The Killers frontman Brandon Flowers paid tribute to his parents as the band ended their six-night residency at The O2 in London on Thursday night (11.07.24).
The 43-year-old singer reminisced about his childhood growing up surrounded by “dirt and sky” in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson, Nevada, and thanked his mother Jean and father Terry for creating a home that allowed him to be “free from embarrassment and anxiety”.
Introducing the song ‘Pressure Machine’, Brandon said: “Out of the kitchen all you could see was dirt and sky. No backyard, no front yard, just dirt and sky. “It didn’t bother me that we didn’t have grass, I was six, I’d spray down the dirt with water from the hose and play in the mud for as long as you would let me, but I was in the minority. One night a neighbour left a dollar bill in our mailbox and attached to the dollar was a small note which read ‘here’s a small donation to you getting a garden’. I don’t remember when I learned about the note, it was when I was grown and out of the house. But I do remember the way it felt the day that pallets of soil showed up, the excitement of helping my father line up those sweet rolls of earth, one by one, side by side, the day my parents had saved up enough money to buy real honest to goodness green grass. That’s where I lived, in that innocence, that’s the place they built for me, I was completely free from embarrassment and the anxiety. We all do that for our children in our own way. But it’s experiences like these that pave the way for songs like ‘Pressure Machine’. ‘Pressure Machine’ is not a love song, it’s a life song.”
The Killers thrilled the crowd with a set packed with their greatest hits.
A silhouetted Brandon struck a pose as the curtains lifted for opening track ‘My Own Soul’s Warning’ revealing their diamond-shaped stage, casino-style carpet and elaborate lighting rig inspired by their Las Vegas background.
They followed up with ‘Human’, ‘Somebody Told Me’ and ‘Smile Like You Mean It’ which saw Brandon tease fans with a false start before playing the 2003 track’s famous riff on his K emblazoned keyboard.
At their gig on Wednesday night (10.07.24) The Killers had shown the goal that striker Ollie Watkins scored to send England into the Euro 2024 final and as Brandon implored the 18,000 fans in the arena to lend their voices to every song he reminded them that they should still be on a high from that sporting triumph.
He said: “How you doing London? I know how you’re doing, England’s in the final and you’re at a Killers and Travis concert You’re doing fine. Tonight we’re going to go all the way, give us enthusiastic consent please. One more thing, we’re not the only ones performing tonight. You are part of an 18,000 choir. Will you sing with us tonight? Let’s try it!”
Other highlights included ‘For Reasons Unknown’, ‘Runaways’, ‘Read My Mind’ and a cover of Erasure’s ‘A Little Respect’.
Before launching into ‘All These Things That I’ve Done’, Brandon took a moment to thank their London fans for supporting the band for over 20 years.
He said: “At the end of six nights in London this has been amazing, thank you for coming – 21 years we’ve been coming to London now. When we first came I don’t think we played this song on the first trip, I don’t think it was on the list yet. We weren’t completely sure about it, but over time it has become a pillar of The Killers set and it’s sort of taken us by surprise and we love to perform it now. It’s called ‘All These Things That I’ve Done’.”
The group – also comprised of guitarist Dave Keuning and drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. – left the stage as red and white confetti and streamers filled the air.
They returned for an encore of ‘Pressure Machine’, 2003 anthem ‘Mr. Brightside’ and a raucous ‘When You Were Young’ with the latter two tracks prompting a mass singalong.
The Killers take up residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas this August.
The Killers ‘Rebel Diamonds’ setlist:
‘My Own Soul’s Warning’
‘Enterlude’
‘Human’
‘The Way It Was’
‘Somebody Told Me’
‘Smile Like You Mean It’
‘For Reasons Unknown’
‘Dying Breed’
‘Bling (Confession of a King)’
‘boy’
‘A Little Respect (Erasure cover)’
‘Caution’
‘Runaways’
‘Read My Mind’
‘Your Side of Town’
‘Andy, You’re a Star’
‘All These Things That I’ve Done’
Encore:
‘Pressure Machine’
‘Mr. Brightside’
‘When You Were Young’
‘Exitlude’