Though previously aware of The Killers, this was the first time I had hunkered down to properly listen to them and watch them perform. Musically, I guess I live in past times - frozen in the music of my youth and it takes a lot to draw me out of my nostalgic hideaway. But last night I was enthralled by The Killers. They are a tight, energetic band with an engaging repertoire. The songs are pure and self-penned and do not rely on computerised trickery for their delivery.
There's Dave Keuning on lead guitar, Mark Stoermer on bass and rhythm guitar, Ronnie Vannucci Jr on drums and at the front - singer and showman Brandon Flowers. The line-up is reminiscent of so many bands of the late sixties and early seventies. You imagine all the hours of practice in some barn or industrial unit - to perfect the songs, iron out the errors and create a style.
Last night Brandon Flowers was in his element - theatrical and totally committed, his tenor voice rising up above the electricity and yet part of it too. He is the father of three boys. Checking him out on Wilkipedia, I discovered that his wife Tana Mundkowsky suffers from a complex post-traumatic stress disorder though I have no idea how that came about. Any advice will be appreciated. It sounds so sad.
The Killers were triumphant. The Glastonbury crowd sang along and The Pet Shop Boys and The Smiths' guitarist Johnny Marr came up on stage. For a few minutes it seemed as if all the other stuff in this troubled world didn't matter. Are we human or are we dancers? Good question.
Where music is concerned, I am so NOT up,tomdate that I have never heard of The Killers until now. Sounds (!) like they were quite the revelarion for you. It is great to come across such a gem, isn't it.
ReplyDeleteAs for forgetting about everything else when in the arms of music, I think that is a very, very important part of what being human is all about - that we have that ability to completely lose ourselves like that for a while, and that some of our otherwise not very kind species have the talent to create something like that.
Perhaps that is what all art should do to us - help us to lose ourselves - be it it painting, sculpture, music, drama, poetry or fiction.
DeleteI can no longer appreciate music, since my hearing loss means that I don't pick up sounds at a certain frequency. My hearing aids simply amplify everything and distorts it. I envy you your ability to enjoy what I have lost.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry about your hearing problems JayCee... or should I have written that in CAPITAL LETTERS?
DeleteTom Grandson is down there for the full works, no doubt looking for more talent to add to his books. He jets to all of the Festivals, what a life?
ReplyDeleteHe meets all kinds of so called Celebs and goes to a lot of the music awards etc, taking it all in his stride and not at all overawed. We are so proud of him as you are of your son QP.
Are you enjoying the heat, we are melting here, lol
Briony
x
You should get Tom Husband to hose you down outside - preferably with an actual hose! Is your grandson called Simon Cowell by any chance? He seems to have landed a dream job.
Delete"Are we humans or are we dancers?"
ReplyDeletePerhaps one of my favorite lines ever written. I have wondered this a thousand times. Thanks for putting it into words.
Brandon Flowers has claimed that the lyric was inspired by a disparaging comment made by Hunter S. Thompson, who stated that America was "raising a generation of dancers".
DeleteI have that song on my iTunes! I can't say that I'm a huge fan of modern music -- like you, I mostly listen to stuff from my youth, which is pretty typical, I think. But every once in a while a modern song breaks through into my zone of awareness.
ReplyDeletePerhaps we should be more open to music of the modern day...or maybe this is just the way it is - we have your blossoming time when music defines our era and then the shutters come down.
Delete"The Killers" received very good reviews for their Glastonbury headline performance - and here is another one. I'll have to see if I can find this latest Glastonbury on one of the streaming services. I love music...good music!
ReplyDeleteLast week I watched a brilliant doco created by Martin Scorcese..."Rolling Thunder Review: A Bob Dylan Story"......"Scorsese chronicles the troubled spirit of America in 1975 along with the joyous music that Bob Dylan performed during the fall of that year." It's a great doco.
Thanks for your review, Yorkie. :)
I must make a point of watching that documentary Lee. Steve from West London has also referred to it and it sounds like my cup of tea.
DeleteI'm sure you will enjoy it, Yorkie. I really did. It's terrific. How he remembers all the words of his "stories" told on stage, beats me. The music is wonderful; the story is wonderful.
DeleteI'd gone off Dylan there for a while....having been a huge fan in the early Sixties when my group and friends and I were right into folk music...Seeger, Dylan, Peter, Paul & Mary, Joan Baez etc., etc., et al.
I imagine you all in a circle on the beach under a full moon singing "Kumbaya".
Delete