Photos & Review: The War On Drugs, Oct 14, 2017, Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO

Mesmerized. That’s the word a friend used in a text message to me the morning after Saturday night’s sold out The War On Drugs show at Ogden Theatre. I couldn’t agree more. It’s the perfect one word description of this band.

A Deeper Understanding, Their long anticipated follow-up to 2014’s Lost In The Dream, has been widely praised as one of this year’s best releases, and it’s been in heavy rotation for me since being released in August. The band is in the midst of a world tour, selling out rooms across the country before they head to Europe in November. The first night of Denver’s two night stand sold out quickly, and has been at the top of my list of fall shows since it was announced.

Not surprisingly, the new batch of songs fits in perfectly with live gems from previous albums. The band worked their way through a seventeen song set that featured nine songs from A Deeper Understanding, including personal favorites like “Holding On”, “Strangest Thing”, and “In Chains” alongside a mid-set threesome of Lost In The Dream standouts “Eyes To The Wind”, “Burning”, and “Red Eyes.” The band also dug deeper into their portfolio to treat long time fans with “Buenos Aires Beach” from Wagonwheel Blues and an encore closing “It’s Your Destiny” from 2011 release Slave Ambient. Twelve years and four albums in, this is a band that just keeps getting better on record and in concert, leaving fans old and new, well, mesmerized.

Colfax & Ogden, Oct 14, 2017, The War On Drugs, Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO. Photo by Mitch Kline.

 

That smile! Adam Granduciel, The War On Drugs, Oct 14, 2017, Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO. Photo by Mitch Kline.

 

The War On Drugs, Oct 14, 2017, Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO. Photo by Mitch Kline.