Bandbox Unboxed Vol. 37 – The Gaslight Anthem
Prepare your turntable for heavy rotation spinners vinyl fans, ’cause Bandbox record club is out to bring the record store to your own front door.
Groove is in the Bandbox
That’s right music fans, Team Bandbox is offering a truly tailor made vinyl club experience every month by letting you fill your box with artists and albums that fit your own personal tastes. As their slogan goes, it’s pretty much like having the record store delivered to your front door every month. And Bandbox is currently boasting a record store style variety of artists with a treasure trove of exclusive pressings you really do not want to sleep on.
Having it your way really is the Bandbox mantra. Offering subscribers the choice of a single album from an artist you adore, and a fresh edition of Bandbox’s artist-specific fan zine showing up every single month, the B-Box service has effectively made it possible to do a little bin-diving from the comfort your very own home. And subscribers can now dig their vinyl+zine treasures for a super reasonable $29 a month.
Did I mention Bandbox even offers FREE SHIPPING for members? They do. And it’s the icing on the record club cake. What’s in this month’s box? A heavy dose of revival rock from The Gaslight Anthem.
You should know up front Bandbox’s format is designed to ease the nerves of folks wary of the record club scene. And yes, you can still choose to be surprised every month if surprises happen to be your bag. If you’re not feeling any of the album’s Bandbox is offering, you can also pump the brakes on your subscription at any time by simply pausing your sub. It’s unlikely you’ll want to pause anything once you’ve signed up and experienced Bandbox for yourself. Just know that your Bandbox experience will be every bit as amazing as you make it.
Let the Great World Spin
This month, team Bandbox is indeed featuring a slick new pressing of The Gaslight Sound’s 2008 classic The ’59 Sound. And they’ve packed it up with another page-turner of a zine all about the band and their breakthrough sophomore release. Here’s a quick look.
We’ll have a look at the wax shortly enough. For now, just know you cannot get this color variant anywhere but in the Bandbox store. As for the album’s cover, The ’59 Sound is a no-nonsense rock record, and the adorning artwork is suitably straight-forward as well.
It is a gatefold sleeve, btw. You’ll find another band photo, and full album credits inside.
You’ll also find a full lyric sheet in there for anyone who wants to sing along with the band.
And just in case you want to walk around pumping your fist with an era-appropriate iPod, there’s a digital download code too.
The ’59 Sound (2008)
I’ll go ahead and admit I wasn’t a particularly big fan of The Gaslight Anthem in their 2000s heyday. It’s not that I had anything against the band on a personal level, really. At the time, I kind of just found their music a little too easy, and easy was not something that interested me back then. On top of that, their sound was just a little too far on the wrong side of the emo spectrum for my tastes.
Still, I knew a few lads that were very into what Brian Fallon and his band of Springsteen-worshipping bandmates brought to the table. And on rare occasions, I even got caught up in it myself, pumping my fist along with the band’s boisterous, brazenly nostalgic rock & roll anthems.
That was particularly true when tracks from The ’59 Sound worked there way into the mix because, well, the album really is fit with wall-to-wall with fist-pumping bangers. I admittedly didn’t know that prior to getting my hands on Bandbox’s pressing of the album as I’d never actually listened to The ’59 Sound all the way through. And quite frankly, I don’t think I’d even listened to even a single The Gaslight Anthem song for more than a decade or so.
That being the case, I was able to spin The ’59 Sound without so much as a hint of nostalgia attached. And I’m happy to report, the album is waaaaay less emo-y than I remember. Sure, the low-key, sub-punk riffs are plentiful, and the unflinching earnestness arrives in waves throughout. So too does the absurdly easy to sing along with choruses. And even in spite of my general trepidation about revisiting those motifs, I gotta admit it all hit me pretty hard this go round.
Perhaps I’m just getting a little softer in my older age. Or maybe the album’s almost relentless callbacks to days of yore carry a different sort of weight at different stages in life. Whatever the case, all the talk of vintage cars, classic movies, old songs, and weekend hangs didn’t entirely grate on my nerves as they once had. At times, I even found them wholly endearing. Ditto for the Born to Run era Springsteen vibes that dominate literally every single second of The ’59 Sound.
Those comparisons have, of course, dogged The Gaslight Anthem pretty much since they started playing music. For their part, the band has never been shy about their undying admiration for the fellow Jersey forefather from another. In fact, they lean so fully into their Springsteen homages on The ’59 Sound, it’s almost admirable. And in doing so, they deliver a collection of breezy, no BS rock & roll songs every bit as affecting, and unabashedly fist-pumping as anything in The Boss’ vaunted back catalogue.
Just FYI, if you wanna read a full track by track breakdown by Mr. Brian Fallon himself, or just learn more about the making of The ’59 Sound, you’ll find all the info you need in Bandbox Zine #83.
As for that exclusive color variant, this tricolor twist effect is pretty damn slick.
And yes, it’s fit to dress up any turntable on the planet.
It’s the Bandbox You Want and the Bandbox You Need
The vinyl boom is here to stay, friends. And if you’re one of the many who’ve found themselves fervently swept up in the madness, you’re already aware there’s a million and one ways to get your hands on some sweet, sweet wax. While I’d always encourage you to shop first at your local record store, subscription vinyl clubs really are an excellent way to help fill in/round out your growing collection.
The great thing about Bandbox is that they ultimately leave the decision-making up to you. So if you’re looking to snag a copy of your fave band’s most popular album on snazzy, colored wax, you can totally do that. And if you’re hot to take a spin with something you’ve never heard before, well, options truly abound in the Bandbox vaults. Happy spinning, gang!
A thousand THANK Yous to the folks at Bandbox for sponsoring this subscription. If you like what you’ve seen here, you can head over to the Bandbox website and sign up to have a sexy new Bandbox delivered to your own front door every single month. While you’re there, feel free to check out their podcast and merch section too! And be sure to check back soon to see what goodies we find in our next Bandbox!