The War On Drugs - Live Drugs

Live Drugs is the first live album by American indie rock band The War On Drugs, released in November 2020 via A Super High Quality Record and Cargo Records.

The War On Drugs was formed in Philadelphia in 2005 by Adam Granduciel and Kurt Vile. Vile left the band in 2009, during recording of their second album, to focus on his solo career. The band currently consists of Adam Granduciel (vocals, guitar), David Hartley (bass), Robbie Bennett (keyboards), Jon Natchez (saxophone, keyboards) and Anthony LaMarca (guitar), Charlie Hall (drums) re-joined the band in 2013. The bands albums have generally been received favourably by critics.

Culled from over 40 hard drives of recorded live shows spread out across years of touring behind multiple critically acclaimed records, their new live album Live Drugs is unlike anything previously available in The War On Drugs catalogue.

The first album to capture the band’s live interpretations, Live Drugs is a document showcasing the evolution of the band’s live show over the years. Additionally, Live Drugs is a portrait of the enduring relationship between Adam Granduciel and Dominic East. A long-time friend, guitar tech and stage manager, East is the albums co-producer and the presence Granduciel credits as holding everything together.

Sequenced to reflect how a typical 70-minute set would flow, Live Drugs thrives on live set staples immortalized on record for the first time. This includes ‘Buenos Aires Beach’ from the band’s 2008 full length debut, ‘Wagonwheel Blues’ and the long-time musical interlude flowing between ‘Under the Pressure’ and ‘In Reverse’ - which bookend 2014’s ‘Lost In The Dream’.

There is also the band’s essential cover of Warren Zevon’s ‘Accidentally Like a Martyr’, a song “so true, you should ever be lucky to write a song that simple,” Granduciel says.

This double album 2LP record set is on black vinyl housed in a gatefold sleeve with printed inner sleeves, pressed in Europe via A Super High Quality Record and Cargo Records.