Latest news with #BrandonFlowers
Scottish Sun
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Devastated rocker reveals horrifying robbery as he appeals to fans for help
He revealed how he ended up working with The Killers' Brandon Flowers on his latest album SMASH & GRAB Devastated rocker reveals horrifying robbery as he appeals to fans for help Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BRIT music star James Bay has been left devastated after two of his vintage guitars were stolen from his car. The singer-songwriter, 34, appealed to fans for help finding the 1960s Silvertone sunburst acoustic and cherry red, double P90 1969 Epiphone Al Caiola, which were taken on July 1. Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 5 James Bay is appealing for help after two of his guitars were stolen Credit: Getty 5 The instruments were taken from his car in North London Credit: Instagram He wrote on Instagram: "Hey everyone, this is my first experience of this (lucky to have avoided it until now). Tuesday 1st July, I had 2 guitars stolen from my car in North London. "These are two vintage instruments of great sentimental value. "If you see them or hear of them anywhere, please message me or email info@ as I'd really love to get them back. "Please ask any guitar players/collectors you know, or local or online stores. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks x." He then shared pictures of both instruments in the hope it will lead to their return. Bay, who lives in North London, is best known for his breakout hit Hold Back The River. He's won two Brit Awards, an Ivor Novello and been nominated for three Grammys. His latest album, last year's Changes All The Time, featured collaborations with big names like Noah Kahan, The Lumineers and The Killers' Brandon Flowers. The latter came to be through a mutual friend, and Bay found himself hanging out at a ski lodge in Utah that the band had turned into a studio. He told us: "It had this double height hallway where they put drums in that sort of Led Zeppelin way — it's wonderful. It was very informal and we'd go for breakfast in the morning and Brandon would drive us there. James Bay is joined by The Killers' Brandon Flowers on single Easy Distraction 'When I first played the track, some people would say, 'I can hear a bit of Killers in it' meaning they hear Brandon's writing input. 'But as much as I wanted it to sound 'Killersy', because I'm a fan, I'm proud to say that the germ of the idea that started that song is the verse and melody that I took in. That was my homework. I took it in, and I said, 'What do you think of this?' 'And Brandon had a listen and went, 'Oh, yeah, let's give that a go. Let's see if we can put some lyrics to it.' And he jumps up on a microphone and gets his phone out and jotted down all his lyric ideas. It was very prolific and unbelievable.' Meanwhile, Kahan, who shares the same A&R person as Bay, hasn't forgotten days spent supporting the Let It Go star earlier in his career. Now a huge arena and stadium filling artist, he invited Bay out on his Stick Season tour last year including a date at Fenway Park (Boston's baseball stadium). 5 He shared a picture of his vintage acoustic Credit: Instagram 5 He's trying to track down this 1969 Epiphone model Credit: Instagram
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Iconic ‘Mr. Brightside' Band Delivers Epic ‘80s Cover Live and Breaks Internet
Iconic 'Mr. Brightside' Band Delivers Epic '80s Cover Live and Breaks Internet originally appeared on Parade. Sometimes the most beautiful moments in rock happen when bands honor their influences in the most meaningful way possible, and The Killers just delivered one of those spine-tingling tributes that reminds us why live music matters so much. During their SummerFest performance in Milwaukee, the Las Vegas quartet surprised fans with a cover of "American Music" by Violent Femmes – and the choice couldn't have been more perfect. Playing the work of Milwaukee's most iconic alt-rock heroes in their actual hometown felt like the ultimate act of musical respect. For those who know their alternative music history, this moment was pure poetry. Violent Femmes burst onto the scene in 1981 with their folk-punk sound that defined Milwaukee's underground music culture. Gordon Gano's distinctive vocals and Brian Ritchie's acoustic bass created a template that influenced countless bands. Brandon Flowers and company delivered "American Music" with the reverence it deserved while maintaining their signature energy that's kept them at the top of their game since 2001. The performance showcased how The Killers have maintained their creative vitality more than two decades into their career, sounding as crisp and passionate as they did during their early 2000s breakthrough. What made this cover particularly special was the hometown context. SummerFest has long been Milwaukee's crown jewel music festival, and seeing an international superstar band like The Killers pay homage to local legends Violent Femmes created one of those full-circle moments that festival magic is made crowd's reaction was immediate and intense, with fans capturing the moment on TikTok where it quickly went viral. Comments poured in from viewers expressing disbelief that "the band at the top of my i-need-to-see-them list" was performing their "favorite Violent Femmes song." This kind of cross-generational tribute represents everything beautiful about rock music's interconnected nature. The Killers didn't just perform a cover – they created a bridge between eras, honoring the Milwaukee legends who helped shape the alternative landscape they now dominate. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Iconic 'Mr. Brightside' Band Delivers Epic '80s Cover Live and Breaks Internet first appeared on Parade on Jun 29, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 29, 2025, where it first appeared.
