The War On Drugs Australian Tour has been announced, and following on from being announced as part of the Falls Festival and Southbound lineup, the Philadelphia rock outfit have announced headline sideshows.
One of the main surprise packets from the 2012 instalment of the Harvest Festival was without doubt the debut Australian appearances by The War On Drugs. Their textured, expansive take on classic rock’n’roll blew away existing fans and newcomers alike during their highoctane festival slots, and demand for their more intimate sideshows was intense with their Melbourne appearance selling out completely.
This time around Australian music lovers are prepared for their arrival, which is just as well because The War On Drugs have just unveiled details of two Melbourne and Sydney sideshows in conjunction with their already-announced appearances at the impending Falls and Southbound Festivals!
The War On Drugs began way back in 2005 as a partnership between frontman and creative lynchpin Adam Granduciel and current indie rock darling Kurt Vile, who was a key component of the band until their 2008 debut album Wagonwheel Blues, after which he left to actively pursue his already burgeoning solo career.
The pair are still close and contribute to each other’s recordings – Vile still played on The War On Drugs’ second long-player Slave Ambient (2011), while Granduciel was involved in recordings for Vile’s 2011 effort Smoke Ring For My Halo and was a long-time member of Vile’s backing band The Violators.
Granduciel’s idiosyncratic and somewhat obsessive recordings style as The War On Drugs – a painstaking approach involving manipulating ideas in the studio to approach them from every possible angle, playing with textures and arrangements to find that otherwise imperceptible spark – gives a unique and atmospheric twist to an otherwise classic rock sound: Dylan, Springsteen and Petty are the usual touchstones, although Granduciel himself remarked prior to his previous Aussie visit, “I really dig that classic stuff, although I listen to Neil Young more than the other people that they mention”. Fine pedigree indeed.
Excitingly, The War On Drugs have been bunkered down working on their eagerly-awaited third album, and there’s a good chance that some of this new material will be aired on their impending Australian visit.
They’ve already proved that they can smash it in the live realm and from all accounts Granduciel’s current line-up has really gelled as a unit since last time they were here, so whether you’re a fan of The War On Drugs already or just a keen acolyte of classic-sounding rock’n’roll, do yourself a favour and check out The War On Drugs in their onstage element at their impending sideshows.
The War On Drugs Australian Tour
Tickets on sale now from www.handsometours.com
Saturday 28th December – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne
Monday 6th January – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney
The War On Drugs also appear at Falls and Southbound festivals.
Falls Festival 2013 Dates
Marion Bay, TAS: December 29, 2013 – January 01, 2014 (All Ages)
Byron Bay, NSW: December 31, 2013 – January 03, 2014 (18+)
Lorne, VIC: December 28, 2013 – January 01, 2014 (18+)
Ticket available at http://fallsfestival.com.au/
Southbound 2014
January 3 & 4, 2014
Sir Stewart Bovell Park, Busselton WA
http://www.southboundfestival.com.au/tickets
