Wonderful Wonderful
The Killers
Release Date: September 22, 2017
Label: Island Records
Length: 43 Minutes
There is a certain pleasure that comes with the mainstream radio or the house party you said you wouldn’t go to playing the likes of the timeless Mr. Brightside or adrenaline-inducing Somebody Told Me. I turn the knob to the right, bang my hands against the steering wheel, and deafeningly inform the world that I’m out of my cage and doing just fine. We are all guilty of this. Unlike contemporary “rock” which finds itself played out and saturated, The Killers have remained lyrically and sonically authentic. Through working with acclaimed producer, Jacknife Lee, frontman Brandon Flowers and company have contrived an album that stays true to the roots of The Killers while also paying tribute to what music should sound like in 2017.
On the highly personal fifth album, Wonderful Wonderful delivers a style not yet heard by Killer’s fans [victims]. The masculine-fueled hit single The Man, speaks volumes of Flower’s ego back when The Killers hit super stardom post Hot Fuss. The Man is a funky jam that will dare you not to snap your fingers and shake your hips. The calm and collected Some Kind of Love, which received the blessing of Brian Eno, hits close to home for Flower’s wife who has dealt with PTSD. Tracks like Run For Cover and Tyson vs. Douglas are typical sounding Killers songs (and there’s no fault in that) that make you tap your right foot and beat your chest. The rest of the LP, including the title track goes grittier than what we’ve heard from the kings of indie rock. Five years in the making, Wonderful Wonderful hits the heart and the adrenaline gland equally.
I recently found myself at Terminal 5: my fifth time seeing these guys, and their album release show. I sipped a Blue Moon with my buddy as we were greeted by the reincarnation of Elvis himself and immersed in pink confetti. We (the crowd of 3,000) proceeded to stridently repeat the question of if we are human or dancers and remember that it was only a kiss.
Drink:
Blue Moon (with an orange: this is New York), and find yourself equal parts jamming and equal parts re-evaluating your values.