Daily Mail
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
The Killers fans are only just realizing what the iconic band's name means after 25 years
After 25 years, fans of the rock band The Killers are only just discovering the origin of the band name. The musicians behind iconic anthems such as Somebody Told Me and Mr. Brightside were initially formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by singer Brandon Flowers and guitarist Dave Keuning. The following year, they added additional band members in bassist Mark Stoermer and drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. But it seems that even die-hard fans have been in the dark about the popular band's name, only now realizing what it really means. The Killers name actually came from the fictional band featured in the music video for New Order's song Crystal from 2001. Brandon was a huge fan of New Order and spotted the name on the drum kit of the fictional band in the music video, per The Mirror US. The name has previously been a topic of conversation on Reddit with people questioning where the band's name originated. 'How did the band name "The Killers" survive until the early 2000s without being claimed by someone else? You'd think something like that would have been the name of some mildly successful band by then,' someone asked. A person responded: 'It's very surprising indeed. I wouldn't be shocked if some guys in some dorm room in the '70s or something had called themselves The Killers for two gigs and then called it quits, but at that point, it would be so hard for anyone to prove the name was ever theirs. 'That would be like me saying I created the name "Post Malone" when I was eight years old, and that it is rightfully mine. 'The band actually saw the name "The Killers" on the drum head of a fictional band in a New Order music video, and when they found out it was available, they decided to take it. That was actually while the band was still forming, in 2001.' Another user said: 'I guess it's just one of those things... 'I bet there were a dozen heavy metal bands called The Killers in the early 80's that never got off the ground.' Fans of another famous 2000s band - MGMT - recently found out how to pronounce the name and what it means. Resurfaced footage showed MGMT members Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser when they were fresh-faced students at Wesleyan University in 2003. They were playing an early version of their hit single Kids to a small crowd. While many have marveled over how long ago the song came out, it was the duo's pronunciation of their name that has truly sent fans into a spin. Many longtime fans were shocked to learn that it's not actually pronounced em-gee-em-tee like the letters of MGMT, but it actually stands for 'Management.' In the clip, VanWyngarden introduced the band, telling the crowd: 'We are the Management.' According to an article published by Vulture in 2008, the band's label, Columbia, and a publicist told the outlet it's 'definitely pronounced "Em-gee-em-tee."' Several sources noted that the band's original name was The Management, but they shortened it to MGMT after discovering another artist had the rights to it.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How the Killers' misunderstood classic drew on a struggle with faith - and an MTV presenter's time with Iraq war veterans
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. No-one would deny that when it comes to 21st century indie, the Killers are pivotal figures. It all began with their blinding 2004 debut Hot Fuss - a record packed top-to-toe with instant classics. There was the pulse-quickening, technicolor exhilaration of Somebody Told Me, and that eternal dance floor-filler Mr. Brightside - now one of the most omnipresent songs (surely?) in music history. Nestled among these exuberant rockets sat the record's more thoughtful centrepiece. A song that still generated just as much power to galvanise a crowd as its more lithe siblings. All These Things That I've Done was knocked into shape by a band that were already eyeing-up a life in the spotlight. Inflamed with a passionate, sermon-like spirit, it was the very sound of the young - then garage-based - band reaching for the towering heights summited by their core influences. While the track's impressive heft might have led it to be overshadowed by the more energetic offerings in the band's songbook, it was its captivating (and wrongly assumed to be meaningless) bridge section that would lift the track into an iconic position in popular culture. The Song: The Killers - All These Things That I've Done The Magic Moment: The irresistable bridge section beginning at 02:31, with Flowers' repeated 'I've got soul but I'm not a soldier' mantra, backed by a gospel choir. Formed in the suburbs of Las Vegas in 2001 - and named from the