Over the past few months, Antiquiet has developed an interesting relationship with the Cold War Kids. After reviewing their fantastic new album, Loyalty To Loyalty, when it was released back in September, we received a cease-and-desist letter from a third-party label representative because- well, because we were showering praise on one of our favorite bands, it seemed.

Our reaction to the fiasco caught the attention of the Cold War Kids themselves, specifically vocalist Nathan Willett- he wrote, explaining his regret about the situation (created by overzealous, label-hired “watchdogs” jumping guns) and encouraging us to do what we damn well pleased. He understood the value of genuine enthusiasm over hyperprotection of carefully controlled promotion schemes. It was refreshing and encouraging to see an artist get directly involved in protecting their own fans.

Two months later, we caught up with Nathan on the German stop of the Cold War Kids’ current European tour. We fired off a massive batch of questions, expecting no more than a casual selection of short answers; hell, the guy’s on tour. What we got instead was an in-depth look at the methods and mechanics of the frontman for one of the best indie rock bands on the circuit.

Nathan’s batch of responses came from “a ridiculously smoky and busy venue in Berlin,” where the Cold War Kids were playing a show that night. He invited follow-up questions, and our conversation continued as the band traveled onward to other countries, which will follow soon. Here’s part one.

Jesse Hughes may be the less-famous co-pilot of the pirate ship known as the Eagles Of Death Metal, but anyone who’s seen a show will tell you that he’s the personality centerpiece of this band. Cocksure and radiantly eager for the kill, the tattooed, muscle-shirted, aviator-wearing Hollywood history buff makes no bones about what he’s here to do. An EODM concert is nothing short of a foot-stomping, ass-shaking, tits-flashing grand old time with Jesse at the wheel, always ready with a wink and a devilish grin beneath his 70’s cop mustache.

And goddamnit, that’s exactly how a rock star should be.

We tracked down Hughes to discuss, among other things, Los Angeles, his new solo album (tentatively titled Fabulous Weapons) and the perils of being sodomized by P. Diddy. That’s right.

You may have noticed, while perusing the interwebs of late, that much is being made of this whole “hipster” fad that is sweeping the nation.

To some, this is a shocking revelation. To others, it’s old news. But for young people on either side of that fence, one glaring question rears it’s stylishly keffiyah’d head: Am I a hipster?

The duo of Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland- better known as The Crystal Method- have been frontrunning pioneers of big beat electronica for over a decade, setting standards with their 1997 debut, Vegas, and raising the bar with each subsequent release. In addition to putting the finishing touches on their yet-untitled fourth studio album, they just kicked off a 30-city weekend club tour throughout the U.S.

The guys have also hosted the now-defunct weekly Community Service radio show on Los Angeles station Indie 103.1 for the past four years, introducing Hollywood’s FM hipsters to the inside track on all things electronica. So, with that being said, we spoke to Scott Kirkland recently, but decided to go a different route than the usual journalistic fellation you see in most interviews. If you want to read about The Crystal Method’s favorite colors or food to eat on tour, there are other places you can go for that. We just got right to the point.

Lewis Black is not an asshole, he just plays one in real life. His comic flare lies in the ability to make people laugh at the baffling absurdity and hypocrisy that dominate modern American politics. As one of the country’s foremost social satirists, Black grabbed American’s attention by the throat with with his volcanically frothing social “commentaries on everything,” hands shaking worse than Michael J. Fox on crystal meth, ranting and writhing like he’s possessed by demons far too large for his skin.

When not on the road performing (where he spends most of his time), Black’s either doing his show, writing new material or talking to bastards like us. We leapt at the chance to spend a few minutes ruffling feathers with the best firestarter out there about Obama and McCain, dead comic heroes and why evolution is the only thing that keeps him going.