Philadelphia, PA · heartland rock · indie

The War on Drugs

3 upcoming festivals ↓

Motorik heartland rock — Springsteen refracted through a synth haze, transcendent live, 'Under the Pressure' as the long exhale.

The War on Drugs formed in Philadelphia in 2005, after Adam Granduciel, who had moved there from Oakland, began writing and playing with Kurt Vile. Vile left after the group's debut album, Wagonwheel Blues, released in 2008 on Secretly Canadian, to concentrate on his solo work, leaving Granduciel as the band's sole constant, writing and producing every record since.

The touring line-up eventually settled around bassist David Hartley, keyboardist Robbie Bennett, drummer Charlie Hall, saxophonist Jon Natchez, guitarist Anthony LaMarca and multi-instrumentalist Eliza Hardy Jones. Several joined during the extensive touring behind Slave Ambient, the band's 2011 second album, which drew favorable reviews and expanded their audience beyond Philadelphia.

The sound draws on classic American rock, Dylan, Springsteen, Tom Petty, but runs it through repetitive krautrock rhythms, layers of synthesizer and heavily processed guitar, giving the songs a hazy, drifting quality.

Lost in the Dream, released in 2014 after a period of loneliness and depression for Granduciel, brought widespread critical acclaim and a considerably larger audience. Signing to Atlantic Records, the band followed it with A Deeper Understanding in 2017, which won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album; a fifth record, I Don't Live Here Anymore, appeared in 2021.

Live, the material tends to stretch out, with extended instrumental passages and long guitar figures built over steady, unhurried grooves.

Read more

heartland rockindie