New Jersey quintet The Gaslight Anthem’s fifth album finds them flirting with shimmering acoustic melodies alongside the chugging, visceral sound they’re known for. From the opening strains of ‘Stay Vicious’, a stonking three minutes that veers between a Matt Berninger-esque baritone and squealing guitar riffs, Get Hurt immediately pulls the listener in.
Hints of Americana pepper the record. Lead singer Brian Fallon has tried to get away from the Bruce Springsteen comparisons that have followed The Gaslight Anthem down the years. And yet the comparisons are inevitable – for instance, ‘Stray Paper’ is the beating heart of Springsteen mashed together with the punk rock sensibilities of the band’s earlier work.
Title-track ‘Get Hurt’ shows them at their best. Leaning on drip-drop drums and sparse guitars, it’s an emotive excursion that bubbles over into cries of “I came to get hurt /Might as well do your worst to me.” It’s a melancholic swell that breathes in the air of dead dreams and grey city streets. It’s hopelessness manifest, but not as we know it.
From the jaunty ‘Red Violins’ to the reflective ‘Underneath The Ground’, Get Hurt is perhaps more stripped back than you’d expect. There’s still a collection of riff-heavy tracks (‘Rollin’ And Tumblin’’ and ‘Ain’t That a Shame’ are particular delights) to please earlier fans. The Gaslight Anthem: always worth turning on...
OUT AUG 19