“It has to start with love—love that goes into work comes out of work,” says Train frontman Pat Monahan. “We love this song, this album, and our fans.” Picking up long after where Train left off with A Girl, a Bottle, a Boat in 2017, the band’s upcoming 11th album, AM Gold, out May 20, is a throwback to the AM 1960s and ‘70s radio rock and new influences and concentrated on self-love.
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“The whole album is a throwback,” said Monahan. “When we were making the album, my manager said ‘hey man, you’re making an AM gold album,’ and I was like, ‘well, that sounds really fun, but we don’t have a song called ‘AM Gold” yet, so why don’t I write that.”
On “AM Gold,” Monahan is still exploring Train’s musical peripherals. The slinky, disco dancer captures the core of loving oneself above all else in the chorus, Breathe, baby, you ain’t gotta worry no more / Just breathe, we’ll be waiting on the dance floor / And let your body let it go / You’re best case scenario / Love don’t come in stereo / Baby, you are AM gold.
The last song written for the album, captured the more retro fields of AM Gold, crossing over into R & B, Motown, and disco. “The gold is more of the disco portion,” says Monahan. “That’s the idea of ‘Am Gold.’ It’s just a self-love song. That seems pretty necessary right now. It also has to do with if he leaves you or she leaves you. If they leave you, just get on the dance floor, because you got all the people that you need and who love you there.”
“AM Gold,” also explores the disenchantment of real-life predicated by constant broadcasts on social platforms. “Social media has made life crazy, in some ways,” says Monahan. “The fact that children are more interested in getting likes on video, just means that there’s a lot of insecurity and these kids really need to take a minute and understand that you can’t be loved until you figure out what’s lovable about you.” Monahan adds, “And the song is that to me. If you don’t love you, then how do you expect me to? It’s a good time to hear somebody talk about that.”
Writing along with drummer Matt Musty and keyboardist Jerry Becker, AM Gold started coming together naturally, said Monahan, from music—new and old—that was inspiring him at the time. “I love hip hop, and I can’t get away with writing hip hop songs,” said Monahan. “But this one was more of a visit to the past instead of the future.”
Recorded in 2021, AM Gold was written within the last two years and comes more than 20 years after the band’s debut Drops of Jupiter. “Writing songs is hard, not compared to so many things I suppose, but it’s difficult to create something that you love and then other people love as well,” says Monahan. “Writing songs for two and a half years in front of video screens instead of being in the presence of other humans has been a long, strange trip. And now here we are.”
Alongside the new music, Train is ready to hit the road this summer, featuring Jewel and Blues Traveler on select dates. The 35-stop tour kicks off June 8 in Mansfield, Massachusetts, and closes big on Aug. 6 at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado. Monahan said that the year of the Tiger has been prophetic for a big year ahead. “It has begun in a strong, beautiful, and encouraging way,” said Monahan, “and it’s only the beginning.”
Photo: Brooke Clarke
