The Killers, Hot Fuss

A little bit about the album
The album was released in June 2004. It reached number one in the album charts in the UK, and in Australia. It is the first album The Killers released.
The album cover front is light blue and on the middle of the front it says 'the killers' in big white letters. 'the' is in small letters on top of the 'k'. Underneath this it says in smaller, spaced out, dark blue capitals it says 'H O T F U S S'. At the bottom there is a picture of the tops of some blue sky scraper buildings with lights on them. - As you can see in the picture (just to make sure you have the right one).
The disc itself is dark red.

Who are The Killers?

The Killers are an indie-rock band originated in Las Vegas. The members are:

• Brandon Flowers (singer, keyboard)
• David Keuning (Guitars)
• Mark Stoermer (Bass)
• Ronnie Vannucci (Drums)

They are a fantastic band - my favourite band of all time!
If you like indie rock and roll, alternative rock types of music then you'll love this. You've probably heard of them, they are famous world wide and a very popular band. If you think you've seen them on the music channels or heard them on the radio, their most recent songs that you're probably more likely to have heard recently are all from the new album, Day & Age, such as 'Human' (_Are we human, or are we dancer) in which the band are in a rocky, desert like place and the singer, Brandon Flowers (who is thinish with brown hair), is wearing a brown jacket with feathers decorating the shoulders. Another song you may have heard is 'Spaceman' (_And you know, I-i-i-i-i-i might just walk to the floor this time_) which in the video the band are at a party it seems, where everyone is dressed very strangely, and the singer is wearing a red jacket with feathers on the sleeves.I think they are quite a unique, original band but if I had to say I would say that other bands who are similar to them would probably be The Kaiser Cheifs, Arctic Monkeys, Razorlight, The Kooks. So if you are a fan of any of these bands you're probably very likely to enjoy The Killers' music aswell.
You can listen to The Killers' music free on Youtube.com, Bebo.com or MySpace.com.

How did I get the album?

To be honest, the album isn't exactly mine. I borrowed it from my dad once and because I love it so much I just don't want to give it back! My dad's always asking where it is, as he loves it too, but I love it so much I pretend I don't know where it is. Which just proves the album must be good for me to steal it and then lie about it aswell!!
I think my dad bought it from HMV when it first came out in 2004. Which means our copy is about five years old. It must be good quality then, because it isn't half as stratched as most of my albums and I listen to this one the most.

Songs on the album

The tracklisting of the album is:

1. Jenny was a friend of mine
2. Mr Brightside
3. Smile like you mean it
4. Somebody told me
5. All these things that I've dome
6. Andy, you're a star
7. On top
8. Glamorous Indie Rock and Roll
9. Believe me, Natalie
10. Midnight Show
11. Everything will be alright

Below I have written about each song individually, to tell you my opinions on each of the songs, why I do like it or don't like it, and I have also included some of the lyrics to help you recognise how each song goes. I was listening to the album as I write them to make my reports more valid.

01 Jenny was a friend of mine

_Jenny was a friend of mine_
_So come on, so come on_

Starts off with cool effects, then the guitars come in, dum dum _dum_ , dum dum _dum_ .
The first song on the album, its a great tune to get you in the mood for all the other amazing songs. I am listening to it now, and enjoying it! The tune is great and a typical Killers' song, I think.
Also, in this song, I think the singer, Brandon Flowers shows off his voice with some rock- ish shouts such as when he says 'Wowohoh' or something like that - its quite hard to understand what he actually says, but none the less it sounds amazing.

02 Mr Brightside

_Jealousy, turning saints into the sea_
_Swimming through sick lullabies_
_Choking on your alibis_
_But it's just the price I pay_
_Destiny is calling me_
_Open up my eager eyes_
_'Cause I'm Mr Brightside_ ...

Mr Brightside is my favourite song by the Killers. It was released on 24th May, 2004 and reached number 10 in the charts in the UK. Its a rocky song which a lot of people will like and enjoy and I think its really good, one of their best songs.
It's my favourite song because: a/ i love the lyrics, and I think they are really cool, b/ i love the tune, I think it is really catchy and I always want to sing along to it and I admit I actually know all the lyrics!! and c/ i love the singer's voice, and think his voice sounds great in this song - I think it sounds great in all their songs - but probably most in this song.
This song is one of those songs everyone likes, and after listening to it it always stays in my head.

