The Gaslight Anthem, the New Jersey band who wrote a lot of beautifully bruised punk anthems, announced an indefinite hiatus way back in 2015. They’ve gotten back together a few times, but those reunions were temporary, like the 2018 tour to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their classic album The ’59 Sound. Last year, however, the Gaslight Anthem told the world that they were once again a full-time band and that they were at work on a new album. Today, they’ve released their first new song since the 2014 album Get Hurt.

The Gaslight Anthem’s new song is called “Positive Charge,” and the band recorded it with the National collaborator Peter Katis. I am delighted to report that it sounds like a Gaslight Anthem song. This band always sounded ragged and world-weary even when its members were babies. They sound a little more grizzled now, and that sound works for them. “Positive Charge” is about wanting to live a little longer and love this life again, and it’s got the grand Springsteenian scope that makes the Gaslight Anthem so special.

In a press release, frontman Brian Fallon says, “‘Positive Charge’ began as a message of joy to ourselves and to our audience. The central theme is about looking at the things you’ve come through and feeling like you want to go ahead with an open heart toward the future, believing that the best years are not behind any of us and the good we have is worth something.”

Along with the new song, the Gaslight Anthem have announced a round of tour dates. They’ll headline shows with openers like Oso Oso and Emily Wolfe, and they’ll open for the reunited Misfits in a New Jersey arena. But I’d like to draw special attention to one show. In July, the Gaslight Anthem will play the second edition of Over The James, the Richmond punk festival put together by reunited hometown heroes Avail. At that show, the Gaslight Anthem will share the bill with Avail, Snapcase, Strike Anywhere, City Of Caterpillar, and Dragonship. For washed punks like your correspondent here, that will be a fucking holiday. I’ll see you in the pit.

Below, check out “Positive Charge” and the Gaslight Anthem’s tour dates.

TOUR DATES:
5/01 – Houston, TX @ House of Blues *%
5/02 – San Antonio, TX @ Aztec Theater *%
5/03 – Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom *%
5/06 – Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Music Festival
5/06 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
5/07 – Charleston, SC @ Charleston Music Hall *
5/09 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution *%
5/10 – St Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live *%
5/12 – Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz *%
5/14 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium *%
5/16 – Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte *%
5/17 – Baltimore, MD – Rams Head Live *%
5/19 – Atlantic City, NJ @ Sound Waves at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino *%
5/20 – Buffalo, NY @ Buffalo Outer Harbor Site *
5/21 – Wallingford, CT @ The Dome at Toyota Presents Oakdale *%
5/23 – Portland, ME @ The State Theatre *
5/25 – Bethlehem, PA @ The Wind Creek Event Center *
5/26 – Huntington, NY @ The Paramount *
5/27 – LaFayette, NY @ Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards *
7/08 – Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center #
7/29 – Richmond, VA @ Brown’s Island ^
8/13 – Washington, PA @ Four Chord Music Fest
9/15 – Louisville, KY @ Bourbon & Beyond
9/16 – Grand Rapids, MI @ GLC Live at 20 Monroe
9/19 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
9/20 – Indianapolis, IN @ Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
9/22 – Columbus, OH @ The Bluestone
9/23 – Chesterfield, MO @ The Factory
9/24 – Madison, WI @ The Sylvee
9/26 – Oklahoma City, OK @ The Criterion
9/27 – Wichita, KS @ The Cotillion
9/29 – Sioux Falls, SD @ The District
9/30 – La Vista, NE @ The Astro – Indoor Theater
10/02 – Denver, CO @ The Fillmore Auditorium
10/04 – Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl
10/05 – Wheatland, CA @ Hard Rock Live
10/07 – Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory Concert House
10/08 – Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory Spokane

* with Oso Oso
^ with Emily Wolfe
# with the Original Misfits & Fear
^ with Avail, Snapcase, Strike Anywhere, City Of Caterpillar, & Dragonship