Forming in 2004 in Fullerton California, the Cold War Kids' early releases came from independent record label Monarchy Music. In 2006, the band signed with Downtown/V2 and released their major label debut Robbers & Cowards to cult appeal from fans and critics. 2008's Loyalty to Loyalty and 2011's Mine Is Yours saw the band develop different musical sounds and lyrical content throughout to mixed reviews. The band's seventh studio album, New Age Norms 1, was released on November 1, 2019.
The members of Cold War Kids met at Biola University. They formed a band in 2004 when they would meet regularly in Jonnie Russell's apartment above a restaurant called Mulberry Street in downtown Fullerton. Maust came up with the band's name around 1997, during his travels in Eastern Europe with his brother, where they found a park in Budapest with missing statues, taken away after Communism fell. Seeing that there was a playground in the park, Maust said "...being in that environment just made the phrase 'Cold War Kids' pop into my head. I may have heard it before. I'm a Cold War kid, too – I was born in 1979." Maust used the name for his personal website, but then he repurposed it after the band decided to use the name. The band relocated to Whittier, California, and began recording their first demo, which Monarchy Music released as the EP Mulberry Street (based on the restaurant where they regularly met) in spring 2005. Between tours, the band released two more EPs: With Our Wallets Full and Up in Rags, in 2006. Monarchy Music would re-release those EPs as one compilation album titled Up in Rags/With Our Wallets Full in 2006.
In summer 2006, Cold War Kids signed with Downtown Records and started work on their debut album. The album titled Robbers & Cowards was released on October 10, 2006, with sales close to 200,000 copies. Critics were impressed with the band's blues rock sound and lyrics that told morose tales of yesteryear: Joe Tacopino of PopMatters said that "These ambitious youngsters are definitely worth the trip, even without the ostentatious vocal harmonies." Jeff Weiss of Stylus Magazine called the album "[It’s] a good debut, maybe even a very good one. Whether or not this band will achieve greatness remains anybody’s guess." One of the album's biggest detractors came from Marc Hogan of Pitchfork, who criticized the band for its songwriting, melodies, and Christian symbolism, saying that "Robbers and Cowards insults our intelligence a few times too often." Cat Dirt Sez of the San Diego CityBeat said that Hogan's review was an example of lazy journalism, with lead guitarist Jonnie Russell saying that the reviewer wanted a wittier approach to the album rather than a thoughtful assessment of it.

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