The Killers

By Garth Paulson

I’m really getting tired of all these ‘best bands in the world.” I mean shouldn’t you actually have to do something a little more substantial then release one strong EP to earn this distinguished designation? Apparently not, at least if we’re to believe the British music press who have been giving out an orgy of accolades to hundreds of mediocre bands for quite a few years now. The Killers are just one of these bands that have received ludicrous amounts of praise from our British friends, but why?


Listening to their debut full-length, ironically titled Hot Fuss, I can’t find one thing that could be called original, compelling or even interesting. What Hot Fuss does offer is eleven songs that sound like watered-down radio friendly versions of The Strokes and Hot Hot Heat. What the Killers do is take elements from those two bands, discard the aspects that actually make them fun then piece them together to make songs that can best be described as bland and forgettable. I mean ripping off other artists is a tried and true tradition in music, but you really shouldn’t rip off bands that are only a few years old.


Where the Strokes sound entirely too cool to care about making a good record and Hot Hot Heat’s manic energy makes it impossible not to love them, the Killers come across sounding timid and almost apologetic, as if they know the whole Hot Fuss surrounding them isn’t justified.