Jones Beach,September 30,2005

A Killer Performance

the quadrangle

Imagine the perfect scenery and location for your favorite band. What does it consist of for you? Do you picture yourself standing on the floor in a smoky stuffed concert hall being pushed and shoved by the crazed fans, or are you intrigued by a calm outdoor theater in which you can feel the atmosphere of the concert in the great outdoors? The latter provides a picture perfect location for an amazing night of music. On Friday, September 30th, an individual with the outdoors in mind would have been privileged to see The Killers rock Long Island at the Tommy Hilfiger Jones Beach Theater. Played to a jam packed crowd, The Killers gave their fans a night to remember with an outstanding performance. Fans were on their feet all night as the Las Vegas based band continued with their Hot Fuss album tour on the peaceful summertime stage on Jones Beach.

The Killers are a throwback to the 1980s UK indie rock glam bands that shocked the British Isle. While the band reflects the indie rock genre they do it without the shock and awe, and focus more on producing great music that captivates the listener with their orignal sound and rock n' roll status. From their US and UK smash hit, "Hot Fuss," they have rocked the nations with their smash hits "Somebody Told Me" and "Mr. Brightside," and continue to build an enormous fan base known as victims, defined as any true fan of The Killers.

The Killers are led by trendy and eyeliner-wearing lead singer Brandon Flowers who fulfills the indie glam rock appearance of the band style. Flowers is a Las Vegas native where he got his start in a local band called Blush Response, but was kicked out by the band when he refused to join in their ambitions and move to Los Angeles. After that point in his life, Flowers tried out college, but he lasted only two classes when he realized that he knew what he had to do in life and left to pursue music full time. Flowers has said that he was inspired by British band Oasis at a Las Vegas concert.

To kick start his music career, Flowers worked to find band members, and find individuals that would share his unique ear for stand out music. Luck found him when he met guitarist David Keuning in Las Vegas. Keuning was another college drop out working odd jobs in order to make ends meet as he worked towards his life as a musician. In 2002, the duo ran an ad in the newspaper describing that they were looking for other musicians interested in indie rock music, and were interested in joining a band. A year and a half later, The Killers were complete when medical courier Mark Stoermer joined as bass guitarist, and photographer Ronnie Vannucci rounded out the group as drummer.

Now all the band needed was a name and music to get started as professional musicians. The Killers name comes from a 2001 music video by New Order called Crystals. Once The Killers were complete, they packed up and began to tour in the UK. While touring overseas, they gained enormous support and a rock-solid fan base. Many today think that The Killers are a UK-based band because of their start there, but in actuality they're based in Las Vegas with their big break coming in the U.K.

With growing fame and a solid album ready to be released, The Killers released two different singles in the U.S. and in the U.K. In the U.K. their first single was "Mr. Brightside," which proved to be an enormous success overseas and established the band as rock stars. In the U.S. they released "Somebody Told Me" to low fanfare, but it slowly grew into a phenomenon that made The Killers the breakout artists of 2004. On June 8, 2004, the U.K. edition of Hot Fuss flew off the shelves, and on June 15,2004 the album hit U.S. stores in yet again another slow start with the American music industry.

Despite all the obstacles and country hopping success, The Killers proved to be a vastly unique band that today continues to release successful indie rock singles that burn up the Billboard charts. While the band is still a much larger success in Britain, The Killers' fame is rapidly growing across America today. While they wrap up their final shows in their "Hot Fuss" tour, the band promises to work to have their new album released in June 2006. Fans of The Killers were not disappointed on Jones Beach as they gave a memorable performance, and an amazing night in Long Island.