Gaslight Anthem - History Books

In some ways, it seems strange to think that it’s almost a decade since The Gaslight Anthem last released an album, but as soon as the scorched guitars of ‘Spider Bites’ kick in, it feels as if they’ve picked right back up from where they left off. After 2014’s ‘Get Hurt’ saw the band take a gamble by moving away from the brand of soul-infused punk that they’d made their name on, with ‘History Books’, the New Jersey quartet seem to have been pulled back towards their rock’n’roll heartland. A tangle of reflection and coming to terms with their current place in the world - both as people and a band - here they lean into their strengths, as perhaps best shown on the record’s triumphant title track and long-awaited collaboration with Bruce Springsteen himself. Elsewhere, ‘Little Fires’ is a rousing, charged offering that channels their more fierce side, while closer ‘A Lifetime Of Preludes’ captures the similar poignant spirit to that of ‘Handwritten’’s ‘National Anthem’. ’History Books’ is an album that personifies The Gaslight Anthem’s magic all over again.