The Killers

If you've never seen The Killers live, you should probably kick yourself. As a long-time fan, but someone who hadn't seen them in concert until their latest studio effort, I still find myself kicking myself for never having gone to see them.

The energy when they're on stage is infectious. They feed off each other and also the crowd, and the crowd feeds off of them - always seeming to leave both sides hungry for more. I guess that's what a great live band does.

For the show at Borgata's new Festival Park venue, the first surprise was the return of the K as part of the keyboard stand. This iconic throwback to the Day and Age era kinda had me hoping this wouldn't be more or less the same Battle Born tour set list that they've been doing for nearly three years. At 20 songs long, it was a full set, with a few surprises, but was largely unchanged from the last time I saw them. Of course, this is a band that has four albums under their belts, and because they don't want to disappoint more casual fans (as in non-Victims), they don't want to leave out any of their hits.

Opening with Mr. Brightside, lights still on, the smile on Brandon Flowers' face was apparent that he has missed his onstage brothers. The smile didn't fade as they drove on into Spaceman, and after introducing the band as well as Ted "Named after the great Ted Williams" Sablay and Jake "The Snake" Blanton, they carried on to The Way It Was. Smile Like You Mean It led into Bling, followed by Human. A return to their first album was introduced by a chills-inducing heavy bass opening as Somebody Told Me reminded everyone why they became as big as they are.

A cover of CCR's Bad Moon Rising led into a surprise of their 2012 album Battle Born as they played the life out of The Rising Tide - a nice surprise. After Shot at the Night, For Reasons Unknown, and From Here On Out, things slowed down for Dustland Fairytale and another surprise, Be Still. Read My Mind and Runaways led into a bittersweet All These Things I've Done. Why bittersweet? When All These Things comes on, fans know it's the last of their main set.

The last surprise of the night came with the first of their encores as they rolled into Uncle Jonny. We know that The Killers (almost) always include their very first album opener: Jenny Was a Friend of Mine - They don't come all the way from Las Vegas and not play Jenny. When You Were Young was the show's closer.

With the news report over, here's the editorial portion of the review.

This band never disappoints - even in the rare instance that they're off their game, they're still on their game. For the show in Atlantic City at Borgata Festival Park they were undoubtedly on their game. Seeing them on stage together, it was as though it was where they wanted to be. The show in AC, before a crowd of 4500, was a warmup for the 70,000 strong crowd at Firefly. Of the 4500 people leaving Festival Park, I don't think one of them was disappointed. I even caught one of the guys working security singing along to a few of their older hits.

While I would have loved to have seen some of the lesser-played songs instead of the set they played, it's only because I've seen them do these songs so often, and had never seen them perform prior to 2012 (huge mistake on my part). The Killers want people to leave their shows with a sense of satisfaction, so, playing their most popular songs is a given. Still, I would just love to hear Sam's Town at least one more time, and quite honestly, I wish they'd drop the cover song they do (for the last 6 shows I've seen, they have always done Bad Moon Rising). With an arsenal of 4 full albums, they certainly have enough original material to play a full set without tossing in a cover version. (At least it's not Shadowplay!)

Nothing would ever be able to stop me from making the effort to see this band perform. The 22 hour round-trip to the Jersey Shore was well worth it; they never disappoint. Ever. If I could, I'd be at a Killers show every night for the rest of my life.

Yes, a Killers show is one of my personal Sam's Towns - if you don't know what that means, do yourself a favor, and while waiting for their next tour, check out their live DVD - Live From the Royal Albert Hall. You'll see why Victims, myself included, will travel all kinds of distances to see these guys perform.

The Killers played the first night of Lollapalooza last year, and they made it a night I'll never forget. From the stage lighting to visual effects on the screens, The Killers put on a show that captivated the thousands of people that came out to watch them. The band erupted with "Mr. Brightside," which sent the audience into a state of excitement. Everyone started dancing/jumping/singing to the music. There was a lot of jostling around, and I kept getting pushed forward by people from behind trying to get closer to the stage. I remember while I was belting out the lyrics to "Human," someone grabbed my arm and started dancing with me. The audience was so friendly, and looking around, many people had huge smiles on their faces that shone against the colorful stage lights. The Killers have been around for quite some time, and anyone can see that they are clearly at ease playing in front of thousands of people. The lead singer, Brandon Flowers, sang even better live compared to the audio recordings. He didn't even take a water break or anything; he just kept going and going, and throughout the entire performance, his energy stayed sky high (his collared shirt was unbuttoned and drenched with sweat by the end if the night). He introduced the rest of the band and was very interactive with the crowd, reaching out to touch outstretched hands. The concert had a fun, friendly vibe to it, and I was surrounded by people who were all so happy to be there. That concert was the first time I experienced a night show outdoors, let alone in the heart of downtown Chicago. Looking up around me, the skyscrapers we're lit up and the stage lights bounced off of them. It was such a beautiful sight. Jamming out to awesome music under the city lights was the perfect way to end my first night at Lolla.

This was, so far, the best concert for The Killers that I've ever seen (& I've seen them 3 times already). The acoustics for the Staples Center wasn't the absolute best, but it didn't matter when the whole stadium was singing at the top of their lungs along with the band. First of all, since this was the Wonderful Wonderful Tour, I thought the band would play mostly songs from the new album, but to my surprise, they performed a great mix of songs from their entire discography. What surprised me the most was that The Killers played a ton more songs from their Hot Fuss album than they ever had before. They even dug deep to perform such notable songs like "Andy, You're A Star" & "Smile Like You Mean It". A beautifully sweet touch was when the band performed a new, sort of spur-of-the-moment, song about Los Angeles...a song they had written on the road just before their L.A. leg of the tour. One of the major highlights of the entire concert was when the band had invited a young teenage fan up onto the stage to play the drums on the song "For Reasons Unknown". Apparently this has become an ongoing tradition of the band, to invite fans up on the stage to perform with them. This was such a touching, yet totally bad-ass moment, & I hope The Killers keep on doing this at every concert tour from now on. By the end of the concert, my friends & I had lost our voices from singing & screaming so loudly, but it was one thousand percent worth it. The Killers proved with their electrifying & humorous stage presence, along with their amazing voices & talent, that they will forever hold the spot of being my all-time favorite band.

