Live: The Killers, Wolverhampton, UK
I couldn’t have chosen a colder night to go to a gig on my own than this Saturday night in The Black Country. Fortunately for me, it was all for a good cause, seeing The Killers for the first time in the relatively small Wolverhampton Civic Hall. This was a small scale tour for the Las Vegas band, to be followed by an arena tour in 2007, so tickets sold out so quickly that I could only get one for myself. Luckily, I was able to make a couple of friends outside the gig, by the end of the night I’d realised that The Killers had the coolest fans I’d come across!
The unfortunate task of delaying the arrival of The Killers was in the hands of support band Brakes. At best, an impressive performance, but not one to whip the crowd into a frenzy of excitement by any means. Patience would be the virtue as the long delay after the opening set began, before the curtains eventually came up to reveal the stage props. All of a sudden, we weren’t in Wolverhampton. We were in Sam’s Town. The Killers new album has brought a mixed reception, unaided by the unquestionable success of the debut album “Hot Fuss” (2004). But “Sam’s Town” still possesses the glamour familiar with the band, and the stage props reflected this. With “Sam’s Town” lit up and hanging from the ceiling and attractive streamers all over the place, it was never going to be a toned down performance from the ever vibrant Brandon Flowers and company.
When we were finally joined in Sam’s Town by our hosts for the evening, the reception was electric. A smartly dressed Brandon stood above the crowd like the ringleader and began conduction with, appropriately, the song Sam’s Town. The album opener was followed by Enterlude, the second track of the album. This leads nicely onto the epic, and already Killers classic, When You Were Young on the album. Predictably, it did just that on this night, much to the delight of the audience. While When You Were Young is a new pleasure for Killers fans, the Hot Fuss material has quickly gained legendary status. So the first taste of Hot Fuss, Somebody Told Me, was met with great excitement and a mass frenzy.
It was to be new material that laid the plot for the evenings show; new single Bones able to hold a strong reaction among the more trademarked songs, and a sublime performance of Read My Mind was a highlight. A personal favourite was Glamorous Indie Rock n Roll from Hot Fuss, one of several crowd pleasers from Hot Fuss, along with Smile Like You Mean It and Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine. It wasn’t until the encore that arguably the most infamous Killers song Mr Brightside made its inevitable appearance, and following crowd chants of “I got soul but I’m not a soldier”, All These Things That I’ve Done was the penultimate song of a grand second encore. The last song was the suitable Exitlude, also bringing up the tail of the new album. An inspired conclusion.
Verdict: What made this show so excellent was how all the factors blended perfectly. The venue was small enough to feel personal; the fans were both enthusiastic and smart for enjoyable participation; the set list and stage made it special and unique. Most of all, Brandon and The Killers were in great form and put on a hell of a performance. I never wanted to leave Sam’s Town.