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The Killers - 'The World We Live In'

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Fraser McAlpine | 11:35 UK time, Thursday, 14 May 2009

The KillersIn the extensive research I've done for this amazing example of critical thought in action, I have discovered that the band are releasing different songs from 'Day & Age' as their third single, depending on which territory goes nutsiest over which song from the album.

Here's the band's drummer Ronnie Vannucci to explain things: "We're realizing that other countries are picking their own singles. So in America, the next single will be 'A Dustland Fairytale,' but in the UK, Europe and Australia, it's 'The World We Live In.' But Australia is also playing 'Losing Touch.' Spain is hip to 'I Can't Stay,' which isn't really a surprise."

This may explain why there's not much in the way of a video to be found on the internet (it's coming soon, by all accounts). What mystifies me is why the UK has chosen to pick this song as a single in the first place...

It's hard to escape the thought that this really should have taken off at some point. As a song, it is stately, regular, driving, it has a groove and a bit of a swagger...and yet it never really seems to go anywhere. I'm not someone who normally demands that a song contains tricky time-signatures or an extended mariachi breakdown, but it's kind of nice to not be able to predict how it is going to pan out from the first 30 seconds.

It's a problem the song shares with 'Greatest Day' by Take That, there's a sense of occasion, a feeling that something enormous and important is just about to happen, a raised expectation that any second now the band are going to launch towards a musical peak which so vividly captures the most exciting time of your life, that you could actually be guiding the song yourself, via a complicated musical telepathy you share with Brandon Flowers, or something.

Sadly - and I do mean sadly - this never actually materialises. The song begins, puffs itself up - accompanied by a sympathetic brass band and some 'tasty' lead guitar work - then it makes a tentative trot down the runway and then just keeps on running until it stops.

And while it's nice that the band have relaxed a bit and toned down their histrionic edge for a song or two, it's hard to escape the idea that they put more work into making this sound like an anthem than they did making it sound like a great song.

Maybe the mariachi breakdown would've been a good idea after all.

Three starsDownload: Out now
CD Released: May 18th

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(Fraser McAlpine)

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