Wagonwheel Blues

The War On Drugs push the boundaries of a quintessentially American music. Guitars soar and colorful clouds roll past whatever sun or moon you are cruising under, through whatever old bar you are reveling within. The War On Drugs point toward a tireless horizon in the distance that you will never reach but are compelled to chase. It's a tail you've chased your whole life and will continue chasing because your life is more poetic when you are moving toward it - your cinematography is more rich. 'Wagonwheel Blues' is one of those albums that each of us holds onto tightly. They get moved from apartment to apartment through the years; they are songs on the radio that follow us from town to town. They evoke waves of nostalgia and grow more poignant with each new bump along the road.

Secretly Canadian introduces a solid new Americana band that-- althogh steeped in the usual influences (Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, the Band)-- never burdens you with the stigma of roots music or reached-for authenticity.

The War On Drugs seemed to have slunk in the backdoor with this incredible debut. It's accomplished, mature, and yet almost under-stated.

The first full-length by the War on Drugs is at once an album of its time -- indie rock as collection and collage of classic rock sonic signifiers that rank former tourmates Neil Young and Sonic Youth as equal inspirations -- and something that stretches beyond those expectations.

The wagon-wheel effect is a stroboscopic illusion which tampers with one's grasp of the persistence of vision.