Cold War Kids – Mine Is Yours
Bands like Cold War Kids can prove to be quite the litmus test for the perceived cooler than thou kind of listener. Their music is indeed very commercial and certain elements of their past, like their Christianity set them up for being outside the cool circle but does (or should) all that rhetoric have any real effect on the actual listening experience?
On Mine Is Yours, the band has hooked up with producer Jacquire King, he of Modest Mouse, Kings of Leon and Norah Jones fame and the influence is obvious, this is one radio friendly work. The production and playing is very professional and it’s the kind of sound that just gets better as the speakers get smaller.
This one ticks a lot of the boxes, blue-eye soul, jittery funk and precise pop all receive more than a modicum of effort. This is assured work and if radio decides to pick up on its charms, so much the better when compared to most of the dross that gets played all in the name of selling faceless products.
Remove all the preamble and what are you left with? An infectious set of songs that can fill that void when all you really want to do is be entertained. Any real collection should contain a few entries that transport the listener through just sheer entertainment value. Rob Hudson www.coldwarkids.com
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