 "Photo: Photo Courtesy of MCT Campus")
In 2004 the Las Vegas foursome, The Killers released their debut album Hot Fuss that has a retro 1980s vibe of Roxy Music and The Cure. In 2006 they reinvented themselves with Sam's Town as an America U2 blended with a rough and tumble Bruce circa the Born to Run era.
In 2008 came Day and Age, which has slashes of Bowie and The Cars. During that four year span they also managed to release an extensive album of unreleased tracks and three Christmas songs. Late this fall the world will be graced with the first Killers live DVD and a covers album.
It's safe to describe the young band as slightly ambitious and extremely dedicated. And although their fan base has slightly trickled off since their shot gun start in 2004, The Killers are just warming up. 2008's Day and Age is their best act so far, due to its musical diversity and lyrical strength. Lead singer Brandon Flowers is responsible for most of the bands image, both positive and negative. Whether he's bombastically shuffling across the stage, smirking and giggling in interviews, or criticizing fellow bands; Flowers is a front man for the ages. With glints of Freddie Mercury and David Bowie, Flowers is flamboyant, ostentatious, mysterious, awkward, and surprisingly conservative. His Mormon faith is evident in several of his lyrics, especially off of Day and Age.
On August 31, The Killers played the infamous Merriweather Post Pavillion in Columbia Maryland. The beautiful outdoor venue serves a diverse crowd from Baltimore, Washington DC, Virginia, and even Maryland's eastern shore.
The hard rock band, Wolfmother from Australia opened the show at 7:30 and played a playful set of songs for a very eager crowd. At nearly 9 pm, The Killers strolled on stage to a barrage of thumbing music and a ten second count down. Flowers chanted to a crowd from "Columbia, Baltimore, DC, Maryland, Virginia, and America," belting "We're The Killers, brought to you by Las Vegas, Nevada." The opened the set with the Bowie-esque Joyride and blasted through a set that included songs from all three studio albums. Flowers and crew even blessed the crowd with a rendition of Love Me Tender following their ballad, Dustland Fairytale. With such a high energy set list of great songs, it's difficult to pin point the high points.
However, the heart aching For Reasons Unknown and the acoustic version of Smile Like You Mean were a few of the night's gems. The decision to play the very rarely seen Change Your Mind and Believe Me Natalie was a nice treat for 15,000 fans.
Flowers mumbling monologues were as contrived as the band's plastic palm trees and pyrotechnics, but it was nothing short of marvelous. The Killers are as calculated as Queen was in the 1980s, but during a time of shredded skinny jeans and Chuck Taylors, the glitz and glimmer of the Vegas quartet is refreshing.
Flowers make up, feather lapels, and short crew cut are a stark contrast to the shaggy look of the majority of the indie rock scene.
The high light of the night came in the encore, the very last song of the set. When You Were Young, Sam's Town's first single, is in my opinion the band's most defining song. It's catchy arena rock guitar riffs and fist pumping lyrics make the song a decade defining anthem.
And besides the fact that Flowers whimsical lyrics are often hard to decipher, the song-like so many of The Killers songs-makes so many clear cut statements about life in the past decade.
The Killers are the weirdest mainstream band in America as they constantly re invent their style and seem un fazed by their decreasing popularity, confident that true fans with stick around. I've been a victim since 2004 and I plan on staying on the band wagon.
Flowers and crew have saved mainstream rock-at least for the time being. Along with Coldplay and The White Stripes, The Killers have kept classic rock fans of 70s and 80s bands like Bruce Springsteen, U2, and The Police hopeful that MTV doesn't completely dominate the music world.
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