Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	80/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
Absolutepunk	(93%)
The A.V. Club	A−
Allmusic
Slant Magazine
MusicOMH
Pitchfork Media	(7.3/10)
Sputnikmusic
NME
Drowned in Sound
Rock Sound
Rolling Stone
Spin Magazine
PopMatters

American Slang is the third studio album by New Jersey–based rock group The Gaslight Anthem. It was released on June 15, 2010 on SideOneDummy Records, which released their previous album, The '59 Sound. The album was produced by 'The '59 Sound producer Ted Hutt.

Fallon stated in an NYC in-studio session, "All these songs came to me in my head. I didn't sit down at the guitar or piano or write lyrics, they all just were kind of there one day." Lead singer songwriter Brian Fallon said that American Slang will move away from the 1950s inspired sound of The '59 Sound. He began writing for the new album in the summer of 2009 while on tour in support of The '59 Sound. "American Slang is just what we do. That's who we are," Fallon says. "You’re presented with this American Dream and all these American possibilities—and then there's the reality of what actually happens with your life." In response to the obvious influences Tom Waits, The Clash, The Supremes and most notably Bruce Springsteen have had on their previous records, he went on to add "This [record] is really the one where we said, ‘All right, well, we’ve got our influences. They’ll speak naturally, but what do we have to say on our own? What does it feel like to put on our own shoes and clothes? What do we sound like, and what's our story?’"

The album was released on June 15, 2010 on SideOneDummy Records. It is the band's second release for the label. The album opened at No. 16 on the Billboard 200, making it the band's highest charting album at the time. It sold over 26,000 copies in its first week of release. It also debuted at No. 18 and No. 12 on the U.K. and Canadian charts, respectively. The band released the first single from the album, "American Slang", on their Facebook page on March 23, 2010, along with a full track list and cover art.

Uncut magazine (July 2010 issue) gave American Slang a 5 star rating and declared it its 'album of the month'. "American Slang delivers spectacularly on all expected fronts. Everything that was great about The '59 Sound is here, but the sound is even bigger, epic without getting blustery." Rock Sound magazine gave the album a 9/10 and also declared it its 'album of the month'.

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