Upon hearing that The Killers would be releasing a new album, I became very excited.
The Killers were one of my favorite bands in high school, and they hadn’t released any albums since 2012. “Wonderful, Wonderful” was released on Sept. 22, and I was eager to give it a listen, albeit nervous that their style would have changed for the worse.
My first impression of the title track and opener, “Wonderful, Wonderful,” was that it had a sort of Red Hot Chili Peppers meets Muse vibe, and I definitely enjoyed it. “Rut,” the third song, was bittersweet and reminded me of some of the songs off of their 2006 album “Sam’s Town.” “Life to Come” had a similar feel to it as well.
The fifth track, “Run for Cover,” is one of my favorites off of the album, as it’s catchy and just feels like a classic Killers song. Another of my personal favorite tracks is “Some Kind of Love.” It has a very dreamy, ethereal feel. The album ends with the thought provoking and sorrowful “Have All the Songs Been Written?”
Overall, I am impressed with “Wonderful, Wonderful.” The Killers have experimented with their musical style a little, but just enough to show they are branching out as musicians.
It does feel as though a few of the tracks are fillers, but they’re all still at least decent songs.
On the contrary, there are more emotional ballads than most of the band’s previous albums. Several of the tracks were written about frontman Brandon Flowers’s wife struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder.
What the album lacks in superficial dance jams, it makes up for in introspective, personal songs. Not only that, there are some clever, play-on-words type lyrics, something this band hasn’t really done before.
After a five-year break in between albums, I’d say this is a strong comeback album, and I hope that we’ll get another in a few years. “Wonderful, Wonderful” is both a solid and promising addition to The Killers’ discography.
