The Killers

Day & Age

[2.5/5]

After the mainstream success of their debut, Hot Fuss, in 2004, Las Vegas dance-pop quartet the Killers threw fans and critics a curveball with their 2006 follow-up, Sam’s Town, an album that distanced the group from their formative ’80s post-punk sound and paid blatant homage to the Americana rock of Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty. The ensuing press blitz found singer Brandon Flowers uttering the highly debatable sentiment that the disc would be one of the best albums of the past 20 years. Day & Age, the Killers’ third album, is intended as a continuation of that record’s sound, style and-presumably-narcissism.

In a sense, Day & Age is a logical evolution from Sam’s Town with its lyrical storytelling aesthetic. But the Killers haven’t rid themselves of their penchant for new-wave synth and epic dance-floor anthems. On the album’s first single, “Human,” Flowers wryly inquires, “Are we human/Or are we dancer?” over a backdrop of sparkling synth beats. It’s such a deep and philosophical query that it’s shocking no one has asked it until now-it’s really only a matter of time before Flowers joins the ranks of Nietzsche and Rousseau.

Flowers suffers from lyrical impairment and bloated self-importance throughout the rest of the album, too. On the unabashedly cheesy “Joy Ride,” which features a saxophone solo and a funky beat akin to the Kooks, Flowers urges a car ride through the desert night, yelping, “When your chips are down/When your highs are low/Joy ride.” The music itself is more heavily layered than on previous albums, often building slowly and dropping out even more deliberately. There is a distinct sense of orchestration and an obvious desire to include as many sounds as possible in each song. The saxophone returns, along with some bizarre Jamaican beats, on the lackluster “I Can’t Stay,” while choral chants and marching-band snare drums jump without warning onto “This Is Your Life.”

The Killers are at their best on Day & Age when they stick with what works: Swaggering, faux-British, ’80s-inspired dance numbers that don’t take themselves quite so seriously. “The World We Live In” is hooky with the right kind of attitude, swarming in synth and keys. The pulsating “Spaceman” has a propulsive, gripping chorus that is both memorable and entertaining (as long as you don’t pay too close attention to what Flowers is singing). Ultimately, the disc is divided between dance numbers and the group’s more introspective, low-key songs. So maybe Flowers is both human and dancer. Mind-blowing, isn’t it? (ISLAND) Emily Zemler

ROCKS LIKE:

The Killers’ Hot Fuss

Panic At The Disco’s Pretty. Odd.

Duran Duran’s Rio

THE BREAKDOWN


TRACKLIST:

1. Losing Touch

2. Human

3. Spaceman

4. Joy Ride

5. A Dustland Fairytale

6. This Is Your Life

7. I Can’t Stay

8. Neon Tiger

9. The World We Live In

10. Goodnight, Travel Well

RELEASE DATE: Nov 25