Call it dad rock. Call it a mix of Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen. Call it beard and flannel with puffer vest rock. Whatever you want to label the drony fuzzy guitar noodling by Adam Granduciel and crew, I don’t subscribe to Mark Kozelek’s state of mind (even if it was in jest) about the Secretly Canadian band. From the moment of soundcheck to the beginning of the show, Granduciel displayed his perfectionism for the crowd to see from the guitar tuning, to mic check. The guitar pedals onstage set the bar high with a clear indicator that the delivery of goods was going to exceed expectations. Despite the tame setlist, crowd favorites like “Under the Pressure” and “Red Eyes” didn’t showed up to the roar of the massively bearded and heavily flanneled crowd. Granduciel’s focus couldn’t be broken, even when there was a fight that broke out down in the front. I doubt he even noticed because of his closed eyes during the intense delivery. Can we just get Kurt Vile and the War on Drugs agree to tour together so that they can back each other up for their respective sets? Openers, the Barr Brothers, despite their granola and jammy inclinations, showed up to play and wowed non believers with clever their trusted steel guitar and stand up bass.
the War on Drugs – Come to the City [mp3]
the War on Drugs North American tour dates
10/13/14 Nashville, TN – Marathon Music Works w/ Peter Matthew Bauer (of the Walkmen) BUY TICKETS
10/15/14 Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel w/ Peter Matthew Bauer (of the Walkmen) BUY TICKETS
10/16/14 Atlanta, GA – The Tabernacle w/ Peter Matthew Bauer (of the Walkmen) BUY TICKETS
10/17/14 Saxapahaw, NC – Haw River Ballroom w/ Peter Matthew Bauer (of the Walkmen)