fictional band that appears in New Order's video for the song Crystal - the Killers' original line-up consisted of synth-pop obsessive (and then-hotel bellboy) Brandon Flowers and ambidextrous lead guitarist Dave Keuning. Though the pair were prolific from the get-go, the duo soon expanded their number to four via the addition of bassist Mark Stoermer and drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. Indebted to a wealth of British influences, the four young men drew on the jubilant spirit of Britpop (Flowers cites seeing Oasis in 2001 as a life-changing experience), the bubbly synth-pop energy of the aforementioned New Order and early Depeche Mode, as well as the wrought emotional undercurrents of the Smiths and the Cure. Apt then, that it was a British A&R who first noticed the band's potential while others on the Vegas scene passed. Sniffing chart-savaging potential in the likes of Mr. Brightside - which astonishingly was among the first things Flowers and Keuning penned - along with the rest of The Killers' growing stable of songs, Alex Gilbert hurriedly recommended them to British independent label Lizard King Records. They were snapped-up in a heartbeat. Their debut album, Hot Fuss, was helmed by Jeff Saltzman, and would demonstrate a musical breadth beyond its charge-leading salvo of hook-laden singles. The sludgy Andy, You're a Star was a semi-ironic paean to a high school jock for which Flowers had something of a crush, while the 80's-evoking opener Jenny Was a Friend of Mine coursed with a lyric of Robert Smith-esque darkness, suggesting a gloomier side to this otherwise bouncy outfit. Hot Fuss would be the first of several Killers albums to instantly top the charts in the UK. Their US homeland soon caught up - grappling to find out what all the 'fuss' was about… But, save the extraordinary Mr. Brightside, the album's most towering moment was its fifth track - All These Things That I've Done. Taking its cues from the epic-scale majesty of U2's most stirring tracks, the organ-soaked powerhouse rose in intensity from a delicate, piano-note intro, to its throbbing, repeated central riff which wheeled through the song. All the while Flowers' vocal became increasingly impassioned. 'I was heavily into U2 at the time,' Flowers told Spin. 'The way that they incorporated gospel to their music. That was something that had a huge effect on me, and you really hear it in this song. Everything from the chord progression to the actual gospel choir we recorded with. There's something to guitar music and gospel. You can make something that feels unique and honourable.' As the song concluded its driving second chorus, it unexpectedly ejects the bulk of its arrangement as it enters the bridge - save the gnawing chug of Keuning's guitar… 'I've got soul but I'm not a soldier' confessionally repeats Flowers. He's soon accompanied by gospel choir (The Sweet Inspirations). The arrangement grows, with guitar, drums and backing vocals rising to meet the seeming gravity of these words - which are soon delivered with a pastor-like fervour. Some critics (and British comedian Bill Bailey) were confounded by the baffling expression. But the phrase was charged with meaning for Flowers. The first angle on which to interpret the phrase is the story of a late night conversation with former MTV presenter and Columbia Records vice president of A&R Matt Pinfield in a Las Vegas bar several months prior to recording. 'When I first met the Killers, I was trying to sign them to Columbia records,' Pinfield told SiriusXM's Volume. 'I had been called by the US Army to go and mentor returning soldiers from Iraq that either had PTSD or were wounded but who were musicians in Colorado.' Pinfield spent three days with the recovering soldiers, then flew directly to Las Vegas in an attempt to sign the Killers - then in the midst of writing their debut record. Matt was invited along to watch the band in drummer Ronnie Vanucci's parents' garage and was bowled-over by the platter of obvious chart-ready winners the four had rustled up. It was clear something special was enthusiastically took them out to dinner. 'After dinner I said 'Hey, does anybody want to give me a ride back to my hotel?' Brandon Flowers who was still a bellboy in Vegas at the time said 'I'll drive you back'' Cut to Pinfield's hotel several hours later, where the pair were propping up the bar - trading stories and experiences over several rounds of drinks. 