Mine Is Yours

Cold War Kids | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 25, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Interscope
• ASIN: B004AE24HO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,753 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Since their modest beginnings as four guys who drove around southern California with their gear in their cars, packing whatever they could steal a space, Cold War Kids have always exhibited two qualities in their music, intense passion and emotional truth. Lithe and percussive, roaring and tuneful, the soul-punk on the Long Beach quartet's first two albums Robbers & Cowards and Loyalty To Loyalty emerged like miniature goth novels. Singer Nathan Willett channeled taut dramas of men on the edge, families in peril, and crises of faith. The musical literature of these four tight-knit friends-Willett, Jonnie Russell, Matt Maust and Matt Aveiro was a sound that augured something bigger, something more universal.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A strong album, though it flags a bit in the second half, January 25, 2011

By 

Thomas E. Davis (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mine Is Yours (Audio CD)

For what was once an indie rock group, Cold War Kids now has a very commercial sound. And that's understandable, as the band currently records for one of the biggest companies around, Universal Music Group, as a part of their Interscope label. They've toured with Death Cab for Cutie and, on this CD, their third, worked with producer Jacquire King. King has helped to make successes of Modest Mouse and Kings of Leon, to whom the Kids bear more than a passing sonic resemblance.

Sounding slicker in the years since they released their first EPs is probably inevitable, but that's not necessarily a failing. There's always a market for well played, passionately sung, cleverly written songs with catchy melodic hooks. And these things "Mine Is Yours" has in spades. This music is less idiosyncratic and more mainstream than on previous releases, but it's an evolution rather than a complete change of pace. These are clearly the same fellows -- they've just matured and gotten more professional.

The title track sets the pace for the entire album. Like many of the songs on the CD, it's an anthemic blending of rock and Americana, starting quietly and building to a climax on the strength of insistent percussion, layers of guitars, and the ringing vocals of front man Nathan Willett.

The second track is the lead single, "Louder Than Ever," but it's the quirky third cut, "Royal Blue," that grabs me. It has an irresistible bass-driven beat and just as much radio-friendly potential as "Louder." The fourth song, "Finally Begin," is also enjoyable but more conventional, while the next two, "Out of the Wilderness" and "Skip the Charades," are among the strongest material on the album, adding emotional lyrics and haunting harmonies to the Kids' signature sound.

The song "Sensitive Kid" is not nearly as precious as its title suggests, with its jagged, pounding, boom-box rhythms and a resentful vocal reminding us that "sensitive kids start acting like a grown up." The eighth cut, "Bulldozer," starts tentatively and takes the longest of any on the album to swell to its U2-like climax -- but what a finish! Next is "Broken Open," which unfortunately sounds too much like other tracks on the album; nothing sets it apart or makes it particularly memorable for me. That's not to say it's a bad song; most pop groups would kill for anything half as resonant.

The CD winds up with "Cold Toes on the Cold Floor" and "Flying Upside Down," the former eccentric in both rhythm and subject matter, the latter growing from a pensive intro to a thrashing, wailing, wall-of-sound peak. The Kids throw the kitchen sink into this one, and it shows.

If you enjoy their associated groups and previous recordings, you'll find the Cold War Kids' newest release worthwhile. It's really grown on me. Considering the highs they reach, I can understand why it's hard to maintain the same levels of creativity or musical momentum throughout the full length of the album.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Bland, October 12, 2011

By 

Derek - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Mine Is Yours (MP3 Download)

First off, I normally wouldn't bother to ever review an album, because I think reviews for music are largely worthless. I don't even read them normally for the same reason. I read the reviews for this album after I had bought it and listened to it for awhile because I was wondering if others felt like I did. Second, I'm not going to pretend that I'm some big Cold War Kids fan from way back when, because I'm not. I found them from an Amazon suggestion as a result of my browsing history. Normally these suggestions are hilariously terrible or something I already own, so I figured they would be horrible. The suggested album was for Robbers and Cowards, and I instantly liked what I heard. There was an interesting stop and go syncopation and it just was something NEW sounding. It was fun, lively music. So, when I saw mention of this album, I thought hey, I'll just buy it without listening, assuming there would be the same type of music, at least to some extent, that drew me in.
I'm all for evolution of sound, but this is bland. All of the things that made the other album new and fun to me have died on this one. The vocals have lost their distinctive perk and the rest of the music sounds like some bull$%*& adult contemporary garbage I'd hear at the grocery store. I normally pay a good deal of attention to lyrics, but this was so uninspiring I didn't bother; they may be good.

Buy this if you dig soft adult contemporary. It may be your cup of tea, but it certainly isn't mine.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars off the beaten path, March 26, 2011

By 

j. d. greenwood "one book at a time." (socal) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Mine Is Yours (Audio CD)

some real winners on this album, but a little bit too much of a change from their original stuff for me to be comfortable. I needed to listen to it 4 times over before I felt like I could say I liked it. A little too much electronic and felt sorta 80's to me ... still a fan though.