It was a full-circle moment recently for The War on Drugs’ Adam Granduciel, who last month caught a Pearl Jam show in Los Angeles.
“I was supposed to go see them in 1994 in Boston where I grew up,” said Granduciel, calling from Burbank. “My friend like had tickets and then he didn’t have tickets so I never saw them. The other day was my first time. It was so much fun.”
On the surface, one wouldn’t necessarily see a musical connection between the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame grunge act and the modern indie band that seamlessly melds indie rock and psychedelia with a small hint of jam band sensibility.
However, taking a step back you can see a comparison more in the spirit of the music and respect of their respective audiences.
“You probably don’t hear it but (Pearl Jam) taught me how to play guitar,” Granduciel said. “When they’d play on ‘Saturday Night Live’ or (David) Letterman, I’d record them on VHS and watch it over and over studying where their hands were and what amps they were playing.
“The only thing they really influenced was we did Jimmy Fallon during lockdown. We decided to do a song nobody’s ever heard before. That was inspired by when (Pearl Jam) was promoting ‘Vs.’ on ‘Saturday Night Live’ and the first song they played was ‘Not for You’ (from the then-unreleased album “Vitalogy”), which no one had heard. I was like, ‘That’s the balls-iest thing I’ve ever seen. Then they did ‘Rearviewmirror’ and ‘Daughter.’ It was life-changing.”
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Wed June 08, 2022 2:32 pm
by liebzz
I spent part of the commute today listening again to Arcade Fire’s WE and really enjoying it. Spotify decided the best follow up would be Harmonia’s Dream and damned if they weren’t 100% right.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Tue September 26, 2023 7:56 am
by Matters
The more I listen to it the more I know, Disappearing is my favorite music track ever.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Fri March 29, 2024 12:52 pm
by dad
WoD podcast returns with a story about how Lost in the Dream was made. i'm a sucker for stuff like this.
Lost In the Dream is a top 10 2010’s album for me, but it’s one of those “soundtrack to a miserable life moment” records that makes it tough to revisit. Sufjan’s Carrie and Lowell is the same way — same general time period, same feeling. Still, what a collection of songs (both of ‘em).
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Fri March 29, 2024 5:15 pm
by BurtReynolds
I have a few of those. Would make a good thread topic.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Sun March 31, 2024 12:24 am
by Kalevi
I like lost in a dream a lot. For me deeper understanding really hits the sweet spot.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Thu April 11, 2024 1:27 pm
by Clem Halibut
"Thinking of a Place" is just a beautiful song to play during a warm summer night where the sun is setting and everything is just gold.
That song is just a warm blanket, so beautiful and it really does evoke a certain place in my mind.
Just love this song and this band.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Thu April 11, 2024 1:31 pm
by Strat
Clem Halibut wrote:"Thinking of a Place" is just a beautiful song to play during a warm summer night where the sun is setting and everything is just gold.
That song is just a warm blanket, so beautiful and it really does evoke a certain place in my mind.
Just love this song and this band.
Also beautiful for falling asleep to!
That bridge is just gorgeous, the way the instruments come in and out of eachother
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Thu April 11, 2024 2:31 pm
by Kevin Davis
"Thinking of a Place" is probably my favorite WOD song. So great.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Sat June 08, 2024 12:18 am
by Chris_H_2
My son killed it this last semester of his sophomore year. WoD is the one band that he considers among his favorites that he hasn’t seen live.
So fuck it - we’re flying to London to see them at the Royal Albert Hall on July 10 and 11. I cannot wait.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Sat June 08, 2024 3:56 am
by zeb
That's awesome, man. That will be an incredible memory for you and your boy.
I saw them last December for the first time and they were even better than I thought they could be.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Sat June 08, 2024 4:29 pm
by VinylGuy
I saw them at Belgium in 2022 and they were pretty cool yeah
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Sat June 08, 2024 5:09 pm
by dad
Chris_H_2 wrote:My son killed it this last semester of his sophomore year. WoD is the one band that he considers among his favorites that he hasn’t seen live.
So fuck it - we’re flying to London to see them at the Royal Albert Hall on July 10 and 11. I cannot wait.
heck yeah.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Wed July 17, 2024 4:01 pm
by dad
Chris_H_2 wrote:My son killed it this last semester of his sophomore year. WoD is the one band that he considers among his favorites that he hasn’t seen live.
So fuck it - we’re flying to London to see them at the Royal Albert Hall on July 10 and 11. I cannot wait.
how was it?
i looked at the setlists from RAH and Liverpool and it looks like they dug up some old stuff.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Wed July 17, 2024 4:23 pm
by Chris_H_2
dad wrote:
Chris_H_2 wrote:My son killed it this last semester of his sophomore year. WoD is the one band that he considers among his favorites that he hasn’t seen live.
So fuck it - we’re flying to London to see them at the Royal Albert Hall on July 10 and 11. I cannot wait.
how was it?
i looked at the setlists from RAH and Liverpool and it looks like they dug up some old stuff.
so good. i've never really given much credence to the whole "american crowds vs. european crowds" thing, but the crowds there were off the charts and definitely elevated things. i also got my white whale on thursday (nothing to find):
this, starting at about the 6:50 mark:
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Thu July 18, 2024 3:02 am
by Matters
Chris_H_2 wrote:
dad wrote:
Chris_H_2 wrote:My son killed it this last semester of his sophomore year. WoD is the one band that he considers among his favorites that he hasn’t seen live.
So fuck it - we’re flying to London to see them at the Royal Albert Hall on July 10 and 11. I cannot wait.
how was it?
i looked at the setlists from RAH and Liverpool and it looks like they dug up some old stuff.
so good. i've never really given much credence to the whole "american crowds vs. european crowds" thing, but the crowds there were off the charts and definitely elevated things. i also got my white whale on thursday (nothing to find):
this, starting at about the 6:50 mark:
Some time around 10 years ago, this song (and album) made me fall in love with music all over again. This is the band that made me realize great music was still out there if I was willing to go out and find it. Officially gone were the days of good music being spoon fed to me via radio and MTV. I consider LITD to be one of the most beautiful albums I’ve ever heard along with Ten and Pink Moon.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Thu July 18, 2024 5:03 am
by zeb
Chris_H_2 wrote:
dad wrote:
Chris_H_2 wrote:My son killed it this last semester of his sophomore year. WoD is the one band that he considers among his favorites that he hasn’t seen live.
So fuck it - we’re flying to London to see them at the Royal Albert Hall on July 10 and 11. I cannot wait.
how was it?
i looked at the setlists from RAH and Liverpool and it looks like they dug up some old stuff.
so good. i've never really given much credence to the whole "american crowds vs. european crowds" thing, but the crowds there were off the charts and definitely elevated things.
Re: War on Drugs
Posted: Thu November 07, 2024 5:51 pm
by Simple Torture
I'm just listening to Live Drugs Again for the first time (such a great album title). I can go 4-5 months without listening to this band but it's always so nice to come back.
