Killers Execute Their Formula Well

Molson Amphitheatre

Toronto, ON

on Sep 6 2009

Jared Morano (CHARTattack)

09/09/2009 9:39am

There comes a point in a touring band's career where they've played so many shows for so many years with such a big budget that there's no way they're not going to be entertaining, whether you like the songs or not.

The Killers reached that point a couple years after Hot Fuss. They're so popular and well known among so many demographics that there's no way they're going to put on a bad show.

Sure, Hot Fuss had some good singles, but everything since has been watery radio-rock, written for the casual listener who won't notice their formula — verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-buildituptoa-MONSTER CHORUS! The backing orchestral arrangements are only things that change.

In some ways, that's what Sunday's show was — an exercise in dynamics. Each song had three modes: steady groovin', keepin' it quiet and rockin' the suburbs, and generally the highlight was when they shifted from quiet to loud, usually augmented with some sort of pyrotechnic. Some songs, like my favourite from Day & Age, "A Dustland Fairytale," were just one big build, getting that last chorus nice 'n' epic.

The band looked a little subdued; so much so that when guitarist Dave Keuning jumped from the drum riser (off-beat, of course) he stayed crouched for a couple extra seconds to downplay the previous motion. Singer Brandon Flowers was a bit more lively, climbing monitors and raising his arms at the appropriate moments. Every musician has their "excitement move" — the thing they do when they're really into the music. Flowers likes to conduct like he's leading an orchestra.

A second guitarist, percussionist and saxophonist joined the quartet, all safely tucked upstage, out of the lights. One of my favourite moments was when the guitar-gnome played the synth hook to "Smile Like You Mean It" on violin for an acoustic version of the song, which, you betcha, exploded to full rock for the last chorus.

Another highlight was when opening band Wolfmother came onstage to cover "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," a song made popular by The Animals, complete with ripping metal-guitar solo by Wolfmother frontman Andrew Stockdale. Something I've always appreciated about The Killers is that they acknowledge the giants on whose shoulders they're stomping, whether by covering Joy Division or collaborating with Lou Reed or Elton John. I also like how drummer Ronnie Vanucci, Jr. looks like Earl from My Name Is Earl.

The Killers are proud natives of Las Vegas, and wear their hometown on their sleeve — or, rather, their set, decorating the stage with palm branches, imitation mosaics, giant flowerpots and lots and lots of neon lights. It looked like someone exploded a jukebox in a desert. In other words, it looked like Las Vegas.

There were also plenty of mounted video screens — some dedicated to showing the members of the band, others displaying animated backgrounds like flying stars and desert mountains. Flowers' synthesizers were hidden behind the giant lower-case "k" from the start of the music video for "Human."

The setlist was comprised almost entirely of singles. If the song has a music video, chances are it was played. There are probably YouTube playlists that identically match the set. Actually, I recognized a couple non-singles — "Change Your Mind" and "Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine" from Hot Fuss. The latter was the second encore song and began with distorted bass solo.

The Hot Fuss singles got the best reception and the weirdest introductions. Flowers' shouted, "This one's a real rattlesnake!" to launch "Somebody Told Me." "Mr. Brightside" came after a long history of how The Killers formed, which was only eight years ago, but was still meant to feel nostalgic. They should really give it a full decade before bringing out the self-congratulatory retrospectives.

The final note of "Mr. Brightside" was the first of "All These Things That I Have Done," which was without doubt the climax of the show and the last song of the main set. I think much of the band's success has to do with that bridge with the lyric "I got soul/but I'm not a soldier." Live, they draw it out and play it up real big.

When they finally hit the chorus again, cannons shot white tissue paper into the air, dispersing it over the first few sections of the Molson Amphitheatre (no tissue for the proles on the lawn) where it fluttered around gorgeously as the band hit that last chorus before leaving the stage for that awkward delay before the encore.

"We're going to play this as hard as we can. Are you willing to receive it as hard as you can?" Flowers cryptically told the crowd after "Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine." Then they played "When You Were Young." I was ready to receive as hard as I could, but it sounded pretty standard to me. Rock talk is stupid. The Killers just need to stick to the monster choruses.

Check out photos from the show here.