"The War on Drugs" create music from a "cacophony sound" of reverb, echo plex, etc,


Last year a CD recording called   " A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING"   by the band ..."The War on Drugs"  ( a kind of stupid name)  was reviewed in the "Absolute Sound" and received a more than a favorable review. I thought the music interesting and at times very good. Compose/musician Daniel Granduceil  has a beguiling and unique voice and sounds often like Bob Dylan

I did not realize, they have been around for several years and bought the CD  "Lost in a Dream" recorded  between August 2012 and November 2013.  Several fair songs are unfortunately couched in a cacophony of electronic reverb, echo chamber hash, and other digital or computer derived sound. Granduciel's voice (and song lyrics) is buried in this haze  and this mishmash of sound  It is a shame because several compositions are good, but electronic gadgetry distorts and often destroys the rhythm and shape of the music.  I generally understand the direction that electronic based music goes, and its innovation. But this CD ( whether poorly recorded, produced, etc ) pushes beyond the limits of this genre of rock.

Would like to hear other comments about this band ( maybe, this was just a bad outing for the group; they seemed to use a lot of different personnel to record this album.


Thanks,

S.J.





 


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sunnyjim

Showing 1 response by toro3

I would agree that some of the reverb and distortion can be distracting at times, especially with some of their tracks through a good majority of their albums.

Definitely not something I’d put on to test a system or late night listening. On the other hand they’re usually my go-to on a mixed CD-R when I have a long drive.

Always thought Comin’ Through was exceptional on their Future Weather album. As a whole, I preferred their most recent release, A Deeper Understanding.