Great Expectations

The music buying (or stealing) public can be extremely hasty when choosing bands to lay their admiration's upon. Bands will appear in the mainstream music media seemingly over night and by the time they have finished putting the final touches to their debut, people are labelling them saviours of music, the greatest band since....

How many times have you listened to a bands debut album, perhaps seen them play a live show, then added them to your list of favourite artists?

When The Killers released their debut album 'Hot Fuss' in 2004, their alternative indie disco sound was everywhere. Songs such as 'Mr Brightside' and 'Somebody Told Me' are still played most weekends in clubs around Britain and still find their way onto compilation Cd's of indie musics greatest bands.

With their debut being so critically acclaimed the band already had so much to live up to with their second album, 'Sams Town', which saw them move away from their disco pop edge and onto something that drew influence from much deeper. Whereas 'Hot Fuss' had more of a European twang to it, 'Sams Town' was definitely an American album, and why not? They are after all an American band. Despite the inclusion of some radio friendly hits which certainly did the MTV rounds, the album pretty much came and went without causing much of a stir.

What the album did demonstrate though was that The Killers were hard working musician who were capable of creating an entire album of music that separated itself from the other collections of hits, or in many cases, collections of fillers, that other acts in their position would have put out.

'Day and Age' is the third album from The Killers and sees them move in another new direction, combining more of the electronic sounds of 'Hot Fuss' with the experimental sounds and arrangements of 'Sams Town'. Gone are the fuzzy angular guitar riffs and disco 4/4 beats and in their place are big synth textures and a more classic guitar sound as demonstrated on their previous album.

For me, 'Day and Age' has a sound reminiscent of 80s nu-romantic-esc bands such as Roxy Music and Spandau Ballet, however, this album isn't as sickly sweet as many of the comparisons that could be drawn and Brandon Flowers vocal does bring a sincerity and hints at a darker edge to their commercial sound.

The arrangements are built from layers of soft synthesiser sounds and classic rock guitar tones, along with other, more unusual instrumentation creating complex sound-scapes under the main driving melodies. The combinations of vocal harmonies also create a bigger, more epic sound but without losing intimacy and personality.

I think the greatest thing about this album is that it again shows the bands ability as songwriters and shows an artistic spirit that refuses to sell out and to go for the easy money. No matter what direction music and fashion seems to be heading in, The Killers have proved again that they will produce independently of this and can offer new sounds and ideas far from what their peers are offering, but which can still be heard on daytime popular radio.

The Killers - Day and Age