By Erik Casarez
Nostalgia is a hell of a drug. In today’s fast-paced world, more and more cultural artifacts enter the threshold of nostalgia every day. What used to be a term reserved for youthful memories by adults has transcended to an SEO buzzword to capitalize on things so quickly forgotten. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; as a society we have the most access we’ve ever had in the history of the world, so it’s very easy to get caught up in a vibe and forget about things you were once so recently obsessed with. Ironically, it becomes even more apparent when you go to see a band that once monopolized your music listening time and realize your favorite album of theirs was released 16 years ago. This is what it was like seeing The Gaslight Anthem in 2024 in all the best ways.
The Gaslight Anthem is a band that thrives on nostalgia. Their 2008 album The ‘59 Sound packs in a plethora of blue collar imagery and songwriting amidst melodies that are reminiscent of early 80s-era Springsteen tunes – they are from New Jersey after all. At the same time, this album feels synonymous with their Warped Tour-era peers. While nobody would confuse The Gaslight Anthem with any of the other boys of summer, they embody the spirit of a Black Flag sticker on a Carhartt hat. This is what makes the lineup for their current tour stop at Stubb’s on August 9 so perfect.
The Dirty Nil opened up the show with a roaring arena rock sound played with endearing intensity. This band has spent the better part of the last decade releasing a rock and roll sound that embraces elements of glam, punk, and 90s alternative into a smorgasbord of high fidelity. Some songs feel like Superchunk meets Kiss, other songs feel like Bowie meets Metallica, but their live show consistently adheres to what a rock and roll show should look like. They embellish the Pixies’ quiet-loud-quiet-loud ideology into a loud-louder-loud-louder wall of sound that jumpstarts the energy of a crowd trickling into the 7pm start time on a Friday night.
Next up, Joyce Manor kept the party going with a take on pop punk ethos that finds itself sandwiched between the skate-inspired pop punk era of the 90s and the sadboi emo-adjacent mall pop punk of the late aughts. The band pumped through several of their songs in an hour or so set – many of which are pushing a two-and-a-half-minute maximum. While their songs don’t typically have gang vocals, if this was your first time hearing them, you wouldn’t know because the entire set was a singalong from the crowd. At one point, the band brought up a fan who held up a sign asking to play a particular song. She didn’t miss a beat and neither did the band. The synergy between Joyce Manor and the crowd echoes the relationship you feel when you see your favorite band play a basement show. To be able to recreate that experience in a mid-size venue like Stubb’s is not an easy task.
Without further ado, The Gaslight Anthem took the stage as lightning lit up the sky. It’s interesting to watch a band that makes you nostalgic while singing songs about being nostalgic for a time before the time that you are feeling nostalgic. I don’t know if that’s meta, ironic, or layered nostalgic inception, but I like it. For a lot of people, The Gaslight Anthem represents this type of cultural purgatory where the past influences feel omnipresent. They of course, weren’t alone. In an era defined by bands like The Hold Steady, Iron Chic, and even Japandroids, there was this nostalgic romanticism that just permeated the sound. While all three bands that plate this night are very spread out on the spectrum of rock and roll, they share this sense of emotional depth that remind you why you love music to begin with. It’s kind of hard to not feel romantic about music when you’re watching these three bands play live.
Just as The Gaslight Anthem finished their 5th song of the night – the goosebump inducing “Miles Davis & the Cool” off of The ‘59 Sound – Stubb’s was evacuated due to the lightning. After waiting for nearly 15-20 minutes, I decided to leave as sporadic drops of rain came down. I understand later that they did go back on about half an hour later and while there is a sense of FOMO, I left with the satisfaction of remembering why I still go to shows. Leaving with that satisfaction in this current fast-paced world is pretty special.