The War on Drugs Host Joe Walsh, Kurt Vile, Craig Finn and Martin Courtney at “A Drugcember to Remember” Benefit Concerts

The War on Drugs, photo by Dominic East

The War on Drugs resurrected a long-running holiday tradition over the weekend with the 2025 edition of their A Drugcember To Remember benefit concerts. Onstage at their hometown haunt of Johnny Brenda’s in Philadelphia, the venerated indie-rock outfit served up three shows for packed houses, with all proceeds benefiting The Fund for the School District of Philadelphia. All three two-set shows featured high-profile special guests and a fistful of rare covers.

Following a family and friends warm-up show on Wednesday, The War on Drugs stormed the stage at Johnny Brenda’s on Thursday night with their 2021 I Don’t Live Here Anymore cut “Change,” lighting up a nine-track first frame that touched on old favorites like “An Ocean in Between the Waves” and “Harmonia’s Dream” and well-traveled covers of Tom Petty’s “Love Is a Long Road” and Neil Young’s “Like a Hurricane” before a closer of “Eyes to the Wind.” To kick off set two, the band tapped Real Estate’s Martin Courtney for takes on Gene Clark’s “From a Silver Phial” and Lou Reed’s “Satellite of Love,” then later debuted the new original “Lucy” and wrapped up with “Don’t Live Here Anymore.”

On Friday, The War on Drugs hit their stride at the 250-cap underground landmark with “Arms like Boulders,” drawn from their 2008 debut album Wagonwheel Blues. The neo-pychedelia trailblazers lit into tracks like “Red Eyes” and “Strangest Thing” before welcoming The Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn to helm his solo original “Bethany.” Finn lent his vocal chops to an ensuing cover of Bob Dylan’s “Sweetheart Like You,” then capped off the first frame with his own “Postcards.” In the second set, The War on Drugs earned a roar from the audience by hosting The Eagles’ legendary Joe Walsh for a three-track sit-in, including his solo originals “Rocky Mountain Way” and “In the City” and The War on Drugs’ classic “Under Pressure.”

“Sat in with one of my favorite bands The War on Drugs last night for A Drugcember to Remember,” Walsh wrote in a social post on Saturday morning. “Joe Walsh on Drugs? The War on Walsh? Whatever you call it, let’s do it again tonight?”

Walsh’s prediciton came to pass at the end of Saturday’s show, after a marathon race through more of the hits that populated The War on Drugs’ first two benefit shows and a sit-in from friend and collaborator Kurt Vile, who led covers of Bill Fay’s “Pictures of Adolf Again” and R.E.M.’s “Country Feedback” before looking back on his time in the band’s first iteration with “Arms like Boulders.” At the end of the second set, Walsh returned for the same three tracks, culminating in a take on “Under Pressure” that brought Vile back to the stage. 

The War on Drugs debuted A Drugcember to Remember in 2018, following the release of their triumphant fourth studio album, A Deeper Understanding, and the annual festivities have since earned acclaim for the caliber and intimacy of the performances. This year’s return was the band’s first since 2022, as well as their only headline shows of 2025. As always, the full price of all tickets went to the official nonprofit arm of the School District of Philadelphia and its efforts to connect philanthropic giving with academic achievement in Philadelphia’s public schools.