Photo by Graham Tolbert




After canceling its European tour dates in February and March, Philadelphia indie-rock quartet the War On Drugs is set to fulfill its promise to bring its sound across the Atlantic this fall. The tour, which will hit cities in North America and Europe, begins two days after the release of the band’s second album, Slave Ambient, on August 16 with an August 18 show in the War On Drugs’ hometown.


The band recorded Slave Ambient over a four-year period in North Carolina and in frontman Adam Granduciel’s Philadelphia home studio, a process that sucked up funds for the group’s European shows last winter. “It was a difficult time for me, and it’s a shame it had to happen, but there was no alternative,” Granduciel says to CMJ. He hopes to compensate for the cancellation during the upcoming European gigs, potentially with “loads of free merch.” This time, War On Drugs has planned a late summer tour that will bring its psychedelic synth-rock to the Incubate Festival in the Netherlands and finish at the DeLuna Festival in Florida on October 14. According to Granduciel, the group hopes to add a fifth musician to its ranks and may bring in a horn section for its live shows to help the band “not so much re-create this beast of a record but interpret it differently every night.”


Slave Ambient is to be released on Indiana label Secretly Canadian, which has released work by Animal Collective and Yeasayer. Check below for tour dates and the tracklist for Slave Ambient.





Tour Dates For War On Drugs:
08/18 – Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
08/19 – Brooklyn, NY – Cameo Gallery
08/20 – New York, NY – Mercury Lounge
08/21 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
08/23 – Montreal, QC – Casa Del Popolo
08/24 – Toronto, ON – TBA
08/25 – Ann Arbor, MI – Blind Pig
08/26 – Chicago, IL – Schuba’s
08/27 – Milwaukee, WI – Club Garibaldi
08/28 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry
08/30 – St. Louis, MO – Billiken Club at St. Louis University
08/31 – Lexington, KY – Cosmic Charlie’s
09/01 – Pittsburgh, PA – Club Cafe
09/02 – Washington, DC – Red Palace
09/08 – Lisbon, Portugal – Terraza Hotel Regency
09/09 – San Sebastian, Spain – Club Victoria Eugenia
09/11 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso *
09/12 – Tilburg, Netherlands – Incubate Festival *
09/13 – London, UK – Lexington
09/14 – Leeds, UK – Brudenell Social Club
09/15 – Sheffield, UK – Drowned In Sound presents at The Harley
09/16 – Brighton, UK – Green Door Store
09/17 – Brussels, Belgium – AB Club
09/20 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Loppen
09/21 – Stockholm, Sweden – Lilla Hotelbaren
09/22 – Malmo, Sweden – Debaser
10/14 – Pensacola, FL – DeLuna Festival
* with Megafaun


Tracklist For Slave Ambient:
01. Best Night
02. Brothers
03. I Was There
04. Your Love Is Calling My Name
05. The Animator
06. Come To The City
07. Come For It
08. It’s Your Destiny
09. City Reprise #12
10. Baby Missiles
11. Original Slave
12. Back Water Falls