'We're sitting there, it's a Tuesday night. We just started talking about life - I told him about mentoring the soldiers, I was just about to go through a divorce. I was going through a bit of a rough time.' Flowers was captivated by Pinfield's story and, after finishing his last drink, went home - his head swimming with ideas. He quickly penned the first draft of All These Things That I've Done that night, with the empathetic subtext of Pinfield's story undulating in his head. While Pinfield cites his mentoring story as the core inspiration for the line 'I've got soul, but I'm not a soldier' (which he states was confirmed by the band's manager on the phone the very next day) Flowers has given some more broader responses when asked about the line in later years. In a 2009 Rolling Stone interview, Brandon recalled that, 'I can specifically remember being in Ronnie Vannucci's garage when I wrote it that. I don't know why I wrote it, but I know I'd been listening to a lot of U2's Joshua Tree and All That You Can't Leave Behind. Some people act like that line is nonsense, and I just don't understand that. If you listen to the song, it makes perfect sense. Our fans get it.' But last year, an older Flowers had a more coherent thematic interpretation of his own youthful words. 'I was barely 21 when we wrote it,' Flowers told The Story Behind the Song podcast. 'We had already written [the album's other singles]. But, there was something else I wanted. I was already looking for something a little bit more than entertainment.' Flowers continued his reflective read on the twenty year-old song, and recalled a more personal meaning, 'I'm a religious person, and here I am at this crossroads where I'm in this rock 'n' roll band and we're basically about to shoot to the stratosphere. I had a bit of trepidation about that and I think you can hear that searching in All These Things That I've Done. 'You can hear that questioning boy in the song, and that's a vulnerability I don't think that you hear a lot in rock 'n' roll.' Flowers also cited David Bowie as a particularly big influence on this track's arrangement, with the repetitive bassline of 2002's Slow Burn as an element that the band consciously pilfered. 'I just took the bassline straight from Slow Burn,' Flowers admitted. It's a line, then, that encapsulates all these inspirations - that conversation with Pinfield and his experiences with the mentoring program are intertwined with the technical ambition to reach a U2-scale stature (particularly their song I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - and their notion of songs as 'prayers') as well as - and perhaps most centrally - Flowers' own tussle with his faith and its conflict with his desire for rock stardom. 'It's a prayer - and it goes back to bands that introduced me to that form of writing. I'm speaking to God in the chorus. I want to know I'm going to be okay,' said Flowers. It's rare for a band to pop off an outright masterpiece on their first album, yet the still remarkably young Killers, managed to serve up at least two on Hot Fuss. Imbued with its organ, its gospel choir and these spiritually-charged words, All These Things That I've Done resonated with millions around the globe when released as a single in August 2004. With Flowers' interpretation in mind, the line 'I've got soul but I'm not a soldier' evokes a universal theme of hesitation in the face of an inevitable decision. If not for his band's success, Brandon's Mormon background would likely have imposed a very different way of life for him. Still remaining true to his faith, whilst fulfilling his inescapable desire to pursue his ambitions, is the core conflict that lay behind this line. '[The line] means that I can be a worthy person and not check every box that I'm supposed to check,' Flowers told The Story Behind the Song. 'If I'm going to make a hundred thousand people sing it every night with me - just let us know that it's ok'.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The Killers will play a smaller venue in MN, but only for Wells Fargo customers
The Killers are coming to the Palace Theatre, a relatively intimate venue for a band that has headlined Target Field and Xcel Energy Center. First Avenue announced the June 26 underplay this week, with a small catch. You can only buy tickets if you've got a Wells Fargo credit card. The show is part of a series of Wells Fargo events that drop big-name acts into relatively small venues, such as the 2,500-capacity Palace Theatre. Brandon Flowers and co. last came to town for the first night of TC Summer Fest in 2023, performing alongside the Flaming Lips, Death Cab for Cutie, and others. The second day was also headlined by a Las Vegas-born band, Imagine Dragons. The two-day festival-style event was billed as the inaugural TC Summer Fest, but it has not been held since. The Killers took the stage for an underplay that year as well, headlining First Avenue the night before trekking down the street to the Twins' stadium. Tickets to see the "Mr. Brightside" hitmakers are available exclusively to Wells Fargo Autograph cardholders through Friday, May 16, at 10 a.m. At that time, tickets will become available to anyone with a Wells Fargo credit card.
