By Christopher Minitelli
Correspondent
I have been a big fan of The Killers for quite a while now, so when I heard they were releasing a new album, I definitely had high expectations. After a four-year hiatus, The Killers released their fifth studio album, “Battle Born,” on Sept. 18. Although the band took a long break after their last tour, they definitely picked up right where they left off. With Brandon Flowers’ distinctive and recognizable voice leading The Killers once again, “Battle Born” seems to describe the story of a relationship, from beginning to end. Among the first couple of tracks of the album, the song “Runaways” is a nod to young love and the ignorance that often accompanies it. After this track, songs like “Here With Me” and “Miss Atomic Bomb” go through the heartbreak and melancholy that people experience after a relationship ends. Throughout the album, The Killers show the difficulty of moving on and recovering with the songs “Be Still” and “Battle Born.” The Killers end the album on a high note with the track “Prize Fighter,” proving the idea that people are able to move on and eventually find things worth fighting for.
Overall, I thought that The Killers were able to stick to their roots, with Flowers’ voice only getting better, and with similar subjects as their previous three albums.
However, I think they definitely included a number of tracks that wandered away from their usual topics. One track in particular that did this was “Heart of a Girl.” This song delves into the relationship between a father and daughter, which seems unusual for this album. However, the track includes great lyrics and instrumentals, which probably make it one of my favorite off of this album.
In the end, I definitely like “Battle Born” — but I feel like some of the tracks are pretty forgettable since many of them sound very similar to one another. Although I am well aware that Brandon Flowers is essentially the backbone of The Killers, I think they focused a lot more on his voice and did not include many tracks that had either memorable or noteworthy instrumentals. In their earlier albums, The Killers were able to strike a balance between Flowers’ voice and the instrumentals (for instance, my personal favorite, “Mr. Brightside”). Many of their tracks on this album failed to do so. Even with all of this in mind, I think that The Killers came out with a long-awaited album that is definitely worth listening to.
