The

Interview

Why did God give you your gifts? It’s something I think about: whether or not God put me

“Calling ‘All These Things That I’ve Done’

here to be a rock star. I try not to wonder about why he picked me and not somebody else.

disposable is beyond me. It’s a very

That’s why it’s so frustrating to me when people criticize us for trying to be important—

special part of this generation.”

to me, music is incredibly important. That’s why I want to make big, bold statements.

Whether I pull it off is up to you. Everybody’s going to say I didn’t. But come to a concert. The music is coming across to somebody.

 

Your influences are obvious: Springsteen, New Order, U2. Do you worry if you’re bringing enough that’s new to the table? I don’t think there’s going to be any new type of music. You want to say that grunge was the last big thing, but that was just heavy songs. Maybe the clothes were different and the sentiments were specific to the X Generation, but that sound had been done before. Does that mean we should rehash? No. We should draw on everything from the last 50 years and take it to the future. Day & Age doesn’t sound like anything else out there. We’re moving things forward.

Who was he? His name is Trevor. He worked at a place called Stallion Mountain in Las Vegas. I’d never met anyone like him before. He made music and short films. I was 18 and I’d never even been to a local gig. He liked all the same music that I liked: Frank Sinatra, Britpop, he worshipped Bowie. I was very conservative about making music at first, and he encouraged me to be creative. It had never even crossed my mind that I could make art until I met him.

ness.” They think it’s impossible that you can sell a lot of records and have half a brain, but we’re doing it. Something important in music has happened before, and now something important is happening again. Eventually, everyone will have to accept that. But there’s something else I want to elaborate on.

Are you still in touch? He disappears. That’s just kind of how he does it. I think he’s in the Pacific Northwest. I know one day he’ll show up on my doorstep and it’ll be like he never left.

 

You’re 27 now. That’s the age when— I’m at the age, aren’t I? It’s in my brain that I am at that age when, if I’m as good as Springsteen or Bowie or Morrissey, I should be putting out my best stuff. That’s the problem with history. The facts are there to contend with.

Sure, go ahead. A lot is made of the fact that I’m a Mormon. That’s uncharted territory for a lot of people. They don’t understand it. When I said that Paul McCartney has a God-given talent…first of all, that’s just a term. But I think everyone has a gift. You asked me if I was put here to…I don’t believe I was put here to be some messiah-type music figure. I’m thankful for the gift I have and I try to use it to the best of my abilities. I don’t want it to come across as thinking I’m this magical thing.

Who are your biggest nonmusical influences? My older brother was one. His room was like a temple. It was completely covered in posters of the Smiths, Morrissey, the Cure. You couldn’t see a centimeter of paint. I wasn’t allowed to go in there. I would sneak in as soon as he left. It was a whole other world in his room. That’s where I fell in love with music.

Well, 27 is also the age when rock stars die. Good thing I got the album out, then. It makes me want to keep going. I feel like the bulb is about to burst.

What do you wish more people knew about you? I wish people would take their preconceptions about jackets I’ve worn or eyeliner I’ve applied and just listen to my words. There are some lyrics I’m proud of that haven’t gotten any attention. I guess it takes time.

What does your family think of your success? They’re all excited. I have four sisters, too. It’s weird—you don’t want your mom and dad to like the same music as you, but they’d already heard it all from my brother by the time I got into it. It weirded me out when my mom would be doing the dishes and whistling the Smiths. I guess it worked out in the end.

And then what will happen? People are so afraid of what I call our “sophisticated big-

Do you sing Killers songs to your son before he goes to bed? Let’s just say I don’t sing Céline Dion.

Discography

THE KILLERS

Weren’t you into sports before you were into music? I’m not afraid to say that I played sports and I enjoyed them. I was at the gym this morning.

A CRITICAL GUIDE TO VEGAS’ FINEST

2004

2006

2007

2008

Why would you be afraid? That’s just another thing. It doesn’t come up with a lot of musicians. It’s strange. For the most part, if you’re of the male orientation and grew up in America, there’s probably a picture of you on a soccer team or a basketball team. I did all that and I enjoyed it.

 

Were you good? I’m better at music.

 

When did you start writing songs? We had a piano in the house. My mom took me for lessons starting when I was six. But I didn’t learn pop songs. Writing songs didn’t even occur to me.

 

When did it? It took a wild, eccentric, redheaded man from Washington to open my mind.

Hot Fuss
HHH½
Shunning grit for glitz,
the Killers strutted from
Vegas with a debut
loaded with fashionably
hip, radio-ready rock.
While “Mr. Brightside”
and “Somebody Told Me”
evinced Brandon Flowers’
gift for pop, the radiance
of “All These Things That
I’ve Done” suggested
goals higher than sales.

Sam’s Town
HHH½
Southern-gothic sartorial
switcheroo aside, this was
no radical left turn. Dense
production and grandiose
lyrics lent a weight it
struggled to carry, but
ignore the trappings and
what’s left are two meek
interludes, nine catchy
tunes, and, in “When You
Were Young,” one genius
Springsteen rip.

Sawdust
HHH
Flowers’ melodic mastery
ensures that this odds-
and-sods placeholder
goes down easily but
little lingers apart
from the attractively
desperate “Leave the
Bourbon on the Shelf,”
tense Lou Reed collabo
“Tranquilize,” and snide
“Glamorous Indie
Rock and Roll.”

Day & Age
HHHH
It’s called a learning
curve. The marriage of
album one’s sweeping
vision to album two’s
decadent élan yielded
the band’s most cohesive
work. Futuristic blast-
offs “Human” and
“Spaceman” sizzle like
singles should; you’ll
smile like you mean it till
the music’s over. D.M.

74 FEBRUARY 2009 / DOWNLOAD NE W MP3s AT SPIN.COM