It Got Chilly in the Desert

Pioneertown Days

Last Saturday I headed to Pappy & Harriett's in Yucca Valley, the Pioneertown side of things, to see Cold War Kids. 

So basically, I saw Cold War Kids in a small cowboy bar that has huge barbecue pits and picnic tables outside and a little cowboy village that doubles as a hotel. When we were checking in at the door, two men rode up and asked where the horse parking was. One was trailed by a mule.

I have always been intrigued by the place. Having maintained calendar listings for OC Weekly, IE Weekly and LA City Beat, I know a lot about who has played where during the last 12 years. 

Pappy & Harriett's is awesome. I was standing smack on the other side of lead singer Nathan Willett's keyboards. The set list was two inches from my belt buckle. There couldn't have been more than a couple hundred people crammed into the entire place.

Of course I took that set list the moment the show was over. Snag. 

I cannot say enough good things about Pappy & Harriett's. I have already said my piece about Cold War Kids. They were amazing, as always. But this is really about the digs. Next show I got to—and I have a few interesting ones to choose from—I am having dinner too. They serve drinks in mason jars, so I am sure they have portions bigger than a hubcap. 

Upcoming shows include Dick Dale, I See Hawks in L.A., The Country (with members of Gram Rabbit), Masters of Reality, Merle Jagger and, most interestingly, The Evangenitals—a punk rock, hillbilly love-in "of the freak-folk variety." I'm in. Plenty of greats have passed through Pappy & Harriett's in previous years, most recently Robert Plant, Arctic Monkeys, Vampire Weekend, The Donnas, Peaches, Billy Corgan, Lucinda Williams and plenty more.

The hotel looks like a good time, interesting if nothing else. Pack your corsets and spurs. But instead we camped in Joshua Tree for the night, which is better than getting a room at the Standard in LA after a show anytime. And there is a cool hippy/hiking store not far from the campground—next to the Home of the Dome where signs hang that say witty things like "Dome Sweet Dome." 

I scored a Mega Ball, an ice cream maker in a ball that is perfect for shaking up around the campfire, incense and a tic-tac-toe game made out of sustainable, environmental-friendly materials. And we never hit traffic once. 

Robert Plant with the house band at Pappy & Harriett's

Check them out:

http://www.pappyandharriets.com/index2.html

The Cold War Kids Warming Up

The Kids are Alright

There are moments that feel a little surreal. Like when Nathan Willett from the Cold War Kids is chatting with me on the phone and starts talking about a conversation he had a few weeks ago with Win Butler of Arcade Fire. Really? Cue pinching self. This music fan eats that stuff up. 

CWK by Matt Wignall

We were chatting about the off-the-grid shows CWK will be playing during the next month, playing the new album Mine is Yours live for the first time. Some of the venues are quite quaint and have become favorites of indy acts, like Pappy & Harriett's in Yucca Valley and places in Big Sur. Nathan went to the Arcade Fire show in Big Sur, and what do you know? CWK is playing Big Sur, not exactly a hipster hot spot but a hell of a great road trip for anyone with the means to make it. 

CWK also offered its first single, "Louder than Ever," which I highly recommend, for free on www.recordlabeltoday.com this past Monday.  “There are so few rules in this day and age in the music world that it’s kind of like, might as well give it a shot,” Willett says about giving away music for free. Plus, the guys are getting antsy to get the songs out there and don't really want to sit on them for the next couple months before the official release. 

As for the new album: I love it. It's not as rough as previous CDs and EPs, but it's time for the kids to grow up. The band’s focus on capturing the emotion in the delivery waned. “That style sort of ran its course with us,” Willett says. “We wanted to get it right no matter how much time it took.” 

Here's the article that came out in IE Weekly today: 

The Big Chill 

 IE Weekly

Cold War Kids are ready to galvanize the rock snobs

By: Arrissia Owen Turner

The first chance fans can hear Cold War Kids’ much anticipated upcoming release Mine is Yours is tomorrow at the Glass House. The album hits stores Jan. 24. Score one for the IE.

 Known for their raw sound and energetic live shows, the self-proclaimed soul punksters never fail to get a witness as they spread their gospel. But now they’re ready to put on the production ritz. The songs on their third full-length will likely make the Long Beach/Silver Lake-based band arena-filling rock stars thanks to the pop polish of new producer Jacquire King.

After their debut full-length release Robbers & Cowards turned the band into a critically-praised indie rock outfit, they followed with the less autobiographical, more-literary leaning Loyalty to Loyalty.

 The album didn’t galvanize rock snobs they way the first did—although the lyric “I tried to call you collect/You said you would not accept/Your friends are laughing because nobody uses pay phones” and Matt Maust’s bumping bass line made the album’s “Something is Not Right With Me” a searing rocker.

The Kids looked to King (Modest Mouse, Kings of Leon, Tom Waits) based on his success rate with bands they know and like. They spent more time in the studio than ever before, giving up their less-is-more mentality for the next step toward superstardom.

For the next few months before the marketing blitz begins the band plays some smaller venues to kick into gear.

“It’s kind of a big field trip,” says front man Nathan Willett. “It’s a fun adventure.”

For the full story, click below:

http://www.ieweekly.com/cms/story/detail/the_big_chill/3596/