The killers in vancouver, how can i even but this into words that people will comprehend? For me, the killers are my favorite band and Brandon Flowers is a HUGE inspiration in my life. His style of writing impacts me in a huge way. Also, for me, the killers music helped me a lot with personal problems that had hit me pretty hard in my life. I listen to their music when i'm happy, sad, healthy or sick, and for me, seeing this concert was in a way, life saving. And being such a huge fan, i had high hopes for this show and they did not at all disapoint. I went to this show with one of my closest friends, who is also a huge killers fan. The show began with 'Wonderful Wonderful' (as you may have assumed) and soon after they jumped right into 'The Man'. The setlist was incredible. I honestly couldn't say that i was disappointed with any of the songs they chose to play. I wish they would have done 'Bones' or 'Under the Gun' but i had low hopes when it came to those two. The stage presents was incredible. I couldn't take my eyes off of Brandon. He is just one of those people who can really own a stage and engage a crowd. And coming from an aspiring guitarist, i would normally be watching the guitarist almost out of habit; but with the exception of guitar solos, I was watching Brandon. This is a show I would heavily recommend going to. For me, it was the greatest experience of my life. The only negative of the show is figuring out how you're going to top it.

-J.W. Radlinsky-Shworan

I hadn't listened to the Killers in several years and was invited by a friend to go see them in concert. I'd forgotten how good they were! Their show was full of energy and the evening was nothing short of spectacular. It seemed like every inch of the stage was covered with lights, and the show was filled with special effects some including fireworks. A Killers concert is like a massive stadium type of show, full of power and special effects.

The band played all their hit songs and even included some cover songs that really were done well. One of the really good covers they played was the Smiths “There is a Light that Never goes out”. The crowd was very energized and the show started out at full force when they opened with one of their better know songs “When You were Young”. The band finished with several encores including some of their first hits, I guess the show ended up lasting about 90-95 minutes.

The venue was large but it was pretty full. The crowd did get a little out of control at some points during the show, but the stadium was large enough that they had good security and you could just move away from people who were getting carried away. The band is getting older but they sounded great. It is good to see them back in rock and roll form.

The Killers delivered a high energy polished show. Brandon was in great voice, drummer was fantastic. A great rock show for sure.

The venue, however... just atrocious. Place Bell in Laval is a new arena for 10K attendance, but it has massive logistical & design failures. 1) crowds waited 25-60 minutes to enter the building ... outside in -35C! ... due to an inadequate entry plan. Thousands of concertgoers were invited to show up between 7-8 pm, to be greeted by 4 open doors and 6 security stations. 2) parking congestion nightmares & traffic woes before and after the show 3) electricity on stage went out 3 times during the show 4) other concert-goers reported no drinking fountains, toilet paper, limited mobility access...

SUMMARY: Go See the Killers, not at Place Bell in Laval.

The Killers, as always, were amazing beyond mere words. I've seen them in concert before, but somehow this particular concert at Outside Lands 2014 was especially memorable. From singing Credence Clearwater Revival & Otis Redding covers, to performing all their greatest hits (and then some). I was completely pumped up from beginning to end. As per their usual Las Vegas-ian flare, the light show almost stole the spotlight from Brandon Flowers & his famous lightning bolt keyboard, but no one can captivate & amp up an audience like Mr B Flowers. I think I might have been one of the loudest singers in my section of the crowd. Singing along to all the "Direct Hits" is always the best part of the concert!

It was my first time seeing The Killers after a number of years waiting to see them play live. I have never had an experience quite like this one. They are a truly special band to see play live, the energy of the crowd is infectious, and you are left wanting more. Brandon Flowers, man, I don't know how he does it. Plays show after show after show and still sounds incredible. The additions to the band were awesome and Ronnie is a beast (in the best way.) My favorite thing about their show was actually the stage design. It was so beautiful and colorful and set the tone perfectly for each song. You will have a BLAST at their show, whether you're a hardcore fan or not. Can't wait to see them again! :-)

I actually saw the show at Barclays on Tuesday the 8th. Let me start by saying I see a lot of concerts every year and was only familiar with the better known of The Killers songs. Having said that - they were EXCELLENT! Flowers is a magnificent front man with a set of pipes to carry stadiums. The band is flawless and so rock and roll. I will judge a band by how much they can hook me with a song I’ve never heard before . From the opening with Wonderful Wonderful and The Man thru The Calling start to the encore I was dazzled. I downloaded everything and I’m now a confirmed fan. I will see them again ASAP. One of the best live I have seen -ever. And I’m no spring chicken.

It was amazing!!! From the moment they went on stage to the very last second it was just so much positive energy coming from the band. The crowd was bad, but that isn’t The Killers’ fault! They did the absolute most and it paid off. Brandon hit those high notes despite his flu, Ronnie was legendary on the drums, Ted was amazing, the choir was amazing, et cetera et cetera. It’s a shame (especially for the people that DID know all their songs) that the crowd bothered them so much that they didn’t play Mr. Brightside, but again, the band isn’t to blame.
These Las Vegas legends know how to give a great performance!