Music / Review
Review: The War on Drugs, Lloyds Amphitheatre – ‘The band took us on a journey of wanderlust’
After a week of music, sun and memories made, the closing gig of the Bristol Sounds’ events was upon us all. We’ve witnessed music from one of the frontman from Oasis, a Scottish powerhouse and a band who got their name from a TV show back in the 1990’s.
Kicking off the night, we had Soccer Mommy. A solo artist all the way from across the pond to deliver us some of her underrated tunes. Having recently just released an album, it’s no doubt that when listening to Soccer Mommy perform, you can’t help but think how this would all sound with a band behind her.
The artist took to the stage, just her and her guitar and blew the roof off the amphitheatre; carrying a weight of humbleness on her shoulders, she graced the stage and before you knew it, she was off again.
is needed now More than ever
The time had come, smoke was everywhere on stage, lights began to flicker and out came the six piece, American rock band ready to take on Bristol Harbour – The War On Drugs.
They were greeted with a very warm reception from the audience who had travelled far and wide to see the band. One audience member we spoke to, said he was from America itself.
The crowd were a choir under the band’s control. Credit: Ben Nicholls
Playing tunes from across their repertoire, The War On Drugs took us on a journey of wanderlust. With the main singers’ soft vocal tones combined with the dreamy synthesisers the band use, they had us swaying our bodies from left to right as if we were in outer space somewhere off the coast of Mars.
Multi-coloured lights, even more smoke machines and powerful harmonies, the band put on a show and a half for the crowd that night in Bristol Docks. Playing some of their most popular tunes such as Red Eyes and I Don’t Live Here Anymore, the crowd were a choir under the band’s control.
Bristol Sounds couldn’t have had a more fitting act to end the week long run of gigs. A band that culminated elements of all the acts that performed over the course of the Bristol Sounds gigs that left the audience walking out at the end of the night with them all music’d out.
Main phot: Ben Nicholls
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