The Killers w/ Wolfmother, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD – 08.31.09
Posted by Mitch Michaels on 09.03.2009
The Killers kick off another leg of their “Day & Age” tour with big hits and Vegas style…
It was clear pulling in to park on the lawn outside Merriweather Pavilion that this was going to be a different kind of concert experience for me. Fans were flocking to entrances, but unlike the black t-shirt clad guys I was used to seeing when catching AC/DC, Metallica, or some other giants of rock, some of these Killers fans were wearing dresses and strappy heels. That’s right – there were girls there. There was a LOT of girls there. I suddenly became very happy that my own plus one was of the female variety.
This was my first time to Merriweather, and it’s worth noting that it was a total class place. The scenery was nice, the angle on the slope from the lawn was such that even lawn seats could see the band rather than just watch on the video screen, and the walk in didn’t feel like “vendors row”, as vending was set up nicely all around the place. After a miserable experience at nearby Nissan Pavilion, this was a total breath of fresh air.
Anyway, with all the estrogen in the audience, I was a little worried about seeing my kind of rock concert. Openers Wolfmother put those fears to rest. I was a fan of Wolfmother’s big hit “Woman” a few years ago, but, like most folks, lost track of them after that. Turns out there’s a good reason for that – Wolfmother broke up. Kind of.
Following their debut album’s break in 2006, the original members of the band took a long hiatus from touring and recording thanks to creative differences. Two of the three guys in the band finally quit stalling and dropped out in 2008, leaving only frontman Andrew Stockdale to soldier on. Stockdale built a new version of Wolfmother, first with drummer Dave Atkins and later adding bassist/keyboardist Ian Peres and guitarist Aidan Nemeth last year.
It was this version of Wolfmother that recorded their new album, Cosmic Egg, which is set for release in late October. On this night in Maryland, the band rocked out hard in all black, creating howling echoes of sludgy rock that conjured up images of hard rock legends like Led Zeppelin (who actually played Merriweather in 1969 with The Who – the only time those two bands have ever been on the same bill).
In a ballsy move, Wolfmother got “Woman” out of the way early in the set, but fans were eager for the big hit, singing along nd pumping their fists into the air. The band gave the audience a few previews from the upcoming Egg, too, with the searing single “New Moon Rising” and a powerful new track called “Far Away”. Frontman Stockdale wailed on the guitar and new keyboardist Ian Peres added a Doors-like element to the proceedings with his biting organ fills. Wolfmother’s heavy sound couldn’t be different from The Killers’ synth-pop homage, but fans couldn’t help but be moved by their pure rock.
It was a good 45 minutes after Wolfmother closed out the last strains of the epic “Joker & The Thief” that The Killers took the stage, which was outfitted in gaudy Vegas-style fake palm trees and sparkly pianos, plus all manners of neon.
The Killers were kicking off another US leg of their “Day & Age” tour, supporting last year’s album of the same name. The band took the stage with Brandon Flowers wearing a black ringmaster’s jacket, launching into a trio of Day & Age tracks, beginning with the disco-beat of “Joy Ride” and ending with the gawdy single “Spaceman”. The crowd ate it up, dancing and singing along with every word, screaming to each one of Flowers’ theatrical poses.
On this tour, the four Killers are augmented by three multi-instrumentalists that add extra guitar, piano and sax to the live sound. I wasn’t sure of any of their names because Flowers never did band introductions. In fact, there wasn’t much inter-song chatter at all out of the charismatic frontman. He did all his talking with the songs.
The band abandoned the new material for quite a while after “Spaceman”, tearing through singles and album cuts from 2006’s Sam’s Town and their debut Hot Fuzz. In fact, the band played all but three tracks from Fuss, including “Believe Me Natalie”, a crowd pleaser that Flowers said they “hadn’t played in a while”.
Highlights from the show included Sam’s Town cut “Bling (Confessions Of A King)”, a fervent “For Reasons Unkown”, “Bones” – backed by clips from its Tim Burton-directed video and the new single “A Dustland Fairytale”, which builds from a thoughtful piano ballad to a swirling epic.
And all the while the crowd sang along. If the Killers know one thing, it’s big sing-alongs. From “Spaceman”’s simple “Oh oh o-oh Oh Oh o-o-o-oh” to “higher and higher/we’re gonna take it’ from “Bling” to “it was only a kiss/it was only a kiss”, people were eager to shout right back at the band.
So it was fitting that the concert end with the band’s greatest sing-along – confetti rained from the ceiling and pyro exploded as The Killers and their fans exclaimed “I’ve got soul, but I’m not a soldier” until their heart was content.
The Killers returned for a two song encore – the menacing “Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine” and the hit single “When You Were Young”, capping off a 90-minute set that never once dipped in energy.
If the band is coming to your town and you missed them on the first leg of “Day & Age”, I suggest checking them out.
The 411: It’s easy to see why The Killers decided to add more US dates to this tour. The new songs are amazing and the stage show is vibrant. It’s everything you’d expect from a gawdy Vegas band that came up in drag clubs and are now playing to tens of thousands. Wolfmother seemed like an odd opening act, but their dirty 70’s rock sound made the perfect prelude to The Killers’ 80’s synth-pop, knocking fans out with a loud and rowdy set of Zeppelin-style grit. For their part, The Killers brought the hits and, if you’re a fan, get ready for an hour and a half of singing along. And bring your chick.
It was this version of Wolfmother that recorded their new album, Cosmic Egg, which is set for release in late October. On this night in Maryland, the band rocked out hard in all black, creating howling echoes of sludgy rock that conjured up images of hard rock legends like Led Zeppelin (who actually played Merriweather in 1969 with The Who – the only time those two bands have ever been on the same bill).
