It seems hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since The Killers splashed a sheen of showbiz across the international music scene with their debut album, Hot Fuss.
Direct from (viva) Las Vegas, the band combined soaringly epic Springsteen-esque arrangements with a Duran Duran dance-pop styling that immediately endeared the band to Australian audiences and saw them emerge during the competitive indie sleaze era that had already heralded the likes of The White Stripes, The Strokes, and Arcade Fire.
“I asked myself, ‘What is it that these bands are doing and why are they not still in their hometown?’ That’s what set us apart quite early on,” frontman Brandon Flowers told NME in December last year about The Killers emerging out of the local Vegas scene and taking on the world.
“We were different, and we were ambitious. Ambition can be seen as an ugly thing to some people but it has served us well. We were able to persevere and it’s kind of unbelievable.”
Playing Hot Fuss in full for its 20th anniversary certainly seems a no-brainer. The instant classic is one of the strongest debut albums ever, amazing considering the band shelved every one of their intended songs – bar the beatific eternal melodrama of “Mr. Brightside” – upon hearing The Strokes’ debut LP, Is This It.
They managed to hunker down to write songs including the hits “Somebody Told Me,” “All These Things That I’ve Done,” and “Smile Like You Mean It,” plus album cuts that became fan favourites such as “Jenny Was a Friend of Mine,” “On Top,” “Believe Me Natalie,” and “Midnight Show.”
Jenny Eliscu of Rolling Stone was effusive about the album in her July 2004 review. “Don’t be fooled by their retro threads and the the in their name: The Killers threaten to pry dance rock from the steely grip of hipsterdom and thrust it unrepentantly into the mainstream… this album is all Killers no filler,” she wrote at the time.
Hot Fuss hit #7 on the US Billboard list, topped the UK album charts for two weeks and landed at #1 on the ARIA Albums Chart here in Australia, cementing The Killers as an international act who stood out stylistically from the rock renaissance acts such as The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Vines, The Kills, and Interpol.
The Killers recently performed a 10-night residency performing Hot Fuss in full at Caesars Palace Las Vegas, and if that doesn’t sound like showbiz itself then the actual show certainly is…
“The crowd (were) ecstatic as The Killers bear-hugged their debut and Las Vegas simultaneously,” the Las Vegas Review Journal stated of the residency’s second night, “their elaborate set design festooned with one nod to their hometown after the next, from neon flamingos and showgirls to vintage footage of Circus Circus and the Riviera forming a by-turns glamorous and gritty backdrop.”
@thekillers Luck be a lady tonight!
After some lineup swaps in recent years, The Killers are back to all their OG members – vocalist Flowers, guitarist Dave Keuning, drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr., and bassist Mark Stoermer. The ever-erudite and flamboyant Flowers seemed to certainly be feeling the moment, playing the band’s debut in their hometown.
“As you know, a lot of people come to Vegas to gamble,” he said when introducing the second song, “Mr. Brightside.” “And I’m no exception. I came here from a quiet town in Utah when I was just 16 years old. I had big dreams working as a busboy right here in Caesars Palace. And I bet my life on three men who I hardly knew. Some people come to Vegas and lose everything – that’s just the way it goes. But let tonight serve as a reminder: sometimes it goes the other way too.”
The Las Vegas Weekly was similarly dreamy about it all: “By the end of it, Flowers looked spent, chest heaving, his Nevada state pendant dangling. And with one final comment, the frontman gazed up into the crowd and proclaimed, ‘When we were young, we dreamed about this.'”
The Killers will perform two shows in Sydney and Melbourne, the first a Rebel Diamonds concert, featuring hits from across their 20-year career and a second being the performance of Hot Fuss in its entirety, with an encore of song surprises from their other albums, including their new single “Bright Lights.”
They’re also heading to bringing Rebel Diamonds to Queensland. The Brisbane show might be sold out, but Killers fans in the state can still grab tickets for the Townsville date. With Flowers and co. kicking off their Australian adventure in Townsville, it’s sure to set the standard for the rest of the tour.
Whichever show you go to, though, it’s going to sparkle.
The Killers 2024 Australian Tour
Ticket information available via frontiertouring.com/thekillers
Saturday 30 November – Rebel Diamonds
Queensland Country Bank Stadium | Townsville, QLD
All Ages
axs.com.au
Friday 6 December – Rebel Diamonds
Qudos Bank Arena | Sydney, NSW
All Ages
ticketek.com.au
Saturday 7 December – Hot Fuss
Qudos Bank Arena | Sydney, NSW
All Ages
ticketek.com.au
Monday 9 December – Rebel Diamonds
Brisbane Entertainment Centre | Brisbane, QLD
All Ages
ticketek.com.au
SOLD OUT
Thursday 12 December – Rebel Diamonds
Rod Laver Arena | Melbourne, VIC
All Ages
ticketek.com.au
Friday 13 December – Hot Fuss
Rod Laver Arena | Melbourne, VIC
All Ages
ticketek.com.au
Saturday 14 December – Rebel Diamonds
Rod Laver Arena | Melbourne, VIC
All Ages
ticketek.com.au
