Boston June 7,2005

Stylish Killers lend heat to Boston Phoenix show

On their debut CD, ''Hot Fuss," most of the Killers' songs possess a maddening sameness. It's a pleasant sameness, but the songs can be indistinct. That quality didn't necessarily change when the band played at last night's annual 101.7 WFNX/Boston Phoenix Best Music Poll.

Yet buoyed by the goofy charm of lead singer Brandon Flowers, and especially eye-catching, manic drummer Ronnie Vannucci, the band gave a charged performance that slowly made clear what all the hot fuss is about.

They took the stage to Elvis Presley's cheesy classic, ''Viva Las Vegas," -- the band is from Sin City -- which had the audience singing along, then launched into ''Jenny Was a Friend of Mine." Seguing into ''On Top," Flowers bounced between keyboards and strolled the stage with a kind of foppish glee.

Things really erupted with ''Somebody Told Me" -- not just because it was the band's first big hit, but because it's a flat-out great song. Of course, they also played ''Mr. Brightside" and ''Smile Like You Mean It," and even pulled out an early song, ''Indie Rock and Roll." But a definite standout was a new song, ''All the Pretty Faces," which conveyed a darker, beefier sound that may hint at the band's direction for its next CD.