If you’re an accomplished musician, hearing something out of tune or discordant sort of grates on you like the sound of the most annoying kid in class scraping his finger nails down the black board – although the new interactive whiteboards now installed in classrooms have dulled that particular pain. So for Cold War Kids, who are obviously musically very accomplished indeed, their ability to fragment a melody, rip the heart out of it, throw it around the auditorium and then pick up the pieces to reconstruct it is a neat trick that must have caused some discomfort as it evolved. But it is their control of pandemonium that gives them their particular sound and keeps the music fresh and exciting.
The gig at the Shepherds Bush Empire was full to bursting and it was clear from overheard conversations in the bar that a fair few people had gone on the strength of the single ‘Hang me out to dry’ and little more. But there were some really good tunes in the set with the band’s repertoire as varied and unpredictable as the bridges in each song. Nathan Willet comes across as an all round nice guy and his vocals are powerful and distinct but the powerful and solid drummer (the only band member that didn’t meet the group at an Evangelical College) is the keystone and keeps the whole thing from falling apart during their explorations. These guys have the potential to really forge a long career and build a strong following – but it could be a long burn rather than a quick and potentially less dramatic flare up. It’s also possible that the European audience will be more important to them than America in giving them a leg up. The last number in the encore during which the support act joined and jammed with them was ‘St John’ - possibly the best moment of the gig and a great closer that had the audience singing and probably coming back for more, with friends, next time.
Reviewed By : Stephen Izatt
