Battleborn is like a long, weird dream. The songs overlap and reference elements from previous albums, even borrowing a riff from a previous song to continue the storyline, much like a dream draws from personal experiences to make it more realistic. And neither of them make much sense. As much as they enjoy referencing themselves, The Killers can't quite seem to decide on a single meaning, instead just sprinkling their own song titles and recycling lines from previous songs to provide the illusion of a storyline. If all of this interconnected to have a final, meaningful conclusion, it would certainly feel much better to the listener than just randomly interspersed references to make the band seem clever. Although this tactic impressed Fourteen-Year-Old Me, Present Me is unimpressed.
Other than the inside references, a common theme with this album is romance. While the album could be interpreted as a follow-up to their biggest hit "Mr. Brightside", "Miss Atomic Bomb" is certainly a continuation of that storyline. It's anybody's guess if the rest of Battleborn is related or not.
"Flesh and Bone" is one of the weirdest songs about sex I've heard in a while, and the cliched joy of discovering another person's body for The First Time. There are plenty of cliches interwoven throughout the entire album. I'm starting to wonder if B-Flow writes any of these songs in over fifteen minutes.
I think what I love the most about The Killers is the way Brandon Flowers delivers these lyrics, sometimes with such power. I can't see much that makes The Killers unique musically, but I'll be damned if I don't mention how Mr. Flowers can belt 'em out. That and the admittedly overused outside-Vegas desert aesthetic the album carries on from, like, the entire Killers existence work together to sell the album. Some of the songs are sad, and some of them are catchy, but I can't say any of them are 100% original.
RELEASE DATE: 2012
LABEL: Island Records
RUN TIME: 66 mins (1 hr, 6 mins)
TOP TWO TRACKS: "From Here On Out". That song is a true gem amidst plastic ones. ("Miss Atomic Bomb" is actually pretty good, too.)
GRADE: C+
FINAL COMMENTS: Gosh, these guys rely heavily on cliche and their established fanbase. Brandon Flowers is a Mormon.
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