I’m speaking with Cold War Kids frontman/guitarist Nathan Willett the morning after the band’s show in Athens, Georgia. He’s slightly hungover (there is apparently a great bar next to the venue with a variety of "excellent Belgian beers"), apologizing to me for his possible sluggishness, but he charges ahead anyway. He sounds tired but accomplished, and if memory serves me well, he’s probably earned his night of heavy drinking—on-stage, Willett and his gang of rocking road warriors (Jonnie Russell, guitars; Matt Maust, bass; Matt Aveiro, drums), are nearly unparalleled in terms of intensity and emotion. So much so that, in effect, they’re considered more of a "live band" than a "studio band."
Willett agrees, stating that their recorded mission since the beginning has been to "match what they’ve done on-stage." With their latest album, Mine is Yours (their third full-length), the goal was to finally realize that vision, taking a little more time in the studio to craft a long-lasting sonic monument, one that would stack up to their peers like TV on the Radio and Arcade Fire, who, according to Willett, "sound very labored with so many layers of tracks." Working in Nashville with big-name producer Jacquire King (well-known for his contributions to Kings of Leon and Modest Mouse albums), Cold War Kids wanted to go the next step in their journey, achieving a "eureeka" moment that could serve as a fresh start.
"Jacquire really helped us write the best songs we could," Willett says. It seems like that was the goal for Mine is Yours—to simply get down to business with writing songs instead of exploring their artsiest tendencies (Their second album, the more ambient and exploratory Loyalty to Loyalty, felt like a step sideways from their hooky, raw, powerful debut, Robbers & Cowards). But using King as producer came as a shock to many fans and critics—as a veteran song-sculptor behind the explosion of southern arena rock gods Kings of Leon, King seemed like a strange choice for Cold War Kids, and many critics even viewed the decision as a simple sell-out ploy for chart success. In his review of the album for Pitchfork, critic Zach Kelly stated that King "helped push fellow cheese-merchants Kings of Leon in a similar direction over the course of their previous two breakthrough records." He continues, "So, good for them, Cold War Kids are clearly making a bid for that kind of mainstream acceptance."
One thing’s for sure: Mine is Yours definitely bears King’s signature arena scope: huge, reverb-drenched guitars, booming drums, and sky-high hooks. When I ask Willett if their decision to work with King had any connection to an admiration for Kings of Leon, he cuts me short, saying that while there may be indirect sonic similarities, "Kings of Leon are not a reference point for us." Their choice to work with King was more based on circumstance than any sort of chart aspirations; the band is good friends with Dan Gallucci (a former Modest Mouse guitarist), who strongly recommended that Cold War Kids seek King’s assistance: "Dan had a really good experience with Jacquire on the Good News album (Modest Mouse’s Good News for People Who Love Bad News), which is sort of their best artistic statement as well as their most commercially accessible album."
And this choice in producer also directly reflects the band’s mission for the album—to get back to the core of songwriting and to strip away the experiments, both musically and lyrically, that have dominated their recent releases. Loyalty to Loyalty found the band in a dark place, and Willett wanted to steer things in a brighter direction. Lyrically, Willett was inspired by the relationships of his friends, "seeing people get married and divorced." They wanted to stop doing as much of the "Southern Gothic stories" that dominated their early work, particularly their first album, and "move into a more personal direction." The songs are reflections of things happening to the people around them. In recent years, Willett says, "(They’ve) been able to re-connect with some of their old college friends," watching people transition into their ’30s, witnessing a change in people’s lives, their relationships, and the way they deal with their problems.
"The first album was more story-based, and Loyalty to Loyalty was more abstract," Willett continues. "I realized I didn’t really connect with the lyrics. For the new album, I wanted to write lyrics that made me feel more uncomfortable."
As a result of their more human aspirations, Mine is Yours is certainly their most straightforward, direct, heartfelt effort. It’s a devastatingly underrated album—most songs are arena-styled, guitar-heavy, reverb-soaked, epic singalongs equally suited for headphones and lighter-waving festival sets. Willett claims they weren’t inspired by any particular bands (because they listen to such a large variety of music), "but (they) did maybe subconsciously try to sound more contemporary."
Toward the end of our conversation, I ask Willett whether or not he feels like the band has entered a new phase: Cold War Kids Mach 2.0. He makes some key observations, stating that while "it would take hours to fully explain" the reason for their sonic shift, a sea change has definitely occurred. "Behave Yourself (the band’s 2010 EP) was the last time we did things in our old style," which he basically equates to a fun, quickly recorded romp. With Mine is Yours, "(He) really took on more of a leadership role in the band, which really helped everyone." Looking into the band’s future, he continues, "From this point on, things will be a bit more layered and complex."
