What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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straight-forward rock band, but then comes the "swirly keyboards," which bear comparison to other bands that aren't quite rock 'n' roll. Throw in some other influences like "shoegaze" and "roots rock" and "layers and layers of synths," and not even the band's longtime drummer, Charlie Hall, is sure how to describe their low-fi sound. "I don't really have the elevator pitch like when you're on a plane or something and someone's like, 'Oh, you must be in a band.' If they ask me to describe it, I don't have a set thing. You try to invariably go to these sort of lowest common denominators: 'Oh, it's like classic rock, but it's like swirly with synthesizers.' You never really know what to say. I think the word 'dreamy' always comes to mind." Hall says he's OK with whatever the label as long as people are listening, adding, "If that's what it is to you, then it is what it is, you know." Formed in 2005 in Philadelphia, The War on Drugs consists of frontman Adam Granduciel on vocals, guitar; David Hartley on bass guitar; Robbie Bennett on keyboards; Jon Natchez on saxophone and keyboards; Anthony LaMarca on guitar; Eliza Hardy Jones on keyboards; and keeping the beat on drums is Hall. The band was founded by Granduciel and Kurt Vile, who departed to focus on his solo career. In 2018 the group snagged a Best Rock Album Grammy for "A Deeper Understanding." After that they went to work on their 2021 release "I Don't Live Here Anymore," which they began working on before the pandemic, and touring started as restrictions were being lifted. "I feel like we were out of the gates on the on the early side, especially like going over to Europe. I think there hadn't been a lot of American bands over yet when we were there in March and April," Hall says of touring earlier this year. "Before it was so different — not seeing people's faces, having a mask on 22 hours a day, not seeing your best friend/ bandmates' facial expressions when you're talking, and traveling around the world and not seeing your friends. One of the fringe benefits of this job is that you get to stay connected with people who live in faraway places. It was a little strange at first. "At the same time," he adds, "I think it brought us together in a way that was unique and kind of cool. You're just so in it together, and you're just working so hard to keep everybody safe and keep the train rolling, and we did." Still, he says that he experienced "this really beautiful feeling of connection because people have been waiting years to see [live music] and that … to experience it with thousands of other people that love the same thing as them … was this really joyous, beautiful thing that happened early in the year. And it still feels like that." The War on Drugs will perform at 8 p.m. Sept. 23 on the South of Oz stage. Other Friday night headliners will include Phoenix, Nile Rogers and Chic, The Marias, Leftover Salmon. Locals Honey Collective and Serrano-Torres will also perform on Sept. 23. CHRISTONE INGRAM Then you can add genuine Delta-style blues to the FORMAT festival lineup that includes dream-pop, psychedelia, jazz and groovy world music. Hailed by Guitar World as "the future of blues" and "one of the most exciting young guitarists in years with a sound that encompasses B.B. King, Jimi Hendrix and Prince" by Rolling Stone, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram will play the North of Oz stage at 5 p.m. Sept. 24. At barely 23 years old, Ingram has already received a Grammy nod for his first album, "Kingfish," and is now touring in support of his album "662," the area code for his hometown of Clarksdale, Miss. He comes from a musical family, starting on drums, but picking up a guitar shortly after. In 2016 he played for Michelle Obama at the White House as part of a delegation of student musicians from the Delta Blues Museum. The next year he won the 2015 Rising Star Award presented by The Rhythm & Blues Foundation. His first album came out in 2019 when he was still a teenager. It was named to NPR's Best Debut Albums list in 2019. He took home five awards at the Blues Foundation's 2020 Blues Music Awards, including album of the 38 WHAT'S UP! SEPTEMBER 18-24, 2022 FORMAT Continued From Page 9 Christone "Kingfish" Ingram will perform at the FORMAT Festival in Bentonville on Sept. 24. Buddy Guy called the 23-year-old bluesman "the next explosion of blues." Rolling Stone declared him to be "one of the most exciting young guitarists in years, with a sound that encompasses B.B. King, Jimi Hendrix and Prince." NPR Music described his music as "blues at its raw and powerful best." (Courtesy Photo/Laura Carbone) COVER STORY