L.A. Divine
2017 studio album by Cold War Kids
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L.A. Divine is the sixth studio album by American indie rock band Cold War Kids. It was released on April 7, 2017, through Capitol Records. It is the first album to feature lead guitarist David Quon, replacing Dann Gallucci.[1]
| L.A. Divine | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 7, 2017 | |||
| Recorded | 2016 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Length | 43:13 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Producer | Lars Stalfors | |||
| Cold War Kids chronology | ||||
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| Singles from L.A Divine | ||||
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Background
The album name, a lyric from a song that did not make the record, reflects the recent rise of interest in Los Angeles "as a place where culture, restaurants and things are happening".[2]
On the first single, "Love Is Mystical", Nathan Willett stated that "When you tour as much as we do, and you get back in the studio in the middle of it, you're kinda numb, it is hard to get that feeling back and this song was the real breakthrough. It's about supernatural love – looking for inspiration and meaning, surrendering to feeling, love calling out your name; that journey we must go on to find it."[3]
Singles
The first single from the album, "Love Is Mystical", was released on February 2, 2017. The second single, "Can We Hang On?" was released on March 2, 2017. The third single, "Restless", was released on April 6, 2017. The fourth single, "So Tied Up" featuring Bishop Briggs, was released on August 8, 2017.
Critical reception
AllMusic's Heather Phares found the album as a whole "a little less consistent than Hold My Home," with its needless interludes and the band's overwhelming intensity but gave praise for recapturing that record's "solidly anthemic sound" while adding a bit of pop music to it that's "reminiscent of Fun," concluding that: "Nevertheless, L.A. Divine shows that Cold War Kids continue to expand their range – and if they're becoming more accessible with each album, it's on their own terms."[5] Paste writer Scott Heisel found the album "frustrating in its monotonous insistence on making everything sound the same, simultaneously trying to land every single song on SiriusXM's Alt Nation channel but not focusing enough on developing the personality of any one track."[7] Grant Rindner of DIY commented on the band's attempt to duplicate the sound they had with "First" saying "there's logic to what's going on here but it still feels unnatural." Rindner added that the record was "simply too rigid for Willett to shine", commenting that drummer Joe Plummer was less subtle in giving him "predictable, percussive grids that give his voice a jarringly artificial, almost showtune quality."[6]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Love Is Mystical" | 3:34 | |
| 2. | "Can We Hang On?" |
| 3:43 |
| 3. | "So Tied Up" (featuring Bishop Briggs) |
| 3:09 |
| 4. | "Restless" |
| 4:52 |
| 5. | "LA River" |
| 1:07 |
| 6. | "No Reason to Run" |
| 3:12 |
| 7. | "Open Up the Heavens" |
| 3:38 |
| 8. | "Invincible" |
| 4:30 |
| 9. | "Wilshire Protest" |
| 1:22 |
| 10. | "Luck Down" |
| 2:42 |
| 11. | "Ordinary Idols" |
| 3:30 |
| 12. | "Cameras Always On" |
| 0:35 |
| 13. | "Part of the Night" |
| 4:00 |
| 14. | "Free to Breathe" |
| 3:19 |
Personnel
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes and Tidal.[8][9]
Cold War Kids
- Matthew Maust – bass guitar (tracks 1–4, 6–8, 10, 11, 13), art direction
- David Quon – guitar (1–3, 6, 7), background vocals (1, 2, 6), keyboards (7), art direction
- Joe Plummer – art direction[a]
- Matthew Schwartz – background vocals (1–4, 6, 11, 13), keyboards (1–3, 6, 13), synthesizer programming (1), art direction
- Nathan Willett – vocals (all tracks), keyboards (1–13), guitar (1–4, 6–8, 10, 11, 13, 14), piano (1–4, 6–8, 10, 11, 13), organ (10), art direction
Additional contributors
- Lars Stalfors – production, mixing, engineering (all tracks); programming (1–4, 6–8, 10, 11, 13, 14), keyboards (2–4, 6, 8, 13), synthesizer programming (4, 10)
- Corin Roddick – additional production (3, 4)
- Dave Cerminara – engineering (1–4, 6–11, 13, 14)
- Joe LaPorta – mastering
- Nathan Warkentin – art direction
- Dan Monick – photography
- Monica Reyes – additional photography
- Matthew Compton – drums, percussion (1–4, 6–8, 10, 11, 13)
- Bishop Briggs – vocals (3)
- Dann Gallucci – guitar (13)
- Dan Wilson – keyboards (14)
Charts
| Chart (2017) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[10] | 69 |
| US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[11] | 9 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[12] | 10 |