It's been over two decades since two young, music-obssessed, lost souls – Nathan Willett and Matt Maust – found each other and formed Cold War Kids.
Maisie Fitzmaurice
Since the relase of the band's first studio album, Robbers & Cowards, in 2007, their music has told all-baring stories, displaying the fevor of the human experience – all wrapped up and ornamented with catchy hooks and gorgeous piano melodies.
The band's long running career isn't due to creating with the purpose of promoting an image or to obtain popularity – they simply make music that resonates with people.
It's music for people who think and feel a little too deeply to walk unscathed in a world with protruding brokeness. But, the universality of these painted experiences, makes the music enjoyable for anyone.
Life can be quite emotionally arrousing, and listening to the conviction, and sometimes desperation, through Willetts vocal delivery – on top of energetic support from the multi-talented musicians that make up the band – feels like a release of that energy.
For their 20 Years Tour, Willett and Maust performed with guitarist David Quon, drummer Joe Plummer and Matthew Schwartz on keys at Newport Music Hall. Each member displays their own intensity; banging on the keys, vigorously shaking maracas and moving from one side of the stage to another, bouncing between instruments. The five piece band has undeniable chemistry on stage, allowing for a pleasant vibe that poured over into the crowd, chasing the fog from the fog machines.
To get the show started, the band opens up with their hit, "Love is Mystical," a track that encapsulates their music in a nutshell: romantic and poetic lyrics, booming bass lines, potent piano riffs and an irresitably catchy chorus. "So Tied Up" and "Complainer," another pair of radio-hits, engaged the crowd as they danced and sang along.
The set list was made up of almost all older favorites; a sequence of the most widely-loved tracks from their ten albums – "Saint John" and "Hospital Beds" off of Robbers & Cowards, "Louder Than Ever" off of Mine Is Yours, and "Miracle Mile" off of Dear Miss Lonelyhearts – to name a few. This was a treat for an audience full of millenials who were reaching young adulthood during the bands first few albums.
"Hang Me Up to Dry" proved to be one, if not the, favorite of the night. Concertgoers immediately recognized the guitar riff, cheering and singing along. Willett steps away from the microphone to let the crowd sing the chorus in unison. Wiping the off the sweat dripping down his face, he holds up his fist.
Once he had everyones attention, Willett breifly shares his experience writing "For Your Love," a track off of their most recently released self-titled album, Cold War Kids (2023).
He reveals to the crowd that the song was written about his five-year-old autistic daughter, the joy that he garners from her and the act of "surrendering to this new life" after her diagnosis.
"We Used To Vacation" is, in my opinion, one of their most relatable but raw, heartbreaking tracks. It also just so happens to be the first song off of their first album. Performing it drew the crowd together once again to sing the chorus, creating yet another emotionally-touching moment.
Before performing the last songs of the night, Willett showcases an entrancing piano solo and enters the crowd to shake hands and show his appreciation to Columbus fans.
It wouldn't have been a proper show without a performance of "First," one of the band's choice of encore tracks, along with "Something Is Not Right With Me."
We don't yet know what to expect from Cold War Kids next, but the release of the single, "Meditations," this past October, and rumors of a new album, makes me eager for what's to come.
For now, I'll enjoy the previous twenty years' masterpieces.
Maisie Fitzmaurice is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at mfitzmaurice@cityscenemediagroup.com.
