The Killers’ Brandon Flowers criticises ‘retarded’ US pop + The Killers reveal new song ‘Just Another Girl’ – listen

Frontman Brandon Flowers of The Killers

Brandon Flowers of The Killers has hit out at the state of pop music in America, saying the majority of what he hears is “retarded”.In a new interview with The Sun, The Killers discussed the fact they made a name for themselves in the UK before they were a success in their native US. Drummer Ronnie Vanucci said he was was not surprised at being successful away from America because he feels great music is ignored in the country.“Breaking in the UK first was great because America is retarded musically,” says Vanucci. “It’s upside down. There’s so much great music that doesn’t get the attention. There’s a lot of bullshit on US radio.”

Picking up where his bandmate led, Brandon Flowers added: ”I start to wonder, what do adults listen to? Do they listen to what’s being played on the radio? You should listen to something that’s for you – not about giving your virginity to your boyfriend on Saturday night. It is retarded. Every song is that song. And if 40-year-olds are listening to that rubbish, they’re going to raise kids on it. It’s not even music.”

The Killers will headline a one-off London date later this month to coincide with the release of their best-of album ‘Direct Hits’.The band will perform live at the at the Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith (formerly the Hammersmith Apollo) on Wednesday, November 6.

‘Direct Hits’ is a 15-song compilation which will feature two brand new songs – ‘Just Another Girl’, which sees the band reunite with longtime collaborator Stuart Price, and ‘Shot At The Night’, which will be released as a single on November 4, and is produced by M83’s Anthony Gonzalez. Deluxe versions of the album will include a demo version of ‘Mr Brightside’ and a Calvin Harris remix of ‘When You Were Young’.

The Killers have revealed the second of two new songs that appears on their forthcoming best-of album ‘Direct Hits’.

‘Just Another Girl’, which can be heard above, features on the album alongside the band’s hit singles ‘Mr Brightside’, ‘Somebody Told Me’ and ‘When You Were Young’. The track sees the Las Vegas band reunite with producer Stuart Price and will be available when the album is released on November 11.’Direct Hits’ is a 15-song compilation which will feature two brand new songs – ‘Just Another Girl’ and ‘Shot At The Night’, which is produced by M83’s Anthony Gonzalez. Deluxe versions of the album will include a demo version of ‘Mr Brightside’ and a Calvin Harris remix of ‘When You Were Young’.Speaking to NME, frontman Brandon Flowers said that releasing a best-of was another significant milestone for the band, who played Wembley Stadium earlier this year.

He said: “This record feels like a great way to clean everything up and move onto the next thing.” He also revealed that ‘Direct Hits’ has been under discussion since the start of the year, although the prospect of writing new songs for the record “sort of threw me for a curveball. I’m always writing, it’s like second nature to me now, but I’m always analysing what I’ve got, and doubts can start creeping into your head. But I’m really happy with the songs we’ve got to add to the list.”

The tracklisting for ‘Direct Hits’ is:

‘Mr Brightside’
‘Somebody Told Me’
‘Smile Like You Mean It’
‘All These Things That I’ve Done’
‘When You Were Young’
‘Read My Mind’
‘For Reasons Unknown’
‘Human’
‘Spaceman’
‘A Dustland Fairytale’
‘Runaways’
‘Miss Atomic Bomb’
‘The Way It Was’
‘Shot At The Night’
‘Just Another Girl’

Deluxe Version tracks:

‘Mr Brightside’ (Original Demo)
‘When You Were Young’ (Calvin Harris remix)
‘Be Still’