• The War on Drugs – A Deeper Understanding

    Sun Kil Moon miserabilist Mark Kazolek famously dismissed the The War on Drugs “beer commercial lead guitar shit” shortly after the release of 2014’s instant-classic third LP Lost In The Dream. Despite being desperately unfair to the Philadelphia outfit – effectively a vehicle for frontman Adam Granduciel since the departures of founding members Kurt Vile and Steve Gunn – it does tap into the band’s own internal paradox: their music is undoubtedly rooted in the stadium-filling giants of 80s rock, from Granduciel’s Dylanesque purrs and Mark Knopfler-style lead guitar, while ambient flourishes recall U2’s Eno lead pre-Joshua Tree experimentalism. The…