2008 Woodie Awards
The Killers overeach with Sam's Town
CD Review
Justin Kaialoa
Issue date: 10/10/06 Section: Arts & Entertainment
The Killers' second release starts off with the title track "Sam's Town," a sea of synthesizers and guitar riffs. Although somewhat catchy, the song drowns under the crushing waves of synthesizers. From here the album moves to an interlude with piano and vocals which immediately explodes into "When You Were Young," the first single from the album. This, unfortunately, is the album at its peak. This is the only song on the album that achieves the catchiness of the majority of their last album, Hot Fuss.
After this track the album sinks into a slump of songs that sound very similar, almost exactly the same. There are a few songs, such as "Uncle Johnny" that are a little better than the others, but still really don't stand up to the irritating glory of their first album.
The music sounds more "mature," but that isn't always what you're looking for in an album. The Killers really missed the mark with this one, attempting to make the songs deeper and more complex. Hot Fuss was catchy track after catchy track that you would sing along to in the car, guilty pleasure or not. Aside from "When You Were Young," this album has none of that.
On a good note, lead singer Brandon Flowers actually learned how to sing on this album - his vocal range is much more accomplished.
Overall, this album is mediocre. It takes three minutes and forty seconds to listen to this whole album; that's how long "When You Were Young" lasts. Pick it up if you're a fan of The Killers; otherwise steer clear. Go get Hot Fuss if you want to listen to them, Sam's Town is a disappointing sophomore album.
After this track the album sinks into a slump of songs that sound very similar, almost exactly the same. There are a few songs, such as "Uncle Johnny" that are a little better than the others, but still really don't stand up to the irritating glory of their first album.
The music sounds more "mature," but that isn't always what you're looking for in an album. The Killers really missed the mark with this one, attempting to make the songs deeper and more complex. Hot Fuss was catchy track after catchy track that you would sing along to in the car, guilty pleasure or not. Aside from "When You Were Young," this album has none of that.
On a good note, lead singer Brandon Flowers actually learned how to sing on this album - his vocal range is much more accomplished.
Overall, this album is mediocre. It takes three minutes and forty seconds to listen to this whole album; that's how long "When You Were Young" lasts. Pick it up if you're a fan of The Killers; otherwise steer clear. Go get Hot Fuss if you want to listen to them, Sam's Town is a disappointing sophomore album.
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