Back Alley Gospel Bid A Punk Farewell To The One That Got Away In “Old Flames”
Everybody remembers their first love. It just takes a streetwise punk outfit like Ontario’s Back Alley Gospel to see it for the exercise in futility it was.
That kind of clear-eyed reflection abounds on the band’s new single, “Old Flames,” which flashes back to the rosy period in a relationship when you can’t get enough of each other, the smiles come easy and everything is going right. You know, before it all gets shot to hell.
We used to hold hands in the heart of the city
And if I went down, you were right there with me
But you had bigger plans, wanted better things
And it took its toll on everything
This old flame was bound to burn out one of these days
“No matter how badly things ended, we all remember our old flame,” the band says. “The person we’d do anything for, who was there for you thick and thin, the spark that lit a fire inside of you. But we all grow up, grow older and our priorities change.”
The song, they explain, is meant to tell “the nostalgic story of reminiscing about that first special someone, from the records that you listened to in your formative years to the trouble you’d get into together. You both knew it would end one day, and while that inevitability doesn’t make the memory less bittersweet, you’ll always have a place for it in your heart.”
That’s the glass half-full version. Lyrics that acknowledge “The secrecy and shame/
At the mention of your name/ Makes me feel like shit” point to something a little less centered. And thank God. Because it’s the dichotomy between sadder-but-wiser introspection and good old-fashioned bitterness that makes the track kick so hard. On the one hand, the relentlessly major-keyed melody line and chord pattern that vocalist/guitarist Trent White lays down are pure hand-holding pop-punk; on the other hand, there’s no mistaking the fury in the rhythm being slammed out by drummer Matt Bellissimo and bassist Jen Benton as they connect with the vehemence of the Pistols in their prime. Extra excitement comes from Jose Batista’s guitar leads, which revel in an almost rockabilly twang before exploding in a flurry of shred.
“Old Flames” is the first track to drop from the band’s upcoming four-song EP, their first release since their 2023 debut, Hold Up Your Head. They say the new record will follow the lead of the current single by being an unsparing exploration of defeat and its aftermath—a concept record about the realization that “failure is sometimes inescapable, but necessary for us to grow, change and become better people.”
It’s a philosophy near and dear to the heart of this self-effacing people’s band, who admit freely that they only came to exist after a string of doomed projects in their native Toronto and Hamilton. Proudly presenting themselves as “no strangers to failure,” they know it’s their previous flameouts that have allowed them to properly hone their brand of anthemic, hook-driven punk.
But if their past was defined by falling down, their present is a study in standing tall. “Old Flames” recently made its triumphant live debut when the band played Kensington’s Supermarket as part of the NXNE Music Festival.
Hi Back Alley Gospel! Care to introduce yourself to the readers?
We’re Back Alley Gospel, a four-piece rock band based out of Toronto and Hamilton. We’ve been a band for about a year and a half and just released our new single “Old Flames”, which will also appear on our upcoming second EP.
‘Old Flames’ seems to blend nostalgia with a sense of bitterness. Can you tell us more about the inspiration behind the song?
No matter how badly things end, we all remember that one person we’d do anything for, who was there for you thick and thin, the spark that lit a fire inside of you. But we all grow up, grow older, and our priorities change. “Old Flames” is a story that reminisces about those times, from the records that you both listened to in your formative years to the trouble you’d get into together. You both knew it would end one day and while that inevitability doesn’t make the memory less bitter, you’ll always have a place for it in your heart somewhere.
The band has described itself as ‘no strangers to failure.’ How has this mindset influenced your songwriting and overall approach to making music?
Individually, we’ve all been involved in projects that fizzled out over the years, and when bands end, it’s kind of automatically accompanied by an inherent sense of defeat, regardless of the circumstance. Forming a new band in your 30’s seems daunting at the outset, but it actually has more benefits than some might think.
A lot of people believe that the music industry is primarily a young person’s game, but there’s an experience that comes with age; learning from your decisions and your mistakes, and growing from them. A great deal of our songwriting stems from these experiences, and we want to reach people who have had the same sort of turning point in their lives, where you have this realization that maybe the best is yet to come.
Could you walk us through the creative process behind ‘Old Flames’? How did the song evolve from its initial concept to the final version?
This song actually changed very little from its inception. The basic skeleton was there when (vocalist) Trent brought it to rehearsals, and it was the first song we wrote with our new guitarist, Jose. We wanted a more guitar-heavy sound this time around, which is why we have a neat little riff that we used to transition between verses and pre-choruses. Trent also wrote an absolutely killer guitar solo that really ties everything together.
What can listeners expect from the rest of your upcoming EP, especially in terms of themes and musical style?
We were listening to a lot of “twangy” rock when making this record; Tom Petty and The Gaslight Anthem were two guiding stars in particular, so guitar ended up being a big focus alongside some of our natural punk-y sensibilities. We also had the privilege of recording through some incredible vintage amps, so the guitar tones on this record are something we’re very proud of. The songs sound big, and the choruses stick with you.
Thematically, this EP tackles the cycles of relationships. Each song kind of feels like its own distinct “season” in a way, whether it’s the cold feeling of hearing a song that reminds you of someone you’d rather not remember, or the fiery explosion that gets set off inside at the start of something new. It’s not a full-out concept record by any means, but there is a rhyme and reason for the song order.