Although Brandon Flowers [vocalist of The Killers] says with much conviction that The Killers’ sophomore release, Sam’s Town, is a better record than anything else that’s out there (and even past classic albums by monumental rock bands! Gasp! Imagine that! Cocky, aren’t we? Just confident, he might argue), I don’t think anything can top Hot Fuss.
Hot Fuss was just one of those instant-hit first records, you know? John Mayer scored big with his first album, Room for Squares. His sophomore album, Heavier Things…eh. It was all right. The Strokes’ Is This It? was too awesome for words. Critics still say Is This It? was classic. Room on Fire, The Strokes’ sophomore release, was still pretty good, but it seemed to be duplicating the formula on Is This It? The list of artists who got the formula right on the first try is short, but The Killers are on there with Hot Fuss.
So I’m wondering, are the newly-mustachioed Killers better the second time around? Is it possible to top a top record? The answer? Give When You Were Young, their first song off of Sam’s Town, a listen and you’ll see why it’s so easy for someone to be, not cocky, but confident.
