Pages tagged “cold war kids”

Photos taken at Voodoo Music Festival by Rob Inderrieden

The Cold War Kids are feeling the loss of David Foster Wallace, who passed away Sept. 12. With their new album Loyalty to Loyalty out Tuesday, the band posted a poem to the late writer on their MySpace page. This Is Water is copied below:

Cold War Kids are Exhibit A in most discussions about the rising influence of bloggers on the musical landscape in those heady mid-ought-years, with the buzz spreading to every kid with a keyboard and clever handle before their first LP, Robbers & Cowards, was even released on Downtown Records in 2006. The Fullerton, Calif., natives are a little older and a world-tour wiser now, and their sophomore album, Loyalty to Loyalty, came out today. Paste caught up with frontman Nathan Willet before he embarked on the band's current tour.

We’re still loyal

Music blogs are like bad boyfriends. They take a heretofore unknown band, make them feel special with much frothing keyboard clickity-clack, turn them into rock stars, then suddenly lose their number when the next well-coiffed strumpet in skinny jeans strolls by. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Tapes ’n Tapes are probably still, right now, sitting in their living rooms decked out in mascara-smeared prom dresses waiting for Pitchfork to pick them up, wondering why their respective follow-up albums were greeted with such a resounding chorus of crickets.

I've said it so many times, but it still sounds surreal: There are more than 27 million slaves on this earth, more than existed in during any point in the trans-Atlantic slave trade 200 years ago. About 80% of those are women and children. No government officially condones it, but even in America, kids are trafficked from other countries or from state to state, forced into prostitution with the threat of harm or death. My own city of Atlanta is one of the Top 10 in the nation for human trafficking. There have been several good fictional films dealing with this issue lately, including Trade, Holly and Eastern Promises. But the most inspiring film dealing with this topic is coming out this fall—Justin Dillon's Call+Response.

The film opens Oct. 10 nationally.

The Kids might be growing up, especially come September when their new album drops. Cold War Kids have been hard at work on a sophomore record, trying to balance musical progress with a sound true to the band’s successful 2006 debut, Robbers & Cowards.

A somewhat reliable source once told us sophomore means "wise fool" in Greek, and while this is commonly seen in the second-year college student whose GPA takes a nosedive due to excessive beer-bonging, its also seen in the music world.

When Muddy Waters referenced a "gypsy woman" in the song of the same name, he was giving a shout out to traditions of Louisiana's long-standing voodoo culture. New Orleans continues to celebrate those traditions with its 10th annual Voodoo Music Experience. And while the name may sound rather ominous to those not in the know, the experience is more of the musical variety than the hexing one.

The early hours of Day 2 were less than stellar, but not for lack of talent. To quote the legendary Milli Vanilli, "Blame it on the rain." Although the drops fell for much of the first part of the day, the music played on, ultimately winning out over the weather.

Apparently "free" is a new buzz word, just like "trans fat" a couple years back and "low-carb" before that. But, as unoriginal as the pro-bono release is becoming, it still doesn’t mean that people have to stop getting excited about it. We like free things just like everyone else.

So, add another band to what is becoming a long list of indie rockers: Cold World Kids are releasing their Mulberry Street EP for gratis. The album was recorded before their 2006 release of Robbers & Cowards and includes six tracks of which you can acquire here. Since the Long Beach band just ended its tour a few weeks ago, this slice of the "free" pie might be the perfect morsel to sustain you through the winter months until the guys come out of hibernation to play again.

Related links:
ColdWarKids.com
Cold War Kids on MySpace
Paste: New music video from Cold War Kids

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.

Cold War Kids have added some cold weather dates for the end of fall, after their yet-to-be-completed tour with Muse and tour-to-come with the White Stripes. Most are in the northeast at venues like D.C.'s 9:30 Club and New York City's Webster Hall, but it looks like they'll be closing out with an isolated Colorado show in December. Maybe they just want to try their hands at some black diamond slopes. Hopefully no one from the southern California band will ski into an evergreen and end up in a Hospital Bed. Heyooo!

Downtown Records released the group's debut album, Robbers and Cowards, last year. Since then, its peaked at 14 on Billboard's Top Independent Albums chart.

New dates are listed below -- see here for the full tour schedule.

September
8 - Madison, Wis. @ Willow Island

November
17 - San Francisco, Calif. @ Warfield Theatre
23 - Los Angeles, Calif. @ Wiltern Theatre
27 - Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club
28 - Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club
29 - Philadelphia, Penn. @ Theatre of the Living Arts
30 - New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall

December
1 - New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall
4 - Boston, Mass. @ The Roxy
11 - Boulder, Col. @ Boulder Theater

Related links:
Paste: New Video from Cold War Kids
ColdWarKids.com
Cold War Kids on MySpace

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.

