The second solo album by The Killers’ frontman pays homage to the ’80s in style
Brandon Flowers / The Desired Effect
It’s hard — unthinkable even — to imagine a decent indie rock party (or a playlist/mixtape) without The Killers’ anthems Somebody Told Me and Mr. Brightside. That is the extent of influence the Las Vegas quartet has had over the indie rock scene since the early noughties.
Taken from the band’s critically acclaimed debut, Hot Fuss, which put The Killers on the map, those hit tracks also introduced us to the band's charming frontman, Brandon Flowers.
After releasing three studio albums with the band (Hot Fuss, Sam’s Town, Day & Age), Flowers decided to strike out on his own with Flamingo, a debut solo album largely inspired by his hometown of Nevada.
Musically, the album demonstrated Flowers’ preference for the ’80s pop sensibility — a quality that extends into his second solo offering, The Desired Effect.
Produced by Grammy-winning Ariel Rechtshaid (Madonna, Kylie Minogue, Vampire Weekend, and Haim, to name a few), Flowers’ second record shines with scintillating synths and catchy hooks.
It fuses elements of rock, disco, country and Americana with plenty of vocal harmonies worthy of humming and bobbing your head along to. Built on synth pads and pan flutes with a huge chorus, lead single Can’t Deny My Love looks back to the ’80s with an adoring gaze.
“What’s going on in your head now? Was it something I said? I know that you’ve been living in the past/What’s going in your head now? Maybe something I said,” he sings along the vocal harmonies that recall sisterly trio Haim.
Sampling Bronski Beat’s 1984 classic Smalltown Boy, I Can Change takes its cue from early Pet Shop Boys (it also features PSB’s Neil Tennant on backing vocals).
Dreams Come True could easily pass as a song from a Killers' album with its roaring drums and glorious brass section, while Still Want You has a playful call-and-response chorus, with Flowers professing unconditional love despite inconveniences such as climate change and nuclear distress. Elsewhere there’s a rockabilly stomper that's tailor-made for line dancing (Diggin’ Up the Heart), an auto-tuned quirk (Lonely Town), and uplifting slow burners (Never Get You Right, Between Me and You).
The Desired Effect, for the most part, listens like a reverent homage to the ’80s with its pop-oriented production that relies heavily on synth flourishes, backing vocals and stadium-ready choruses.
But despite all of its retro influences and gimmicks, the songs on the album don’t come across sounding derivative, thanks to Rechtshaid and his deft production touches. The credit, of course, also goes to Flowers, who has managed to pull off an impressive feat. His personal flair and versatile voice lend themselves brilliantly to a variety of genres and roles, from indie rock icon to ’80s pop revivalist. n
THE PLAYLIST
BangBangBang (featuring Da Endorphine)/ Touch Da Sky
BangBangBang is a Bangkok-based EDM project by Khan Thaitanium and Aussie producer Keezy. The duo previously dropped their first single called Higher, and now they’re sharing with us Touch Da Sky, a collaboration with vocal powerhouse Da Endorphine. Production-wise, this is EDM strictly by the numbers with predictable builds and drops. What gives it an outstanding quality, though, is Da’s commanding voice which possesses a certain rock sensibility that goes surprisingly well with the electronic dance music.
Drake (featuring Beyoncé)/ Can I
After their collaboration last year on Mine, the pair have returned with a new track called Can I. Built on a sparse beat and brooding synths, the song sees Drake laying down his verses on top of Beyoncé’s vocal snippets that don’t really go beyond short utterances like “Can I?” and “Baby”. At this point there is no official word on whether the song (or “leak”, according to some) will appear on Drake’s forthcoming album Views From The 6, a follow-up to his surprise mixtape, If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late, or on any other projects the two might have cooking for us.
Florence + The Machine/ Deliah
Of all the new singles we’ve heard so far from Florence + the Machine including What Kind of Man, Ship to Wreck and St Jude, their latest offering Deliah is perhaps the only one that wouldn’t sound out of place on the band’s previous two albums. Featuring mythological imagery, dirge-like vibe and piano chords, the song gradually builds a momentum before reaching the bluesy bombast midway through. Welch’s falsetto steals the show as always as she belts: “It’s a different kind of danger, and my feet are spinning ’round/Never knew I was a dancer until Delilah showed me how.”
Texas/ Are You Ready?
Remember Texas and their ’90s pop masterpiece, Say What You Want? Well, the Scottish outfit are back to celebrate their 25th anniversary (and make you feel old in the process) with the release of Texas 25, a collection of re-recorded hits as well as four new tracks. One of the new tracks, Are You Ready?, demonstrates how consistently good the band have been over the last two decades, with frontwoman Sharleen Spiteri still oozing the same cool, imitable confidence that she had back in the late ’90s.
Ricky Martin (featuring Pitbull)/ Mr Put It Down
Having just dropped his tenth Spanish-language album earlier this year, Ricky Martin is already gearing up for the release of his fourth English-language record. Lead single Mr Put It Down finds the Puerto Rican heartthrob teaming up with none other than Mr Worldwide himself, resulting in a fairy standard party anthem. “Who has a lifetime, baby? We’ve got the night right now/When you see what I’m planning, you’re gonna call me Mr Put It Down,” Martin sings, seemingly putting the essence of Andrew Marvell’s To His Coy Mistress into contemporary context. n
