The Killers @ RAC Arena
w/ Alex Cameron
Tuesday, December 6, 2022
The Killers brought everything to RAC Arena on Tuesday night; incredible visuals, lasers, pyrotechnics, and they possibly broke the record for most confetti cannons in a single show. Brandon Flowers is a world-class showman and had no problem proving this time and time again throughout their triumphant set, a celebration of their hits over the years, and their recent album, Imploding the Mirage.
Supporting the band was Alex Cameron, who brought along his “friend and business partner,” Roy Malloy, and band to warm up the crowd. Cameron cracked self-deprecating jokes about being the support act between songs and even told the crowd that Malloy had a decibel meter that had to reach a certain level otherwise The Killers would not come out, proving to be a seasoned professional at the support slot. Candy May and Stranger’s Kiss were highlights, and Studmuffin96 was played at fan request. The crowd clapped politely most of the time, but they really got wild when Alex Cameron and co launched into a cover of Islands in the Stream. Closing on Far From Born Again, Alex Cameron and his business partner Roy Malloy did a great job of getting the crowd ready and warmed up for The Killers.
After some boring intermission music that almost undid all of Alex Cameron’s hard work, the lights went down, and screams echoed around the arena. The lights came up and The Killers appeared on stage, Brandon Flowers stood off to the left, crooning along to the beginning of My Own Soul’s Warning, before confetti cannons went off over the crowd and the real arena show began. There was a raised platform running along the stage, interrupted by a light-up infinity sign, that Brandon Flowers used as his own personal catwalk, walking up and down the stage and keeping the crowd energy up.
Exitlude acted as a Broadway-style “welcome to the show” before the crowd really got going to When You Were Young which started a small run of classic hits, with Jenny Was a Friend of Mine and Smile Like You Mean It following. The guitar solos shined in these songs, with a clean and electrifying guitar sound filling up the arena.
Human got everyone dancing, while Somebody Told Me was accompanied by laser lights and a big sing-along from the crowd, before Fire In Bone saw the return of the confetti cannons. Flowers did not have to work too hard to get the crowd to participate. There were some crowd echoes he did not even have to command, as they were well and truly eating from the palms of his hands.
Sparklers lit up behind the stage during Caution, before the band headed into their last song of the main set, All These Things I’ve Done, which caused the third lot of confetti cannons to burst, this time, with streamers included. As the band slinked off the stage, visuals of a meteor turning in a box appeared, unfortunately, this caused the crowd not to cheer too much for an ‘encore’ as they already knew it was coming, which made their return a bit anti-climactic.
The band returned for Spaceman which explained the meteor visuals, followed by Run for Cover from 2017’s Wonderful Wonderful, the only cut in the show taken from this album, which was surprising, considering the popularity of lead single The Man, which was a glaring omission from the setlist.
The moment many had been waiting for had finally arrived, as the band eased into Mr Brightside. They started off by slowing the song down for the first verse and chorus, which made it even more triumphant when that iconic riff started ringing out around the arena. This was by miles the biggest sing-along of the night, and most of the arena was up on their feet. A perfect way to close a fantastic show.
KIERRA POLLOCK
Photos by Chris Phelps
