Concert Review: The Killers. Roy Wilkins Auditorium. Saint Paul, MN. 5/15/07

Updated with video clip 5.21.07
Several months after the release of their sophomore album "Sams Town", the Killers returned to the Twin Cities. The venue is one where there really isn't a bad seat in the house so our view was great. The show began with "Sam's Town", which opened the night at a frenzied pace. Next up was the first single from Sams Town, "When You Were Young". The two hyper-paced tracks made for a well-calculated start to the concert. The crowd, ranging from 10 years old to 45, seemed to take longer than usual to let loose, but a few songs in "Mr. Brightside" drew the audience to their feet and connected both young and old in a singing session with frontman Brandon Flowers. Flowers was a true showman throughout the night and proved his talents across the best of both Sams Town and their debut album Hot Fuss.

The Killers opened their Saint Paul, MN concert at Roy Wilkins Auditorium with the title track from their latest album, "Sam's Town". Here is a clip I recorded as the show opened. The audio was poor so I dubbed the track over the video and tossed in a few pictures I took at the concert. Music hits around 1:14.

The rockers saved their most crowd friendly song for last as they finished the performace with "All These Things that I've Done". Every soul in the building was stomping their feet and clapping their hands when the "I've got soul, but I'm not a solider" chant hit. The moment was one of the better audience participation sessions I've been a part of, specifically when Flowers lowered his mic and let the thousands in the seats handle his job.

All-in-all the show was more than worth the ticket. In my experience, the energy of the Killers is hard to match and flowers is a truly individual performer with the vocals and passion to help this band withstand the unforgiving music industry. Sams Town is distinctly different from Hot Fuss, and seems to show the group's willingness to maintain their uniqueness while taking a progressive attitude with their sound. In listening to both albums, they really do not put out a bad song. If that is a sign of things to come then audiences can only expect their library of hits to grow and their concerts to become an even more comprehensive music experience.