Cold War Kids Announce Second Part of Three-Part Album Series New Age Norms 2 for August 2020 Release

Cold War Kids have announced the second part of their three-part album series New Age Norms will be released on August 21. Cold War Kids also released “You Already Know” with an accompanying music video.

“You Already Know” continues with the same group of young adults that were driving in “Who’s Gonna Love Me Now?,” instead showing the events which occurred prior to the last music video. With a funky electric beat and bouncing bass over the chorus of “If you want it/You can have it/Go and get it.”

The group drives through the backroads of Los Angeles, weaving through empty sprawling hills. The song includes slight electronic synths which lay quietly in the background, Matt Maust’s bass highlighted most throughout the track. Nathan Willett’s raspy vocals play at the same octave as the guitar, the synths sliding through each verse.

“The energy of this record is spontaneous, raw, soulful, chaotic,” Willett said in a press statement. “Just how we felt making it. It feels true and urgent. It feels modern and classic. I think it’s the best record Cold War Kids has ever made.”

The band enlisted acclaimed filmmaker Mezzy, whose projects include Lil Peep: Everybody’s Everything and music videos for Playboi Carti and Lil Uzi Vert, for the accompanying video series. Both “You Already Know” and “Who’s Gonna Love Me Now?” feature the same imagery and actors, the videos continuing off one another. 

New Age Norms 2 is the follow up to last year’s New Age Norms 1. Cold War Kids first announced the trilogy in 2019, the albums including eight tracks each. The band was inspired to create trilogy of albums from Kanye West’s Wyoming series. The third installment will most likely be released next year, and will also include eight tracks. Earlier this year, the band released “1×1” with The Lumineers’ Wesley Schultz, although the song will not be appearing on the upcoming album.

New Age Norms 2 track list:

1. “Who’s Gonna Love Me Now”
2. “Obsession”
3. “You Already Know”
4. “Ceiling Fan”
5. “Regret Regret”
6. “Somewhere”
7. “Across The Divide”
8. “Catch Me Falling”

Photo credit: Brett Padelford