Cold War Kids / Mine Is Yours / Downtown Records
A band known for unraveling dark tales ripped from the pages of a tired lover’s notebook, Long Beach’s Cold War Kids unhinge their colourful side with Mine Is Yours. A reversal of past work, their third studio effort is doused in adult affection. The quirky rambles from Nathan Willett still exist, as do the offbeat tempos, but the glossy production has each member showing their sensitive side. The guitars flirt with an innocent tone, the bass rolls with more sincerity and the drums are direct and expressive.
In some cases (“Skip The Charades”), the rush of honesty to the head glows. In others, it makes Cold War Kids flimsy, attracting the wrong kind of attention, forcing some to think the 11 tracks are a desperate attempt to converse with soulful modern rock. Looking past the slips, Willett continues to impose his poetic nature giving musical breaths like “Louder Than Ever” the same addictive personality found on the Behave Yourself EP. Consistency is a quality artistic expressionists are never fond of and Mine Is Yours is proof: a creative mind’s purpose isn’t to please others, it’s to project emotion.
Download: “Skip The Charades”, “Broken Open”
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