Genre: Indie Rock

Label: Mercury



CRITIQUE:


From the Vegas indie boys who rocked for Hot Fuss, the Brit-friendly band then moved Western front for their epic-smash follow-up Sam’s Town, an all-pervasive, stadium-filling leviathan of a record that is arguably their masterpiece. Dropping the eyeliners, putting on beards and desert boots – from Mr Brightside to bonkers lyrics, Day and Age is their comeback. The panoramic scale of their sophomore effort feels almost like a mirage, for this recent one sounds like an experiment, albeit a good one. Human, perhaps the best track in the album, is not only wrought with unexpected emotion, but is also ridden with kooky, brow-raising lyrics: “Are we human, or are we dancer?” No philosophy, please. It veers between a dance-floor sweeper and a contemplative piece. And speaking of impenetrable songwriting, Brandon Flowers continue crooning about being “ripped away from my bed” in Spaceman, and "Cinderella looking for a nightgown” in A Dustland Fairytale . This is utterly ridiculous, but forgivable for their harking back to the 80s beats and synths. There are eccentric chunks here; a feel-good nod to the jazz-funk in Joyride (discovering the function of a saxophone), an outlandish This Is Your Life (quirky African-Safari journey of a song), and the strangely wonderful I Can’t Stay (very The Cure-ish).


VERDICT:

Outlandish The Killers, bonkers, indecipherable lyrics, but far from a bad record. This is a concept that nods to the 80s beats – feel-good and still excellent.



RATING: B+