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Cold War Kids are currently one of the hottest new bands around in the US. A mix of traditional Americana and modern indie rock, they've garnered praise across the board from the music monthlies to the tabloids, played a string of sold-out gigs throughout America, and they've got a scheduled appearance on the David Letterman Show. So when Gigwise contacts lead singer and pianist Nathan Willett, it's kind of reassuring to find him not hanging out with rock stars or even warming up in preparation for another sell-out show. Instead he's in a bookstore in central London. See Cold War Kids aren't on a mission to take over the musical world, and they don't have giant egos. They're attempting to make music some intelligent guitar music that's different and yet catchy enough to provoke an interest.

With a name like Cold War Kids you'd imagine them to have some semi-formed thesis on how the Cold War has shaped the outlook of today's youth and society. In fact Gigwise gives Nathan the perfect opportunity to go on a political rant but he remains circumspect. "It's a good name because it's got a point but it's not too direct. You can have a lot of different interpretations of it, and lots of people do think it's explicitly political, but it's a good way to start conversations and gives us a vehicle to express different meanings." Cold War Kids have received criticism from the apparent conservative Christian outlook to be found in their lyrics, but while their opinions may not coincide precisely with the largely left-leaning indie community, they're certainly not set on overtly political diatribe, while their quality of expression, for the most part, holds.

Just as they're not an easy band to suss out politically, Cold War Kids' music isn't easily categorised or pigeonholed and stylistically there's much to take note of in their songs. Is this individuality something that the band have striven for? "We're just how we've always been - there are a variety of tastes in the band. But there are so many bands, so many levels of bands. that you can just say 'Oh they sound like Interpol' or whatever, obvious, derivative bands. But I think we sound like a large combination of things. There are a lot of different styles that we draw from and a lot of common artists we love. We have lots of little influences and they all come out in ways you can't quite pin down, whether it's Tom Waits, or Nina Simone, or whoever." It's not hard to see where he's coming from either. Cold War Kids' debut album 'Robber and Cowards' (released in the UK in February next year but out on iTunes now) is full of lots of little moments to make your ears prick up, your feet move, and your mind question.

Although they hail from Long Beach in LA county, Cold War Kids are hardly your typical California band. There's not a whiff of the psychedelic to be found in their music, and they're miles away from both the mainstream rock and hardcore punk scenes. "A lot of what's there right now is, you know, cock rock. There's not a lot of really creative bands right now, so we really don't draw from LA." Are there any LA acts that they admire at all? "Delta Spirit - we like them a lot. We've done a tour with them. Also there's this guy called Richard Swift, we really like him."

This lack of any real scene or strong local base hasn't halted the band's progress in their native US, but until now they've been virtually unknown in the UK. However that looks set to change, in part thanks to their new touring plan. "We've been touring with Two Gallants, and all the shows have sold out. They're incredible, they just tour non-stop. They're old friends of ours and they've taught us a lot about their ethic of touring, it's rubbed off on us a lot. we're never gonna go home!" And how have the crowds in Britain matched up to the US? "They've been everything we wanted. We wanna play for the people and we've been fortunate to get lots of attention. We've done a lot of press here [Gigwise actually speaks to Nathan fresh from an interview with Radio 1's Zane Lowe, who was playing the band's demos before they were even signed] and lots of people have been coming to check us out, which is great because we've skipped process of playing to no-one which we went through in the US."

It's possible that much of the enthusiasm for the Cold War Kids comes from internet blogging. Several recent articles in major music publications lambasted bloggers for creating undue hype around the band. But Nathan is quick to disagree. "The internet is a tricky thing to judge. You can have lots of fans on the internet who say they like you but that doesn't equal lots of fans coming to your shows. People on the internet take in so much music, that's why it's important to keep touring. The internet has helped but really we've done things the old-fashioned way."

With several UK headline performances, a festival appearance, residencies in both New York and LA, and a European tour supporting Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! lined up, the band's relentless tour machine shows now signs of slowing down. This is a band who are unintentionally beginning  to take America by storm. Whether they'll sell in the long run, and to a British indie audience currently still preoccupied with Razorlight and The Killers, remains to be seen. But while they've probably not produced a classic record for 2007 and beyond, it's reassuring to know there's a band out there willing to go against the grain and express their own ideas without pretension. And they don't care if you disagree with their politics, they just want to get you involved.

Cold War Kids play London's Borderline on November 30. They precede this with an instore gig at Sister Ray in Soho at 6pm.