Blog.WBRU

Ever since Brandon Flowers announced that the follow-up to Sam’s Town would be a departure from their failed attempt to produce stadium rock, the Killers’ third LP has been hyped into the next decade and back.  If you’ve been keeping your album release calendar up to date or were just curious as to when the boys from Las Vegas would put out something more like “Somebody Told Me” and less like “When You Were Young”, you are probably wondering, as I was, if Day & Age is really all it’s cracked up to be.

It is.  It definitely, undoubtedly is.  Gone are the days of Flowers’ facial hair and Bruce Springsteen imitations. Day & Age is more like David Bowie, blending an 80s pop sound with characteristics that are distinctively Killers.If you’ve been listening to the radio at all within the past two months, you’ve probably heard “Human”.  Surprise - the rest of the album doesn’t really sound like this.  “What?” gasp the legions of “Mr. Brightside” fans.  Don’t worry.  In terms of what each track contributes to the grand scheme of the album, this is Day & Age’s weak spot - the rest is better than this.  It’s certainly a good dance track, but Day & Age is not an album for the radio.  Except for maybe “Human” and definitely “Spaceman”, shame on you if you listen to any of the songs outside of the context of the album or on shuffle.

“Losing Touch” was an excellent choice of a first track, immediately giving the listener a glimpse of the better points of the album.  It includes a strong guitar solo and a generally improved sound quality (Flowers is not rasping into his mic from eight feet away anymore, and they’ve amped up the lineup for a fuller sound - sax, anyone?).  The next two, “Human” and “Spaceman”, are the two songs most likely to make the radio happy, as I mentioned before.  Track three does not, to my dismay, continue the essential question put in place by track two in suggesting that spaceman could be an alternative to human or dancer, but I’m willing to forgive it because it’s so ridiculously catchy.

The best-known Killers singles have all been near the beginning of their respective albums, with a slight drop-off in quality afterwards around track four or five.  That’s not the case with “Joy Ride”.  You might briefly ask yourself if the Killers broke into Alex Kapranos’ apartment one night and stole a guitar riff, but it’s definitely representative of the album as a whole, valuing danceable rock over trying to be epic.  “A Dustland Fairytale” is one of my favorites, as it’s one of the slower songs the Killers have put out.  If ballads aren’t for you, though, you might be converted, as my Wolf-Parade-loving best friend was, by the tribal intro to “This Is Your Life”.  And there are only two words that can adequately describe the awesomeness of “I Can’t Stay”: steel drums.  If I had to pick a weakness for the album, “Neon Tiger” is a little weird lyrically even for the Killers.  The title should be a hint.  Luckily, “The World We Live In” and “Goodnight, Travel Well” bring the album away from strange animal metaphors and finish it off on a slightly more somber note reminiscent of the dark, psychedelic closing to Hot Fuss.

I can’t say anything more to describe it.  2008 is the year for best albums, and just as I would recommend Viva La Vida to Coldplay lovers and haters alike, everyone needs to hear this.  Go listen to Day & Age, and let me know what you think.  I’m convinced you won’t be disappointed.