Live Review: The Killers

The crowd is filled with an eclectic mix of leather, denim, and branded The Killers T-shirts, and the energy is high, making the band's calm walk onto the stage seem slightly anti-climactic.

Still, nothing could have made a better contrast than the unexpected opening melody of encore-worthy Mr Brightside. The whole song is played with the lights on, illuminating every face in the crowd, and the floor shakes from beginning to end. The confusion in the room is palpable as we wonder what could possibly follow the band's most iconic hit, but frontman Brandon Flowers puts so much energy into every other number that it's quickly forgotten.

The laser lights in Spaceman somehow manage to add theatricality to Flowers' performance, which is quite a difficult task. He looks like he's having the best night of his life dancing on top of the speakers, and even from a mile away, the crowd absorb the joy.

The pure volume of the set hits Brisbane like a brick wall, and even those in seats can't resist the urge to move. The crowd lap up everything from the perfect pitch throughout Somebody Told Me to the vocal finesse in The Way It Was and every flamboyant pose in between. The high points see Flowers jumping up and down like a child on Christmas morning, and the crowd couldn't be been more enthusiastic.

They explore everything from '80s inspo in The Man to high energy drumming in Run For Cover, the lighting, graphics, and volume making for a full-scale assault on the senses. The sound is so overwhelming that there was no way every element could have been heard, and it only grows louder throughout.

Strong female backing harmonies are a welcome addition to I Can't Stay, as is the more subdued instrumentation throughout the song, but that doesn't last long. Smile Like You Mean It brings with it formidable drumming and blinding lights.

The Man's dramatic beginning and gloriously pink confetti cement Flowers as a formidable presence on stage, but it can't top the sheer volume of Human or the impressive vocal solo from the back-up singers. Even then, All These Things That I've Done is one of the strongest highlights of the night, especially for the 18-year-old who receives a birthday shoutout from the stage.

The soulful finale brings out the magic in the back-up singers' voices, so much so that it almost could have made a worthy encore closer. Still, no one complains when the band return to the stage, Flowers glittering in gold, and knock out some of their biggest tunes: Bones, backed by its iconic skeleton music video, and the rock anthem When You Were Young.

To hear that electric guitar melody ring through the room is enough to make anyone feel young again, even if it has been more than ten years since the song came out. In short, they killed it.