Tuesday, October 14, 2008

From Las Vegas to the world: The Killers

Today is our last day in Las Vegas and because of this, I want to introduce you to one of my favorite bands from this city. ’The Killers’ are an American rock band that was formed in Las Vegas over 5 years ago. The name derives from a fictional band from the music video for the "New Order" song "Crystal".
The Killers’ consists of Brandon Flowers (vocals, keyboards), Dave Keuning (guitar, vocals), Mark Stoermer (bass guitar, vocals) and Ronnie Vannucci Jr., (percussion, drums).

To this day, they’ve sold almost 12 million copies of their two albums "Hot Fuss" and "Sam's Town" (side note: the album was recorded at the Palms Casino recording studio) and the compilation album "Sawdust" containing rarities and a B-Side collection. What's interesting: The name "Sam's Town" refers to Sam's Town Hotel and Gambling Hall, a hotel with a casino in Las Vegas - their home town.
The band was founded because of a newspaper ad that Keuning had placed in The Sun newspaper. Keuning searched for new band members in 2002. Brandon Flowers saw this ad and decided to leave his former band "Blush Response" to start something new. Flowers and Keuning are both fans of the band "Oasis" - that's what connected them. Ronnie Vanucci and Mark Stoermer got the offer to join the band. They did.

After a few years of playing the local clubs in Las Vegas, The Killers got a break, signed a record label and the rest is history. The Killers are now a very successful indie band in America and Europe - they are signed at Island Records.
They celebrated big successes by singles such as "Somebody Told Me" or "When You Were Young".

What I really like about them is the mixture of alternative rock and a little disco-like music and, of course, Brandon’s extraordinary voice, which is outstanding in the alternate music scene.

Lend them an ear. Or two. Check their homepage at http://www.thekillersmusic.com/


The Killers - When You Were Young

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