Arhive etichete: brandon flowers

Review: Brandon Flowers – The Desired Effect

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I’ve been a The Killers fan since 2005, and they are one of the most important bands I stumbled upon during those dark days post-highschool dramedy that was my life, so the solo efforts of Brandon Flowers were a must listen, at least for me.

Flamingo was a mediocre album, so it took me a while to get on board with The Desired Effect. But boy, it did have it!

Dreams Come True is a great opener, filled with promises and great poetry written by Mr. Flowers, the god himself, and it benefits from its weird choice of 80s sound combined with some gospel-y vocals. I could see myself driving on a highway, not a care in the world, knowing that everything will be ok. (9.5/10)

Can’t Deny My Love was chosen as a lead single, and it has that anthem-y feel that Flowers seems to love. Still 80s, still filled with synths, a great tune overall, but it fades quickly when compared to the other songs from the album. (8/10)

If you ever wanted to hear a new kind of Bronski Beat, I Can Change is just perfect. Brandon Flowers’ pleas are amazingly tuned into that awkward request employed by the song. Oh, and Neil Tennant! (8/10)

Still Want You is a promise, just like the whole album. Perfectly in tune with my inner self, filled with doubt, but also with certitude, you can „smell” the maturity in Flowers. (9/10)

I wish I could say more about Between Me and You, a song that, with all its Killers-y sound, feels so Flowers-y at the same time, but all I can really say is it delivers yet another promise from this great man from Nevada. (8.5/10)

Synths and trumpets, the backbone of the 80s, mixed with a disco feel, Lonely Town is the perfect anthem for the teenager in you. (9/10)

Diggin’ Up the Heart will most likely please the old The Killers fans, as it’s definitely one of the songs that bears its signature. Angst-y and valiant, I can’t say I don’t dig it, even though it lacks a personal note. (8/10)

Never Get You Right starts off as a Las Vegas story gone wrong, but then it fades into this beautifully crafted 80s gem that is layered with love and despair at the same time. (9/10)

This time touching the glam rock of the 80s, Untangled Love seems to float in a sea of indecision. With pleading vocals, and guitars to lead the way, I’m guessing that this is the most impersonal song off the album. You can’t pinpoint it on Flowers, or The Killers, or anything else, but what it seems to lack in personality is brought forward by the determination in completing it, so that must be something, I guess… (6/10)

The Way It’s Always Been explores the familiar route taken by so many The Killers songs before, but it does so in a melodic way that almost sounds like a prayer. I’d say that it’s a good way to end the almost perfect album of the Killers frontman, but I think that it kinda lacks hope. (8.5/10)

The Desired Effect is a great album, one of the greatest that feature Flowers on the vocals. It lacks the experimentation perceived on Flamingo, but it also helps him get an appropriate, personal voice. The songs blend in perfectly with Flowers’ voice, his lyrics and themes, and the extensive use of 80s sound is mesmerizing. This one’s a keeper!

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The Price Of Love… For a band

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Am fost si la concert. Am intarziat putin la Patrice, dar am ajuns la timp, cat sa ma pot baga in fata si sa remarc pusti de 12-14 ani fumand si distrandu-se, de parca ar fi fost high. A fost fun for a while, dar dupa toate piesele noi ale lui Patrice, a urmat evident „Soulstorm”, in timp ce pe scena de alaturi, unde ar fi trebuit sa cante White Lies, organizatorii se uitau ingrijorati spre cerul ce dadea semne de furtuna. O data cu „Soulstorm” si dansul populatiei si al lui Patrice, a venit si ploaia, invocata probabil de noi. A mai cantat vreo 2 piese, si in timp ce ploaia ne mura pe toti, pe scena si in public rasunau cuvintele „Everything will be alright”.
A plecat Patrice, a inceput sa ploua si mai tare, si oamenii de la lumini si sunet si alte chestii utile in concert se chinuiau sa protejeze instrumentele si aparatele de pe scena. Pe langa ploaia deranjanta, mai batea si vantul, si nu aveam nicio umbrela, nicio haina, decat tricoul de pe mine.
Intr-un final, ploaia s-a mai potolit, si am revenit in fata scenei. Ca sa nu pierd primele locuri din fata de la The Killers, si totusi sa vad si White Lies, am stat langa gardul despartitor dintre cele despre 2 scene. Apoi au inceput sa cante cei de la White Lies and my soul died a little. Au fost absolut geniali, vocea lui Harry McVeigh e superba, deep and stuff, everything that makes a girl feel good. Au avut parte de public, oamenii le stiau melodiile, dar parca nu a fost publicul pe care-l meritau. Si in plus, nu au cantat nici „Taxidermy”, nici „Love Lockdown”.
Intre timp, pe scena unde ar fi trebuit sa cante The Killers se amenajau diverse chestii, cum ar fi instrumente, un palmier, doi palmieri, K-ul reprezentativ pentru ei. Si cand cei de la White Lies au terminat, in partea cealalta de scena, la The Killers, oamenii cu cablurile inca mai aveau treaba. Multimea ii chema pe cei din formatie, ii striga, tipau, aplaudau, incercand sa-i faca sa vina mai repede. Si cand, in final, au venit, it was mass hysteria. Nu o sa zic acum nimic de piesele pe care le-au cantat, doar despre marile „perdante”, cum ar fi „Sam’s Town” si „Bones”, si despre faptul ca am ramas uimita ca au cantat „Shadowplay”, aratand imagini cu Ian Curtis pe fundal, si m-a mai uimit si ca au cantat „Dustland Fairytale” si publicul a cantat cu ei, desi e o piesa trista si piesele triste nu prea au succes. O sa va spun mai ales despre atitudinea lui Brandon Flowers, care chiar are atitudine. Mic si cu nerv, se misca pe scena, are o a doua personalitate care infloreste pe scena and he knows how to drive the babes wild.
Per total, uzi si fericiti am fost.