The Killers are an American rock band formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2001 by Brandon Flowers and Dave Keuning. After the band went through several short-term bassists and drummers, Mark Stoermer and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. joined in 2002.
named after: Crystal
members: Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Ronnie Vannucci
formed in: Las Vegas
labels: Island Records, Lizard King Records, Vertigo Records
genres: alternative rock
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In 2001, Brandon Flowers was fired by his first band, a synth-pop trio called Blush Response. After attending an Oasis concert at the Hard Rock Hotel during The Tour of Brotherly Love, Flowers realized his calling was to be in a rock band and began searching for like-minded musicians. He eventually came across an ad posted in a Las Vegas newspaper by Dave Keuning, a 25-year-old guitarist who had moved to Las Vegas from Iowa a year earlier. When the pair met in summer 2001, they bonded over similar musical influences and began writing songs together in Keuning's apartment. The first time the duo met, Keuning gave Flowers a four-track tape recording that contained an early riff of "Mr. Brightside". Flowers returned the next time they met...
The Killers have been grouped with various genres, including alternative rock, indie rock, post-punk revival, new wave, heartland rock, pop rock, synth-pop, pop, glam rock, dance-rock, dance-pop, arena rock, and electronic rock.
Underlined songs have their story further down.
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"Fire in Bone" is a song by American rock band the Killers, as the sixth track from their sixth studio album, Imploding the Mirage (2020). It was released on April 24, 2020, as the first promotional single from the album.
A visualizer video was released the same day.
"Fire in Bone" was announced by the Killers on social media on April 21, 2020. According to frontman Brandon Flowers, "Fire in Bone" is one of the band's "favorite album tracks." In an interview with Mormon-based podcast The Foyer, Flowers said the song was "so beautiful. It's just... it just transcends... we did this record with two producers, Shawn Everett and Jonathan Rado... And it's just so, it just touches your heart." Flowers also remarked how he's "been lucky enough to have that experience a lot in my life. I’m grateful and I’m thankful for it, but it reminded me of the first album [Hot Fuss], when those moments happened a lot" in an interview to NME.
"Fire in Bone" received positive reviews from critics. Sam Sodomsky from Pitchfork called the song "a pitch-perfect ’80s tempest—an exquisitely layered Thomas Dolby-style funhouse [song]" before adding on that Flowers sings "straight from the heart, eyes closed, arms outstretched" in the final chorus. Bethany Carter of Redbrick Magazine remarked that "the sheer genius of creating a song with such a spirited melody and simplistic lyrics is what makes the track feel alive." Christopher Connor of Indie is not a Genre praised the song for "its distinctive chiming guitars and there is definitely more than a hint of Bruce Springsteen to be found, both in the beat and lyricisms" and rated the song 3.5 stars. Rolling Stone Magazine described it as...
"Mr. Brightside" is a song by American rock band the Killers.
It appears on their debut studio album, Hot Fuss (2004). Written by band members Brandon Flowers and Dave Keuning, it was one of the first songs the Killers ever wrote.
Lyrically, "Mr. Brightside" depicts a true story of Brandon Flowers' jealousy and paranoia when he walked into a bar in Las Vegas and found his girlfriend cheating on him. Flowers began writing the song after gaining inspiration from the end of his first relationship while staying in his sister's room. "I was asleep and I knew something was wrong," he said. "I have these instincts. I went to the Crown and Anchor, a bar in Vegas, and my girlfriend was there with another guy."
In one of the song's first reviews, The Washington Post stated, "dashing through the tune as if it were a power ballad on speed, Flowers and company had the capacity crowd pulsing along with glee." "Mr. Brightside" became a popular song within the Las Vegas music scene with one reviewer calling it a "feel-good anthem that ranks as one of the best local tracks in a long time". In positive reviews, NME said the song was filled with "ambition, sex, and noise" while Rolling Stone described the song as having "swelled with anthemic majesty". The Guardian considered "Mr. Brightside" to be the most overplayed song, and noted that it has been played "on the radio. In the supermarket. In the pub. The office. In a cab. Thrumming through your...
There are two videos for Mr. Brightside: the first version (also known as the UK version) was filmed in Staten Island, New York, and was directed by Brad and Brian Palmer under their studio Surround. Later on in the year and following the success of single "Somebody Told Me", their label Island Records decided to create a higher budget video for the US market: the second video (also known as the US version) was filmed in Los Angeles, California. Directed by Sophie Muller, the video stars Flowers, Izabella Miko, and Eric Roberts in a love triangle, occurring within the context of a burlesque show.
In 2005, Stuart Price released a remix of the song under his pseudonym Jacques Lu Cont. Reviewers were generally negative: for example, Michael Paoletta said this version "depletes the song of its energy and intensity". That same year, this song as well as two others by the Killers ("Smile Like You Mean It" and "Somebody Told Me") reached the Billboard Top 20 single chart. An extended version of the Stuart Price remix of the song was featured on the Killers' 2007 B-side and rarities compilation, Sawdust. During the Flamingo Road Tour for Brandon Flowers' solo record Flamingo in 2010, he performed the remix version with Stuart Price during his show at Brixton Academy and has since performed it on his tour as the show closer, again in the...
