Dan Sanford

Sports Editor

das6267@psu.edu

Philadelphia indie rock band the War on Drugs have been on the cusp of overwhelming alternative success for some time now. It also has been four years since their previous full-length release, A Deeper Understanding, which scored the band their first number-one hit on the Billboard Adult Alternative Charts with “Pain”.

In the meantime, the band has stylistically found a “new home” with their fifth record, I Don’t Live Here Anymore, on Friday. It was preceded by three singles: “Living Proof”, the title track “I Don’t Live Here Anymore” featuring fellow indie band Lucius, and “Change”.

I Don’t Live Here Anymore is simply a sparkling record. The record finds frontman Adam Granduciel’s songwriting just as cryptic yet simultaneously beautiful as usual, backed by keyboards and guitars that end up bringing to mind what Brothers in Arms-era Dire Straits, 5150-era Van Halen, and Hysteria-era Def Leppard would sound like mashed together. That’s right, the War on Drugs has brought classic rock to us in a brilliant new fashion on this album, with maybe a little more digital polishing along the way.

The sheer simplicity of Granduciel’s songwriting in combination with styles of old being produced for a 21st century audience is where the beauty really lies. The themes of the songs on the album revolve around time and memories, and each one feels like a trip somewhere else. It doesn’t matter when or where, especially, just any old spot in space in time that Granduciel could remember fondly. A Bob Dylan concert (title track), a pyramid where he was born (“Old Skin”), and numerous other poignant adventures down memory lane are present here. In one instance, the full destination is revealed to us (“Occasional Rain”), while the band channels its best 1990s U2 imitation. “Victim” bears an uncanny resemblance to Mr. Mister’s 1985 hit single “Kyrie”, minus a more poppy hook.

Although the War on Drugs have before bequeathed to us a stylistically similar effort, I Don’t Live Here Anymore is the result of fine-tuning their approach from A Deeper Understanding and continuing to play what they do best, and every track is a sonic adventure.