Cold War Kids

Members of the rock intelligentsia both love and hate these Kids, who headline at the Boulder Theater on Friday, October 3 — and the trio's latest is a divider, not a uniter, too. On the positive tip, guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist Nathan Willett remains a fiercely intelligent storyteller, as he proves in "Every...

By Michael Roberts

October 2, 2008

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Members of the rock intelligentsia both love and hate these Kids, who headline at the Boulder Theater on Friday, October 3 — and the trio's latest is a divider, not a uniter, too. On the positive tip, guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist Nathan Willett remains a fiercely intelligent storyteller, as he proves in "Every Valley Is Not a Lake," which brims with grandmotherly wisdom such as "Use your wits, child, 'cause nothing stays the same." But Willett's keening yelp can be irritating at times (mark his repeated "Welcome to the Occupation" claim that "The devil's in the details!" as exhibit A), and the band's sound draws a bit too heavily from the bluesy indie lexicon many others employ. The results are always interesting but only intermittently compelling — promising to some, threatening to others.

Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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