The Paste Summer Festival Preview 2007

August 3-5 Chicago, Illinois - Grant Park
Lollapalooza.com
Selected Acts: Pearl Jam, Daft Punk, Ben Harper, Muse, My Morning Jacket, The Roots, TV On The Radio, Spoon, Patti Smith, G. Love, Sparklehorse, Amy Winehouse, Elvis Perkins
Bring the Kids: Children aged 10 and under get in free with a ticket-holding adult, and the festival’s Tag-A-Kid program exchanges parents’ contact info for youngster-sized numbered wristbands in case the wee ones get lost amongst all the rocking-out.
Historical Fact: The fest is staged each year at Chicago’s Grant Park, which dates back to 1835 and was named after U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant.

For the third consecutive summer, a secret society will form in Chicago for the duration of a three-day weekend. Strangers with color-coded wristbands will silently nod to each other on the Chicago Transit Authority, guitar solos will reverberate off the downtown skyline, and cars will clog Lake Shore Drive in an auditory gaper’s block—all signs that Lollapalooza has returned, the third edition under its new guise as sedentary behemoth rather than rambunctious traveling roadshow.

Since its days as the ultimate symbol of the ’90s-alternative-rock boom, Lollapalooza has widened its scope, becoming simultaneously a nostalgia trip (headlining performances from the Pixies and Red Hot Chili Peppers), a post-HORDE jamband depot (Widespread Panic, Blues Traveler), and a chance for up-and-comers to get their big-league call-up (Arcade fire, My Morning Jacket). To encompass all of these missions, the relaunched Lollapalooza more than doubled in size from Year 1 to Year 2, spreading out over the entirety of Grant Park and giving music fans their summer exercise while running between the festival’s nine stages. For all the exhaustion and heat, it’s an unparalleled urban destination for the camping-averse, a surprisingly functional all-you-can-hear buffet of rock sounds, some of which are finally — in part because of the exposure festivals like this offer — beginning to break through on TV and radio.

Spotlight: Cold War Kids
AS SEEN ON THE INTERNET
When Rolling Stone charted the rise and fall of hype surrounding the Cold War Kids, with the peak hitting sometime before they actually released their first EPs, the band became something of a poster-child for the ever-shrinking life-cycle of a media frenzy. “It’s kind of a charming thing when it wears off, because you get to sit back and feel like, ‘OK, we get to do what we do and play our songs, and we have people at our shows that love our music, and it’s great,’” says lead singer Nathan Willett.

But despite all reports of a quieting buzz, when the Cold War Kids took the stage at Paste’s SXSW party, there was a block-long line out the door. And while bloggers dropping the band’s name and fans passing around free mp3s started the hype machine, it’s Cold War Kids’ hyper-frenetic live show that’s kept it well-oiled. The Fullerton, Calif., quartet made its festival debut last year at Lollapalooza and will return this summer with a year of experience and a lot more fans. “And we’re staying in hotels,” adds Willett. “No sleeping in trailers this year!”
Kate Kiefer

WHAT'S IN A NAME?
Even though Wikipedia tells us that Lollapalooza got its moniker when festival founder Perry Farrell was amused after hearing the word uttered in a Three Stooges short, and the dictionary further informs us that the unusual word represents “an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event,” we can’t help but wonder if there were some ditched name ideas for the alternative music festival. Here are a few that might have crossed Farrell’s mind.
Addictionpalooza: Because the festival was originally intended as a goodbye tour for Farrell’s band, Jane’s Addiction. After realizing that sponsors were leery of throwing money at an event that seemingly promotes dependence on artificial substances, Farrell is forced to think up other options.
Controversapalooza: Because controversy is so alternative, man! That, and Ice-T’s metal band, Body Count, was slated to play the first Lollapalooza before even recording its debut album, which would include the later-banned track “Cop Killer.” Deemed too awkward and clunky a moniker, Farrell goes back to the drawing board.
Flannelpalooza: Because the success of grunge helped propel early incarnations of the festival. Ultimately, the plaid-centric title gets shot down as Henry Rollins (whose Rollins Band performed at the first edition) becomes furious at the prospect of changing his strict, no-shirt dress code. Considering Rollins is the size of a Mack truck, Farrell acquiesces.
Austin L. Ray

Cold War Kids have released a new video for “Hospital Beds,” the third single off their debut full-length Robbers & Cowards. The narrative line is something like this: young best friends who look like they could have come straight out of Stand By Me are torn apart by a girl (a sister?) and later grow up to beat the snot out of each other as professional boxers. Nicely filmed, with subtleties that take a couple of viewings to catch. Plus, lead singer Nathan Willett playing piano in a wifebeater.

Anyway, if you liked that for reasons having to do with the actual music, feel free to stream the song as well:

Realplayer: "Hospital Beds"
Windows Media: "Hospital Beds"

Cold War Kids kick off their tour next month, supporting Muse and White Stripes. Click below for details.

Related links:
ColdWarKids.com
Cold War Kids on MySpace
Paste: Cold War Kids to Support White Stripes on Tour

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.