Brandon Flowers’ upcoming solo album, Thrasher, pays homage to his late father’s favourite music, Country-Western.
The Killers frontman is set to give fans an insight into his upbringing in the town of Nephi, Utah, where his dad would drive around listening to the likes of Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings.
He said: “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found my way back to my father’s music – ‘Country-Western’ (as he called it) – and discovered that the stories I carry really feel most at home in the skin of this beautiful American tradition.”
The follow-up to 2015’s The Desired Effect was recorded in the home of country music, Nashville, and saw Brandon reunite with producers Shawn Everett and Jonathan Rado.
He is backed by guitarist David Rawlings, pedal steel player Bruce Bouton, and Bob Dylan’s regular harmonica player Charlie McCoy.
Brandon has reassured fans that he is not leaving behind new-wave and rock ‘n’ roll.
He explained: “Two things can be true at the same time. The fact that I love new-wave and rock ‘n’ roll is well documented, but life is long enough to allow for more.
“Walt Whitman said it best: ‘I am large, I contain multitudes’… Well, I’m larger now than I was 20 years ago, and I’ve unlocked a room that feels like it’s been waiting for me all along.”
He added in a video on social media: “I hope you hear the joy in the record, because we sure had a blast making it.
“This is not me running away from rock n’ roll. I don’t want to replace my old songs. I simply found room for more.”
The lead single, Plans, is set to arrive on Friday (26.06.26) and sets up the story.
The track One Of Us is in memory of his late brother-in-law, while Miss America is about growing up in the ’80s.
It’s not completely new territory, as the album is said to have a similar vibe to The Killers’ albums Sam’s Town and Pressure Machine.
Thrasher is released on August 21.