Reading and Leeds festivals might be over, but that doesn’t stop us re-living it through iPlayer and YouTube. The Gaslight Anthem put in one of the strongest sets, and this is one of my favourites, the ‘59 Sound. Watch and enjoy.

Ahh, The Gaslight Anthem. 2008 was their big breakthrough, and now they’re just doing a victory lap, supporting Bruce Springsteen in Hyde Park this summer amongst other achievements. To celebrate, they’ve given NME a heart-breakingly gorgeous version of their song, “Great Expectations”. Download and enjoy below.

MP3: The Gaslight Anthem – Great Expectations (Acoustic) (via NME)

Easily the best song off the Gaslight Anthem’s 2008 album, “The ‘59 Sound“, the band have decided to release the eponymous single off of the album on June 15th.

Clearly coming straight from the heart, this was the song that got me into New Jersey’s hottest band, and the video that goes with it is, well, amazing – tells the story, and is definately open to a few interpretations!

The amount of emails we’ve been getting this past week has been quite something – so many new opportunities, great bands getting in touch, and some quite bizarre questions too (including one genius who asked if TGTF was a “music website”…. erm, last time we checked it was!)

First up, Daniel Merriweather (pictured top) has a new single out on February 2nd. Recognise the name? Yes, it’s him from “Stop Me”, Mark Ronson’s massive hit. He’s got a great voice, and he’s embarking on a solo career at the moment, starting with “Change”, the first single to be taken from his forthcoming “Love & War” album. I have a feeling I’m gonna have this stuck in my head, much like “Stop Me”. Watch the video below, and fall in love with him…

Some of you may have spotted that iTunes have announced a new flexible pricing scheme for their music, and (perhaps the biggest news story) have ditched the irritating copy protection from their songs (Guardian news story here). It seems to have been hailed by just about everyone, with Popjustice commenting “Does this DRM-free thing mean that people have now totally given up on the idea of revenue through music sales?” (Twitter). We7’s CEO Steve Purdham (who we first mentioned last week) hailed the news by commenting that “the spectrum of choice for music lovers is now greater than ever before and the stage is set for 2009 to really open the boundaries of digital music consumption”. Couldn’t have put it better myself.

Coming up on There Goes The Fear, we’re going to catch a preview screening next week of a new MTV show about Pete Doherty, and we’ll be bringing you a live review of the Kerrang! Relentless tour after the 20th when we catch the tour in Oxford. We may also be catching Keane in February, and possibly the Gaslight Anthem too. Yes, it’s all go.

As ever, if anyone wants to write for TGTF please don’t hesitate to contact us – tell us a bit about yourself, and we’ll take it from there.

When I saw The Gaslight Anthem were playing Shepherds Bush Empire for the NME Shockwaves tour next year, I was a bit puzzled. How could a band come under the radar and play a venue that big and expect to sell it out?

I’ve since done a bit of research and it seems that my musical radar seems to have plain and simply missed them out, which is a hell of a shame – they’re pretty darned amazing and full of energy it seems – its pop punk, but for adults. Mature, loud, and good. Just how music should be.

Their new single, “Old White Lincoln” is after the dates, and is sounding amazing – it’s out on Monday and available to preorder from Recordstore. If you like that, you might also want to get hold of a copy of their sophomore album, “The ‘59 Sound” available now.

Support on all dates comes from Frank Turner (who I have it on good authority from Winston that he is amazing) and The Polar Bear Club.

Tickets are on sale now for all shows, priced around the £10 to £14 mark each. Catch The Gaslight Anthem and friends at the below shows:

Monday 2nd February 2009 – Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms (Tickets)
Tuesday 3rd February 2009 – Birmingham Academy (Tickets)
Wednesday 4th February 2009 – Manchester Academy 2 (Tickets)
Thursday 5th February 2009 – Bristol Academy 2 (Tickets)
Friday 6th February 2009 – Brighton Concorde (Tickets)
Sunday 8th February 2009 – London Shepherds Bush Empire (NME Awards Show) (Tickets)
Monday 2nd March 2009 – Norwich @ Waterfront (Tickets)
Tuesday 3rd March 2009 – Nottingham @ Rock City (Tickets)
Wednesday 4th March 2009 – Dublin @ The Academy (Tickets)