The Las Vegas pop/rock band The Killers has’ reinvented itself once again with the release of the band’s third studio album, ‘Day ‘amp; Age.’
‘Day ‘amp; Age’ indeed proves to be a change from the sounds from its most recent b-sides album, ‘Sawdust’ and its previous sophomore release, ‘Sam’s Town.’
‘Day ‘amp; Age’ takes some getting used to, although, The Killers debut a new and energizing sound once again. The Killers pre-released ‘Human’ and ‘Spaceman’ off this album. ‘Human’s’ video took place in the desert and its song featured the line ‘are we human or are we dancer?’ This song sparked some debate and was bashed by Rolling Stone for featuring confusing and grammatically incorrect lyrics, often confused as ‘are we human or are we denser.” Brandon Flowers defended the lyric, as it was inspired by a quote by author Hunter S. Thompson.
I worry that listeners will soon need a dictionary to listen to these songs and hope Flowers does not always look to quote books to craft his lyrics for future albums.
The Killers lyrics on this album have a similar ambiguity, however, the unique-thumping- new beats make up for any unclear lyrics. ‘Human’ and ‘Spaceman’ were both good releases and gave audiences a dose of the band’s even more theatrical music this time around.
Brandon Flowers’ unique voice is enough without having to be overdone in some songs. Examples of this are heard on tracks like, ‘Joy Ride’ and ‘This is Your Life.’ One only needs to listen to the first 30 seconds of those songs to hear what I mean.
Sometimes it seems that The Killers are trying too hard to be ‘epic.” This band is so talented that such flamboyant efforts to dazzle audiences are unnecessary. However, this is only a minor flaw in The Killers latest efforts. This CD offers a fresh sound with sounds just as impressive as those on previous albums. The best bets for downloads are ‘Neon Tiger’, ‘I Can’t Stay’, ‘Losing Touch’, ‘A Dustland Fairytale’ and ‘The World We Live In.” The bonus track, ‘Tidal Wave’ is a slower song but is also a good listen. ‘Dustland Fairytale’ helps us transition from ‘Sam’s Town’ to ‘Day ‘amp; Age’ seeming to be leftover from that album, referring to chrome-America and county fairs.
‘Neon Tiger’ is a personal favorite with its addicting chorus, ‘But neon tiger there’s a lot on your mind / they promised just to pet you, but don’t you let them get you / Away, away, oh, run / Under the neon southwest sun.’ Similar to the band’s video set in the desert just as songs from ‘Sam’s Town’ were, this album refers to the ‘southwest sun’ and other things reminiscent of this bands origin in the country’s desert, Las Vegas. Clearly this band is not trying to be something they are not, but try to display its many talents as best it can. The Killers’ sounds and aspirations are similar to the neon tiger that Flowers urges not to be ‘kept’ or ‘caged.’
The Killers cannot be stopped and will continue to see success as long as Brandon Flowers sounds the way he does and the band continues to support his unique vocals with guitar riffs and dance-worthy beats.
While you’re downloading these songs from ‘Day ‘amp; Age,’ you should consider downloading ‘Don’t Shoot Me Santa,’ the 2007 released single just in time for the holidays.’ Brandon Flowers and his band members know what they are capable of and so long as their loyal fans are willing to put up with some experimentation, this band will continue to produce musical magic. The guys of The Killers can do no wrong as they have proven with their latest album and have secured their spot in music as one of the most notorious alternative-pop-rock bands ever.
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