Funny story about this concert. Back in July of 2021 I saw that tickets were going on sale for The Killers tour in October. My friend and I jumped on these tickets, and when I went to go put it in my calendar I thought, “ha, they got the day of the week wrong.” Nope. I just can’t read and bought a concert ticket over a year in advance. So here we are now, in October of 2022, and I have finally seen The Killers again for the first time in six years.
Admittedly, I’m not the world’s biggest fan of the band, but I do like a majority of their catalog, so when my friend suggested pit tickets, why not? It was the right choice, I think. While it was a larger venue, I thought we had a great view on the floor, and that’s coming from a pretty short person. Brandon Flowers made it a point to elevate himself most of the night, too, which was appreciated. But, before I get into The Killers’ set, let’s talk about their opener, Johnny Marr. Evidently he played for The Smiths who I’ve never actively listened to, but I think I have to start! Half of his set was dedicated to his time with the band, and they ruled! I was a big fan of that set, and if you know me, I’m almost never that impressed with openers.
Now, onto the main draw. As catchy as The Killers are, I can never shake the sentiment Brandon Flowers has made on many occasions that he is the greatest rock star and that The Killers are the greatest rock band….okay. It’s good to have belief and confidence in yourself, but it just kind of ruined the image for me a little bit. With all that being said, they really did sound incredible. Also, Flowers looked like he was having an absolute blast the entire time. That seemed genuine and that made me happy given that they will be putting on the same show for probably another twenty dates or so. I hope that excitedness stays with him the rest of the tour. It certainly impacted the crowd. Everyone bopped along vigorously to certain songs throughout the set. It helps that most of the set were their certified hits.
I personally was very excited to hear “All These Things That I’ve Done,” closing out the show pre-encore. Also having “The Man” open the encore was exciting. I’ve never had the opportunity to hear that one live before. That song was hilariously accompanied by both a confetti canon, and a canon shooting out fake bills with the band’s faces on them. Genius. Of course, they’d be fools to not end the show with the likes of “Mr. Brightside,” but I was also glad to hear “Jenny Was a Friend of Mine” early on in the show. Truly, the crowd added an element of awe to the whole thing, and that made the night more enjoyable than I was expecting it to be. Look no further than the trio of girls off to our right who were making up choreographed routines the entire evening. Their excitement was funny, but palpable.
I think almost everyone knows a song by The Killers, so really, why not grab a ticket and catch these guys if they swing by your hometown. I really don’t think you’ll be disappointed.