THE WAR ON DRUGS play CrawDaddy on Sunday. August 17th (1 Viewer)

miguel_myriad

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Bringing a dose of the West Coast to the hard streets of Philadelphia, The War on Drugs songs recall the '80s guitar army of Sonic Youth with the captivating lyrics and vocal stylings of Tom Petty or Bruce Springsteen.

‘Wagonwheel Blues’ was released this June on Secretly Canadian (Richard Swift, Jens Lekman, Anthony & The Johnsons) to widespread acclaim (see reviews below)

NPR stopped by the band's recent home town show at Wiggins Park, Philly and recorded the whole thing. Listen here: www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92608475

REVIEWS FOR WAGONWHEEL BLUES

"Top-down, pitch-perfect car-radio rock. Only Americans can make music like this: blue sky and widescreen, feel good - but with a sting."- Uncut, 4/5

"They fuse the traditional Americana of Springsteen and Dylan with the experimental drones and tics favoured by the Sonic Youths and My Bloody Valentines of the world. These may seem like strange bedfellows to some, but if an Animal Collective weaned on a steady diet of The Boss and The Band sounds appealing, then congratulations, because you just may have stumbled across your new favourite band." - Drowned in Sound, 8/10

"The War on Drugs make excellent road-trip music. As its title implies, the Philly quintet's debut, Wagonwheel Blues, is Americana reimagined as blacktop and yellow lines, rubber tires, and overpriced gasoline. The album urges you along the interstate, but never burdens you with the stigma of roots music or reached-for authenticity."
- Pitchfork, 7.8/10

"This wall of sound isn't impenetrable, because atop it sit the stadium-friendly Springsteenisms of frontman Adam Granduciel, whose wit and wordplay add a whole new depth to proceedings. Opener Arms Like Boulders sets out his stall with a cryptic critique of neo-con America, while on highlight Needle In Your Eye' he sounds incredibly like the amphetamine-addled Bob Dylan of '66 fronting The Jesus And Mary Chain." - NME, 7/10

"While singer/guitarist Adam Granduciel spins yarns from a road movie, he and guitarist Kurt Vile conjure a wall of Television and Sonic Youth-inspired guitar effects on the likes of Arms Like Boulders and the spectacular Taking The Farm."- Q, 3/5

"The heavily embellished arrangements of celestial
guitar barrage point to some twinkly cosmic West Coast soft rock, a fourth world USA state which exists in the minds of everyone who's seen it represented in films, music and art. A place that feels good, an oasis in dark, dark times."- Plan B

"This is Americana that swirls with psychedelic hues, particularly on the echoey, spacey There Is No Urgency and the multi-layered instrumental Coast Reprise. Arms Like Boulders sounds like a stoner's attempt at a mid-'70s Springsteen tune, singer Adam Granduciel's nasal whine battling with harmonica and head-nodding guitar lines."- Word

"Immediate, listenable and addictive. Obvious reference points include Springsteen and The Hold Steady, yet the dreamy waves of widescreen sound wouldn't have sounded out of place on the Apocalypse Now soundtrack." - The Fly, 4/5

POD Concerts presents

THE WAR ON DRUGS
Support: tba

Sunday August 17th

CrawDaddy – Harcourt St – Dublin 2.
Doors – 8pm

Tickets €14 (inc. booking fee) available from Ticketmaster, Road Records, City Discs, Sound Cellar and usual outlets. www.ticketmaster.ie


www.thewarondrugs.net www.myspace.com/thewarondrugs
www.secretlycanadian.com/artist.php?name=warondrugs


The War On Drugs push the boundaries of a quintessentially American music. Guitars soar and colorful clouds roll past whatever sun or moon you are cruising under, through whatever old bar you are reveling within. The War On Drugs point toward a tireless horizon in the distance that you will never reach but are compelled to chase. It's a tail you've chased your whole life and will continue chasing because your life is more poetic when you are moving toward it - your cinematography is more rich. Wagonwheel Blues is one of those albums that each of us holds onto tightly. They get moved from apartment to apartment through the years; they are songs on the radio that follow us from town to town. They evoke waves of nostalgia and grow more poignant with each new bump along the road.

In The War On Drugs we have a fresh face that already sounds like an old friend. Bringing a dose of the West Coast to the hard streets of Philadelphia, their songs recall the '80s guitar army of Sonic Youth with the captivating lyrics and vocal stylings of Tom Petty or Bruce Springsteen. Songwriter Adam Granduciel (vocals/guitar) leads the attack with his lyrical paintings of his own American landscape, along with the help of Kurt Vile (guitars), Dave Hartley (bass), Kyle Lloyd (drums), and Charlie Hall (drums). Walls of guitar - acoustic, electric, and twelve-string - douse each track of this debut album, threatening to cast the band into space rock territory, but the melodies and immediately identifiable lyrics soldier on to keep these songs from blasting into the esoteric beyond. With Wagonwheel Blues, Granduciel joins a distinct set of songwriters in a new golden era of polished-yet-subcultural underground music. The War On Drugs have that unmistakable singularity that comes along only so often, with the spirit of invention and playfulness lying earnestly at the forefront of their creative process.

 
Well if you like Kurt Vile, these aren't a million miles away - main man Adam Granduciel played with the Violaters and Vile played on TWOD albums. Their 3rd album, Slave Ambient is really great, and their new album is also really good. I'm sure they're all up on Youtube for a listen.
 
They have a couple of tracks on heavy rotation on the indie station we sometimes put on in work, Springsteen vocal stylings meets Krautrock motorik beat seems to cover it pretty well. I'm sure you'll really impress her if you use the word 'motorik'...
 
They have a couple of tracks on heavy rotation on the indie station we sometimes put on in work, Springsteen vocal stylings meets Krautrock motorik beat seems to cover it pretty well. I'm sure you'll really impress her if you use the word 'motorik'...

Stuff like this is why I can never leave Thumped.
 
they're the type of band that sound like they'd be good if you ever bothered devoting any time or effort to them, but then you never do.

I listened to their last album again today to see if it'd make any more of an impression on me. It didn't
 
they're the type of band that sound like they'd be good if you ever bothered devoting any time or effort to them, but then you never do.

I listened to their last album again today to see if it'd make any more of an impression on me. It didn't

You trying to ruin 7's chances of getting it on with this girl?
Get with it man!
 

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