Apocalypse Wow! - Cold War Kids

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."