Interview with Benny Horowitz, Drummer, The Gaslight Anthem

By: Amy Nichole Harris

I sat down on the bus with Benny Horowitz the drummer of the band, The Gaslight Anthem, when they rolled through Cincinnati and the tour stopped at Bogarts in September.

The Gaslight Anthem is a band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, the land of Bruce Springsteen. Their name comes from a NYC club where Bob Dylan played in the sixties and their sound is all Garden State.

The band members include: Brian Fallon – vocals/guitar, Alex Levine – bass, Benny Horowitz -drums and Alex Rosamilia – guitar

In their hit songs like the 59’ Sound and Great Expectations, you can hear a Clash-like vibe with a hint of Springsteen and their New Jersey roots.

I talked to Benny about being from New Jersey and asked if he missed home since they had been touring non-stop for the past few years. Benny spoke about just becoming an uncle and missing his family while on the road, but he does love to tour and being on the road doing what they love.

He also spoke a bit about missing diners and New Jersey food, including the famous pizza slice. For those of you reading, he just re-located to Jersey City and is looking for the perfect pizza slice.

I asked Benny about the writing process with the band since they will be going back into the studio in January to record their next album. He said the band really has a standard process after being together for so long. Bryan usually introduces a hook or theme and the band members write all their individual parts. They all have individual styles that influence them and Benny seems to have the most hard-core favorites among the group.

We can all look forward to what will come next after the early 2010 recording sessions. Check out the band and sample their tunes on their website:

http://www.myspace.com/thegaslightanthem

We finished the interview with a lightning round of questions with some unexpected answers.

Lightning Round:

Amy: Favorite Drink

Benny: Sweet Tea

Amy: Favorite Fashion Trend

Benny: Non-fashion

Amy Note: But he did comment on my metal star studded Jimmy Choo’s, so there is some fashionista sense deep down inside waiting to escape I’m sure.

Amy: Simpsons or Family Guy:

Benny: Simpsons

Amy: Morning or Evening

Benny: Morning

Amy: Jessica Simpson or Jessica Alba

Benny: Alba

Amy: Kanye or Diddy:

Benny: Neither

Amy: Rock of Love or The Bachelorette

Benny: Neither, I hate reality TV

Amy: Dream Girl to Star in Video

Benny: My Girlfriend

Amy: Dream Video Girl that you don’t know…

Benny: Scarlett Johansson

After the interview, some of the band members posed for some candid portraits before the show. The band was fun to be around and I enjoyed their set as I photographed the live show at Bogarts. During the show I used flashed to light the dark Bogarts stage.