of a rainy day, even on a mild September night. You can always tell a die hard Gaslight fan by his choice of a white t-shirt, blue jeans and signing every lyric and nuance as if it was second nature. Perhaps mine, semi concealed by my blue jean jacket, or the #59 NJ varsity jacket I had just purchased separated me from the few nearby. This was the first time I'd never seen at least one of the band members donning a plain white tee in a video or live performance. It was clear they were still with us when they played "Blue Jeans and White T-Shirts", a third of the evening from their 'Senor and The Queen EP." Fashion conformity seems a little more acceptable when it requires a $5 shirt, and stands as an ode to the working class of the 1950's. Brian explained that there aren't many venues that he 'can't wait to return to', but he ranks The Commodore Ballroom as being one of the best in the world. I couldn't agree more. Sound wise, the only notable problem of the evening was during the opening of "Old White Lincoln", but thankfully was very brief. "Great Expectations" had great crowd reaction and when he sang 'I learned about the blues from this kitten I knew', I felt compelled to ask him to join the club, but I could tell from his voice he already had. The somber tone continued as the heart wrenching "Here's Looking At You Kid" started. A song played live, never seems to capture his emotion heard on the recorded version. It was unclear why he laughed in the last line of the song, when personally, the guitar's minor cadence and those painful lyrics are always enough to make this weasel weep. - Weasel Was Here FRANK TURNER INTERVIEW: As I arrived to the Gaslight Anthem show w/ Frank Turner, The Loved Ones and Murder By Death on 09/24/09, in Vancouver, B.C., I noticed a familiar face behind the merchandise table. It was Frank Turner, the folk rock, Xtra Mile/Epitaph recording artist, selling what was left of his merchandise that made it across the border. He agreed to do an interview later on in the evening. I couldn't help but feel like "the enemy" from Almost Famous as I fumbled around with pages from a notepad (digital from here on in...), jotting down our discussion. Frank was a great sport and I'm very honoured that he is the first of many to be interviewed for our Informant Inquisition series. Weasel: Poetry of The Deed is your third release, correct? Frank: Yes Weasel: What new things can fans expect with this release? Frank: The main difference is that it was recorded with a live band, where previous releases I pretty much recorded everything alone. Because of how great they (the band) are, I felt I should use the resources available to me. I wrote the songs the same way, but were recorded differently. Weasel: Now that you have a distribution deal with Epitaph records, are you getting the push you feel the album deserves? Frank: Ha! I don’t like to use the word “deserve” as it can be presumptuous. Epitaph is a great label and they “get me” and what I’m doing. It’s been a positive experience, so yeah, I’m happy about it. Weasel: I’m surprised that with the resurgence of vinyl, that Poetry of The Deed wasn’t pressed in such a format… Frank: It will be. It’s being pressed at the moment. Personally, I wasn’t ever a big vinyl guy but all releases are being produced. I recently approved vinyl artwork via email, so it’s getting done. Weasel: Can you tell me more about your previous efforts, in other bands, and are releases available? Frank: I played in a whole ton of hardcore bands, that were mostly awful. My last band, “Million Dead”, that I have tattooed on my arm (Frank shows me his “Million Dead” tattoo on his left arm) put out two albums that I’m proud of so you can probably get them. It’s a part of my life that’s in the past, and something I don’t really want to spend too much time talking about. Weasel: Who are your main influences not that you play folk rock? Frank: Springsteen’s a really big one. Have you ever heard of a band called “The Levellers?” Weasel: No, I haven’t. Frank: They were huge in the 90’s, in the UK but I guess they may not have broke into North America. Somewhere between Springsteen and The Levellers is where you’ll find me. Weasel: I saw your interview/performance at CNN.com (shown below). How did that come about? Can you describe the experience? Frank: Peter, the CNN music guy’s really into it, a fan. He asked and I wasn’t going to say no. It’s kinda weird because it was recorded in a room a quarter of the size of this. Performing with one or two other people in the room, so not too exciting but it gets out to a lot of people. Weasel: Well thank you very much for your time Frank. Frank: No problem - Weasel Was Here http://www.westcoastweasel.com - Tue, 6 Oct 2009 6:20pm Edited: Wed, 7 Oct 2009 10:56am | ||
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