The Killers — Imploding The Mirage — Album Review
Indie Rock | Alternative Rock
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
The Killers are a band that made up quite a large chunk of my childhood. With hits like “Mr. Brightside” and “Somebody Told Me”, I definitely consider them one of my childhood greats.
In-fact, their debut album that both of those hits feature on, titled Hot Fuss, still easily stands as my favourite Killers album, and is perhaps one of my favourite rock albums of the 2000’s as well.
However, things only seemed to venture on downhill in my opinion, and while there were tracks following that album that I definitely enjoyed, it was ultimately the likes of their 2008 album Day & Age that set me up with the worry that The Killers were going through a radical stylistic change, this was most noticeable with the change in vocal style of singer Brandon Flowers, which even as a kid, made me feel as if The Killers were now a completely new band.
Everything that has happened surrounding The Killers after that tragic realisation, I’ve pretty much been quiet about. I do admit considering a critical listen of the last studio album from The Killers, which was 2017’s Wonderful Wonderful, but I ultimately decided to abandon that idea.
But I must digress, over the past couple of years, my taste in music has changed just as radically as The Killers did with their musical style back in the late 2000’s, so perhaps their latest effort and newest album, Imploding The Mirage, may be a chance for my opinion on The Killers to turn back around.
My anxieties towards this album, however, were already ignited by the fact that the band are allegedly releasing yet another project in 2021, which they suggest may be “even better that this one”. And by “this one”, they are of course referring to Imploding The Mirage. This made me feel as if they perhaps hadn’t of put as much love and care into this album as they have for their imminent 2021 release. But despite all this, I still pushed on, and forced myself to listen.
Right off the bat, one thing that I do like about this newest album, is its aesthetic. With Imploding The Mirage, The Killers have vouched for a more spiritual and dreamy sense of chamber pop-rock. There also seems to be a somewhat consistent sense of festive energy (particularly thanks to how the opening track “My Own Soul’s Warning”) launched this energy into our ears).
However, much of what has made The Killers underwhelming over the years still swamps a lot of this album. A lot of it just feels like overly-formulaic and structural indie tunes that I’m quite frankly tired of listening to at this point.
And while the impressive features on this album were part of what drew me in to give this album a listen, what is undoubtedly the biggest sin of this album, is somehow managing to have a song with the amazing Weyes Blood still sound boring. I had a higher hope towards that track in particular than any other on the entirety of Imploding The Mirage, and it somehow became amongst the most boring of all the tracks.
But of the 10 tracks that this album had, the amount of tracks I kept was a minority in comparison to those I deemed unmemorable. And while I would still deem Imploding The Mirage a somewhat solid effort, the fact that we may have a new album next year will only make this album even more forgettable. But until then, I am still left longing for The Killers I once knew and loved.
Favourite Tracks: My Own Soul’s Warning | Caution | Running Towards A Place
Least Favourite Track: My God
Island Records | UMG Recordings