03 Smile like you mean it

_Smile like you mean it,
Smile like you mean it_ ...

He sings with quite a deep voice at the start of this one, and you've probably guessed what I'm going to say, which is that he sounds great in it! Again.
The lyrics of this song confuse me, to be honest, as I'm not really sure what he's on about. 'Someone is playing a game in the house that I grew up in..'
The lyrics are really interesting, in the verses, but all the chorus is is 'Smile like you mean it'.
This was the third single released from the album as it was released in May, 2005. It reached number 11 in the UK charts, and in Australia it was ranked number 39 on Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2004.

04 Somebody told me

_Somebody told me,_
_that you had a boyfriend_
_who looked like the girlfriend_
_that I had in February of last year_ ...

The first single released from the album, the song that got them famous, Somebody told me is is a really catchy, rocky tune that just makes you want to sing and dance along.
It starts off with quite a rockish tune to it, and the chorus is really catchy and sort of fun to listen to.
It was released in March 2004 and reached number three in the charts in the UK, and is a very popular song.
I love this song because in my opinion is really catchy and cool. It was also actually the first ring tone I ever had on my phone.

05 All These Things That I've Done

_I've got soul but I'm not a soldier_,
_I've got soul but I'm not a solder_ ...

When I first heard this song I didn't like it, and found it a little bit boring, but after I listened to it a few more times I started to like it, so I found this one of those types of songs that has to grow on you. I now really like it, as I do most of the songs on this album, and think its a really good song. If you listen to it too much though, I find it gets boring.

06 Andy, You're a Star

_Cause Andy you're a star!_ ...

Listening to this song now I'd say I quite like it. It's a lively catchy tune and very enjoyable - like all The Killer's songs are. It's a bit rocky as in guitars and you feel like dancing when you hear it. The only thing I don't think I like about it is that its not one of those songs that stays in your head because its such a good song, I find that in my opinion this is a good song but nothing special.

07 On Top

_We're on top,_
_we're on top_ ...

This song isn't the best of the album and I don't think its as good as many of The Killers songs but its still got quite a good tune to it and even though I don't think its the best they've made I still like it and think its not bad.

08 Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll

_Glamorous indie rock and roll_
_it's all I want_
_Its in my soul_
_its all I need_ ...

I love this song. It's really unique sounding and I loved it when I heard it for the first time. I think its one of those love it or hate it songs and my opinion is that I love it.

09 Believe me Natalie

This song is really boring in my opinion, usually when I get to this point in the album I either turn it off or start it again.

10 Midnight Show

Towards the end of the album the songs start to get a bit more boring, in my opinion. I think that the best songs on the disc are all closer to the start.

11 Everything Will Be Alright

Prices

I have compared some online prices to help you get the album for the cheapest deal. All prices are correct for Saturday 27th June.
On HMV.co.uk, the album is £3.99 with free delivery.
On Zavvi.co.uk, the album is £4.95 with free delivery.
Prices vary from around £3.99 to £4.99 (new and used copies) on Play.com.

What do I think of the album?

I think the album is fantastic, my favourite album out of all the CDs I own and the one I listen to the most. The Killers is one of my all time favourite bands, if not my no.1 favourite and I think this is a great album and definitely worth listening to.
Other albums I own by The Killers are Sams town and Sawdust. In my opinion Hot Fuss is definitely the best by miles.
The kind of music I like is a bit of everything really. I would say people who like indie rock, alternative rock all those types of music, would probably enjoy this album the most. It is a number one album so that tells us that a lot of people must enjoy it to have bought it for it to get to number one.

Would I recommend the album?
If you think I'm going to say no, then you obviously haven't being paying attention! Yes, I would definitely recommend the album, for all the reasons above. It is an excellent album by a fantastic band and I would recommend it to anyone. There is only one bad point about the album in my opinion and that is the fact that the songs start to get boring towards the end. However that is only my opinion and I know not everyone will agree and some people might like the last songs.

Conclusion
I hope my review has helped you with your buying decision if you have any questions just send a comment to my guestbook and I will happily answer if for you. x