Hang on a second… didn’t we have a new Killers album last year too? Well yes and no. Their 2006 album ‘Sam’s town’ may still be warm, but ‘Sawdust’ isn’t strictly a new album. Instead it contains a collection of B-sides and rarities from the past four years. The only truly new track is ‘Tranquilize’ – a collaboration with Lou Reed that has been receiving substantial air play on UK indie stations. A message on the inside cover reads “this album is dedicated to our fans”, but does that suggest its appeal will be limited to Killers enthusiasts?
‘Tranquilize’ opens the album and immediately sets a darker tone than previous releases; with a heavy, brooding bass line that pounds away relentlessly. The children’s choir that begins the third verse appears to have escaped from a horror movie or possibly one of Lou Reed’s scarier trips; either way it is haunting and even a little unsettling. The track does however possess genuine depth and Reed’s vocals perfectly compliment Brandon Flowers’ Nevada drawl, making it one of the standout tracks on the album. Jacques Lu Cont’s electro-trance remix of ‘Mr Brightside’ seems to be something of a missed opportunity though, being neither a genuine dance track nor a substantial difference to the original song. Likewise, the acoustic piano rendition of ‘Sam’s Town’ from the 2006 Abbey Road sessions is a little lacklustre and the Hot Fuss sessions recording of ‘Glamorous Indie Rock and Roll’ has very little to differentiate it from the original. Fortunately these tracks aren’t really what the album is about. Delve a little deeper into the previously unreleased material such as ‘Shadowplay’, ‘All The Pretty Faces’ and ‘Move Away’ and you realise that this record contains a lot of brilliantly inspired music. Ironically, the established tracks (albeit in modified form) are probably the least interesting on the album – certainly for existing Killers fans that have the previous albums. They are utterly eclipsed by the ‘new’ tracks, as are any fears that ‘Sawdust’ would be full of songs deemed unfit for general release. Moments like the epic foot-on-the-monitor guitar solo on ‘Daddy’s Eyes’ and the ultra-catchy groove that spans the entirety of ‘Leave The Bourbon On The Shelf’ are pure genius, worthy of any of their main releases.
In answer to our question; the previously unreleased material on ‘Sawdust’ makes for a very accomplished and coherent album in its own right – you certainly don’t have to be a die-hard Killers fan to appreciate it. In fact, far from being overshadowed by its recent predecessor, there is a very good argument for suggesting that ‘Sawdust’ is actually a better collection of songs than ‘Sam’s Town’. Not surprisingly, given that many of the songs date from that era, it is closer in feel to Hot Fuss and that cannot be a bad thing for any album.
The Killers - Sawdust
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