THE KILLERS // THE SSE HYDRO, GLASGOW

THE KILLERS MAKE AN ANTICIPATED RETURN TO GLASGOW AFTER 3 YEARS TO PLAY SOLD-OUT SHOW AT THE SSE HYDRO

THE KILLERS MAKE AN ANTICIPATED RETURN TO GLASGOW TO PLAY SOLD-OUT SHOW AT THE SSE HYDRO - 20.11.2017
PICTURE BY: ROB LOUD @robloud

★★★★★

On a cold wet miserable evening after nearly three years last playing in Glasgow in 2014 in the boiling sun at Glasgow’s Summer Sessions, The Killers made an eagerly anticipated return to Scotland this week to play two sold-out shows in Glasgow and Aberdeen. The long awaited return to Glasgow was at sold-out 13,000 capacity venue, The SSE Hydro, with eager fans of all ages attending the first of two tour dates in Scotland.

As the performance starts all you hear is the iconic Scottish chant… “Here we, here we, here we fucking go…” The performance starts with their comeback-single ‘Wonderful Wonderful’ which is their title-track of their brand new recent album. As Storm clouds start to gather on the big screens with the sound of rumbling bass, frontman ‘Brandon Flowers’ walks on dressed in his iconic pink blazer after the band came on separate, the atmosphere of the crowd immediately had Brandon's full attention with the total command of the crowd as he croons the lyrics– “I will give thee great cause to rejoice.” This is soon followed by their brand new song ‘The Man’, which is a very groovy and swaggering song with lyrics which bring out Flowers’ charisma and charm on stage. This is followed by their massive number ‘Somebody Told Me’ from their debut album ‘Hot Fuss’ which sends the crowd into frenzy.

Brandon Flowers, the remarkable frontman of The Killers, has a radiating energy throughout the fast paced two hour set and sings in a way that makes the audience feel like he is addressing them personally with some sort of message. Despite this, his humility shines through as he thanks the crowd and tells them that “true nobility is being superior to your former self.” He also tells the crowd “How the hell are you Glasgow? Nice to see you”, “We need to see each other more often. It’s been a long time… I’m trying to get back here sooner than four or five years.”

The band continued to rattle through their two-hour set playing their massive number “Smile like You Mean It” from their number one album “Hot Fuss” which sent the crowd wild and then onto Joy Division cover of ‘Shadowplay’ which features on their 2007 compilation album ‘Sawdust’.

BRANDON FLOWERS OF THE KILLERS PERFORMING AT THE SSE HYDRO, GLASGOW - 20.11.2017
PICTURE BY: ROB LOUD @robloud

The Killers origin of Las Vegas is certainly reflected in the glitz of their performance. The visuals are stunning, ranging from neon cowboys during ‘The Man’ to their theatrical slow-mo running sequences taken from the music video of ‘Run for Cover’. There is plenty of confetti, sequinned backing singers and even a costume change: Flowers dons a gloriously tacky gold suit and aviator sunglasses towards the end of the set. It kind of reminds me of something that you would expect from a Freddie Mercury performance.

The band continues to bring out old belters which the crowd love like their stampeding hits “Human” and “Runaways” from their 2012 album “Battleborn”. This world tour might be missing original band members of The Killers with “Mark Stoermer” on bass and “Dave Keuning” on guitar, both currently taking time out, the band still seemed at full strength throughout the entire performance thanks to the influence of Flowers. This was noticed mostly with the band’s single “For Reasons Unknown” from their second album “Sam’s Town” which shows why Flowers is the ultimate frontman out there. The band still even had surprises coming with their cover of "Romeo and Juliet" which the crowd loved. But nothing could have prepared the crowd for “All These Things I’ve Done” as Flowers took over the role of preacher and encouraged the crowd at the Hydro to chant, “I’ve got soul but I’m not a soldier”.

As Flowers and co left the stage, the crowd immediately chants “One more song, one more song…” loudly, the band walk back on stage a few minutes later to play “The Calling” which features on the brand new album, the band inevitably finish the set with two classic indie club bangers “When You Were Young” and “Mr Brightside". Predictably, the audience sings every word effortlessly. Both songs come across well, and will continue to in the future, just as I am sure that Brandon Flowers and The Killers will continue to go from strength to strength. The crowd can’t wait for album six to arrive… even if takes five years it will be worth the wait.

STREAM BRAND NEW ALBUM 'WONDERFUL WONDERFUL' below:

PURCHASE BRAND NEW ALBUM here:

WONDERFUL WONDERFUL WORLD TOUR CONTINUES... ALL DATES REMAINING AND TICKETS BELOW:

REVIEW BY: CALUM BUCHAN
PHOTOS BY: ROB LOUD @robloud

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