"Read My Mind" is a song by American rock band the Killers. It was released on February 13, 2007, as the third single from their second studio album, Sam's Town (2006).
It peaked at number 62 on the US Billboard Hot 100, topped three other Billboard rankings, and charted at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart.
In an interview with Chicago radio station Q101, lead vocalist Brandon Flowers called "Read My Mind" the best song he had ever written. Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe (of Pet Shop Boys) saw the Killers in concert at Brixton Academy at the end of November 2006, where the idea of a remix for "Read My Mind" was discussed between the two parties. The resulting remix, "Pet Shop Boys 'Stars Are Blazing' Mix" featuring additional vocals by Tennant and Lowe, is one of the B-sides for the single, and is featured on the Pet Shop Boys album Disco Four.
Critical response to the single was positive; the song was often praised although the album received highly mixed reviews. Yahoo Music said "the album peaks with the arena-sized 'Read My Mind'". Sven Philipp (with Billboard) called the single "a gloriously melodic Duran Duran-meets-Springsteen tale about 'breakin' out of this two-star town.'" Adrien Begrand with PopMatters said, "The Killers shine on the song, Flowers’s synth offsetting Keuning’s tasteful flourishes wonderfully." NME called the song the "righteous and anthemic album highlight." It was also listed as number 12 on Rolling Stone's 100 Best Songs of 2006 even though Sam's Town had previously received negative reviews from the magazine. In reference to the Pet Shop Boys remix,...
The video for "Read My Mind" was shot in Tokyo and directed by Diane Martel, shortly before the band embarked on their New Zealand and Australian leg of the Sam's Town Tour. In an interview, Brandon Flowers called the tune "kind of our favorite song" and promised the clip would find the band "in Tokyo, on bikes."
"Somebody Told Me" is a song by American rock band the Killers. It was released as the second official single from the group's debut studio album Hot Fuss (2004), and was written by band members Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Mark Stoermer and Ronnie Vannucci Jr.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Brandon Flowers said: "This is the story of trying to meet someone in a club." It is written in the key of B-flat minor.
Stylistically, "Somebody Told Me" has been cited as alternative rock, new wave, dance-rock, disco, and indie dance. The song is in the verse-chorus form. The intro of the song is a B♭m chord, leading into the first verse, which consists of a B♭m–E♭m–B♭ chord progression repeated twice, followed by a pre-chorus of G♭–A♭–B♭m chord progression repeated twice.
Billboard called the song "wildly infectious", and "as addictive as nickel slots". Blender asserted that the single is a "superb blaze of synthesizers and guitars that builds to the year's best one-liner: 'Somebody told me you had a boyfriend who looked like a girlfriend I had in February of last year.'"
The music video for "Somebody Told Me", was filmed in February 2004 in California, and was directed by Brett Simon. It shows the Killers performing their song in the moonlight of a desert location (the night scene turns to day during the ending chorus), with a giant LED screen displaying scrolling characters and flashing images of their logo, as well as an alternate version of the video shot during the day. The imagery in the video pays homage to that of "Crystal" by English alternative dance group New Order; the Killers named themselves after the fictitious band performing in the New Order video.
"Spaceman" is a song by the Killers. The song was released as the second single from the band's third studio album Day & Age on November 4, 2008, as a digital download on iTunes, and as 7" and promo CD in the US, Canada and the UK.
It has been released to radio in Australia and has gone into regular rotation on Triple J. This song was number 17 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.
The song was featured in the Fringe episode "The No-Brainer", as well as on the trailer of the animated film Planet 51 starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. The song was also released as a downloadable track for the music video game series Rock Band on November 25, 2008.
The music video was directed by American director Ray Tintori, and shows Brandon Flowers walking around a party in progress, happening on a unique tiered structure adorned with long white vertical lights. Many humanoid creatures (all dressed up in very colourful, carnival-like costumes) are dancing, occasionally as a group, but usually individually. The other three band members can also be seen at the party throughout the video. As more of the structure is revealed, it can be seen that it is in the middle of a wide open space, surrounded by the camera crew filming the video.
"When You Were Young" is a song by American rock band the Killers. It was released on September 18, 2006, as the lead single from their second studio album, Sam's Town (2006).
The song was written and produced by The Killers and co-produced by Flood and Alan Moulder.
The song, which is in the key of B major and written in common time, displays the band's move towards a more "heartland rock" style, as it is part of an album that was supposedly heavily influenced by the music of Bruce Springsteen. The song itself was reportedly influenced by Springsteen's "Born to Run" and "Thunder Road". The song was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song, and the single's video, directed by Anthony Mandler, received a nomination in the category of Best Short Form Music Video. The single was ranked number 69 on iTunes Top 100 Best Sellers: Songs of 2006. The song also made number 4 on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2006.
The music video for this song was filmed in Tlayacapan, Mexico. The visual style was inspired by the films Japón and Batalla en el Cielo directed by Carlos Reygadas.
The song appears in the video games, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, SingStar Amped, Rock Band and Guitar Hero Live.