The Gaslight Anthem Band • Page 12

I've never been a fan of the lyrics, I think it's musically overwrought (the backing vocals especially), and I think Brian's delivery borders on histrionic. I also think it hurts the flow of Get Hurt by coming too early in the tracklist. IMO, that's a side two song sitting at track 4. It's just a bit too much too early, especially coming after the title track, which is already pretty heavy.

 

Probably the only Gaslight song I never enjoyed was We Did It When We Were Young.

I'm confident this is an unpopular opinion.

 

Get Hurt is one of those albums where I change my stance on every song every time I listen to it. Stray Paper was probably one of my top three when the album came out, now it probably sits in the bottom half. I'm sure that will change again next time I listen to it, haha.

 

Stray Paper is one of the most important tracks on Get Hurt.

 

We Did it When We Were Young is like Jesus Brought Us Together. Brilliant but too slow. I love slower songs but there's too much emotion there to just leave. Especially to close out an album. You should leave people wanting more, not expecting more.

 

Because double posting isn't enough:

Desire, Red Violins, Ain't That a Shame, Keepsake, Too Much Blood, Angry Johnny, Red in the Morning. Only Gaslight songs I don't really like.

 

Gaslight songs I really don't enjoy: Red In The Morning, Too Much Blood, Stay Vicious, Stray Paper, Break Your Heart, Sweet Morphine. Looking back on it I like Get Hurt more than I thought I did. Definitely the least cohesive sounding Gaslight album, but it has some really great songs. I think it just suffers from not living up to the expectations set by fans after the amazing three album run of Handwritten, American Slang and 59' Sound.

 

As someone who cherishes Handwritten and holds it right next to the 59' Sound, it was near impossible for Get Hurt to live up to expectations. I also felt the initial album hype was sort of, odd? The band kept making odd statements how this album was "weird." It got me nervous. The teaser clip of Stay Vicious did not comfort me. Then the album cover drops. Atrocious.

It was a rough few weeks telling myself this would suck, but once Rollin' and Tumblin' all faith was restored. I still enjoy most the album years later. I just need to be in the right mood to listen to it. I do have some fond memories attached to listening to it, as I do for every Gaslight album. This band does something to me only blink-182 could do.

 

For as much flack as Desire gets, that "I can only let you down" line is awesome. The acoustic version that came out for the fan club was pretty great, as well.

 

The only song I don't love from the 59 Sound - American Slang - Handwritten trio is "Too Much Blood," and even that has grown on me over the years.

 

I didn't count Bsides. If I did then yeah, fuck Anywhere I Lay My Head. Sweet Morphine, hot take, should've been the closer to Get Hurt. Have Mercy should've been the opener. Fight me irl.

 

Man, @CarpetElf is spewing some of the worst Gaslight opinions I've ever seen!

I'm not all that fond of Get Hurt to begin with, but I would dislike it a whole lot more if "Sweet Morphine" was the closer. "Dark Places" being the closer is the best thing about that record.

Of the b-sides to that album, "Have Mercy" is the only one that is any good.

 

Have Mercy and Sweet Morphine feel like a prologue and epilogue to me. Like an opening and closing credits. Sweet Morphine is great as the first Bside. But there's no way to put a Bside at the start of an album haha

 

Have Mercy is such a strong track. When the female vocals shine with Brian's voice, my god. The song always leave me wanting more. I feel like there is a such a build with each "all your pretty horses..." and I always want there to be one more where he REALLY gets into it.

 

I've always felt like it should build more. I think if it did, it would have been a really cool opener for Get Hurt. As is, I like it, but I get why they left it off.

 

Whoa, hold up. Mama's Boys is a jam, even if there's no way in hell it has a place on Get Hurt, and Halloween is probably a top ten Gaslight song. Have Mercy should have opened the album, I agree with @CarpetElf, but Sweet Morphine is just fine where it is. I dig it, but it wouldn't make or break the album for me.

 

No one ever really talks about some of the other cool songs from Get Hurt like Break Your Heart, Underneath the Ground, Selected Poems and Halloween to name a few. I do agree the track sequencing on the album isn't perfect, but Get Hurt and Rollin and Tumblin are both singles that get stuck in your head, and there is so much variety on the album. Stay Viscious and Have Mercy, Sweet Morphine and Stray Paper. I just think the variety makes the album stronger and stand out more.

Also, I really enjoy the Too Much Blood riff, and the guitar solo kinda stuff.

We Did It When We Were Young, does feel like a precursor to The Horrible Crowes as mentioned.

Angry Johnny is just cool. It shifts gears and both parts are interesting.

 

On the live version they did from their Reading set he goes into singing Chelsea Hotel #2 after the buildup, which was really cool and sounded awesome. They opened the set with it then went right into Handwritten. Perfect start

 

That's how I play Have Mercy and that's how I prefer to think of it.

 

Too Much Blood their only bad song. It's lyrics are way too cringe-worthy and the music does nothing for me.

 

If it were shortened by a minute or two I'd dig it much more.

 

maybe. But the length just makes it worse. Its still a bunch of reductive self-serving lyrics and boring musically. I like singers being honest in their songs. But singing about the problem of being too honest its just... yeah I don't like that

 

"Too Much Blood" also just brings Handwritten to a screeching halt. Five straight barn-burners and then bam, that song happens.

 

They worked with a grunge producer and wanted a riff driven grunge song. I like it. There is value in the idea that Mulholland Drive, Keepsake and Too Mich Blood are too similar of speed to be in s sequence of 3.

 

I had a friend who was obsessed with too much blood for some reason, played it all the time. Drove me crazy. I agree coming after Mulholland and Keepsake was a bad move considering the tempos but I don't think there's necessarily a better spot for it on the record.