Review: The Killers at Co-op Live, Friday 21 June

Having recently returned from a trip to Las Vegas, I was missing all the larger-than-life glitz and glamour terribly. 

As luck would have it, a piece of Vegas was in town in the form of The Killers, who were performing four nights at Manchester's new arena Co-op Live. 

Supported by Glaswegian band Travis (known for their 90s hit Why Does It Always Rain On Me?), Brandon Flowers and the lads from Nevada wasted no time in whipping the crowd up into a frenzy by kickstarting their set with indie rock anthem Mr. Brightside. 

The crowd, visibly surprised by the song they were 99.9% sure would be played as the ultimate finale being used to open the night, looked like rabbits in headlights before quickly descending into the flurry of fist-pumping, pint-sloshing, lyric-chanting Brits you'd expect. As a nation, we just can't help it when we hear that unmistakable opening riff that transports us right back to the early 2000s.

It felt a bit like that scene in The Office when Michael Scott tells everyone "Ok, it's happening...everybody stay calm!"

The boys kept the momentum going by leading straight into Spaceman followed by Shot At The Night from 2013's Direct Hits album (a personal favourite). 

Once the arena was fully warmed up with Run For Cover, frontman Brandon Flowers, who was also celebrating his 43rd birthday on the same evening, told the crowd how the band had been coming to perform in Manchester for the past 20 years and that its the right place for rock and roll. 

In gospel-eqsue style, Flowers yelled "Can I get an 'Amen'?" before charging right on with Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine; another absolute banger from The Killers' debut album Hot Fuss. 

The indie heavyweights continued their set with a mixture of tracks from their early and latter days, including Somebody Told Me (2004), Quiet Town (2021) and guaranteed party starter Human (2008). 

Later, Brandon asked the crowd if they liked covers before playing a homage to Manchester with their renditions of True Faith by New Order and, later on, Ten Storey Love Song by The Stone Roses.

He shared how the band had taken a lot of their inspiration from Manchester, saying that he first heard the word 'promenade' (used in Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine) pronounced in a British accent in Morrissey's Everyday Is Like Sunday. 

Flowers then reminisced on their first Manchester gig back in 2004 where they realised they were "very American". The band then returned home and started writing songs about where they were from. 

"But you accepted us when we pretended to be British and also now we're being ourselves, we we're thankful for that," he concluded as he lead into the next few belters. 

The Las Vegas quartet finished their set with the absolute powerhouse track that is When You Were Young, before returning to the stage to play a further two tracks after thunderous applause from a thoroughly impressed crowd that weren't ready to go home just yet.

Heartfelt ballad Lightning Fields welcomed the boys back on stage before last but certainly not least track All These Things That I've Done. 

If you'd like to celebrate 20 years of The Killers at Co-op Live tonight (22 July), there's still a handful of tickets available here.

Follow Harley Young on Twitter @Harley__Young

Header image credit: Tom Martin

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