The War on Drugs - Live Drugs Again

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The War on Drugs released their first album, Wagonwheel Blues in 2008 and the band went on to win over many fans with the release of their third studio album Lost in the Dream in 2014. Since then, the Philadelphia-based band has been going strong and on September 13, they released their second live album, Live Drugs Again.

I became a fan of The War on Drugs after my first listen to “Red Eyes” and then the entire Lost in the Dream album. I’ll always remember reading an interview with the band’s leader and main man, Adam Granduciel, about his time making the album. He was experiencing extreme anxiety and panic attacks and in an interview with Pitchfork, referring to “Red Eyes”, he said, “I realized I really wanted to make something that was great, something that makes other people happy. I went to bed that night in the studio, thinking, ‘Oh man, I hope I don’t die before this record comes out, because I want people to hear that song.’”

A Deeper Understanding was released in 2017, and has another one of my favorites – “Strangest Thing”.

I hadn’t listened to the band for a while and the first time I heard their 2022 album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore, was while I was working. I played the full album in the background and didn’t think much of it for whatever reason; but the next time I heard it, it immediately got me. That album is one of my favorites now.

Live Drugs Again is the band’s second live album and was made by splicing together several live recordings captured while they were on tour from February 2022 through December 2023. Granduciel, noted in a statement that the album “chronicles the evolution of these songs from the studio to stages all over the world; documenting our continued growth as a live band.” He added, “This series ensures that these versions, and some of our favorite moments on stage, will live on.”

The opening song is “Harmonia’s Dream” from I Don’t Live Here Anymore and it builds energy while the live crowd is heard clapping along to a tremolo effect on the instruments that open the tune. The song develops into a full blend of the band’s signature acoustic and synthesized sounds. The War on Drugs have the ability to tastefully add 80’s synths and sounds to their mix, similar to their buddy Kurt Vile (Tame Impala, Timber Timbre etc.).

Granduciel’s voice is far more raw on the live recordings and his inner Bob Dylan is prominent. His notes hang and then drop. He’s a big fan of Dylan and Springsteen. “Burning” is the second song on the album and after about 45 seconds you can hear the Springsteen influence.

“I Don’t Wanna Wait” comes up a little later with a Phil Collins-type drum beat and the keyboard outlines the melody as the band often does with acoustic pianos, shimmering synths or glockenspiels. The album closes with “I Don’t Live Here Anymore”, which is the title track of their most recent studio album.

If you’re a fan of The War on Drugs, I recommend giving Live Drugs Again a listen – especially if you haven’t caught them live yet. The album provides a new perspective of Granduciel and his band-mates. If you’re new to the band and looking for a good starting point, I’d suggest Lost in the Dream.