Abu Dhabi // The synth-rock band The Killers will play the capital on December 8, it was confirmed yesterday. The event marks a first, tentative step away from the mainstream for showpiece concerts in Abu Dhabi.
"We've done a lot of pop bands, but this is a really stripped-down rock 'n' roll show with just raw energy up on stage," said John Lickrish, the managing director of the concert's organiser, Flash. He denied reports, however, that the Emirates Palace hotel was the chosen venue. "Right now we're trying to figure out what's best for the band," he said. "We'll be making that decision [on a venue] over the next week."
Tickets to see the Las Vegas-based quartet will go on sale online on October 4. Prices were expected to be announced next week, Mr Lickrish said. Unlike previous concerts, the pricing would draw a wider audience, he added. "We're going to make this one accessible to more people and make it more of a standing show than a sitting show, so that should be unique," he said. "It's very hands-on and they like to get the energy of crowds, so we're going to accommodate that.
"You're going to see something that's part of their normal performance - something a little edgier and off the beaten path. "Hopefully we'll get more people who'd want to see The Killers to come because there will be a lot more cheaper tickets available." An opening act has yet to be announced. The Abu Dhabi concert will be the Middle-Eastern debut for the retro rock outfit, who cite The Beatles, Lou Reed, Oasis, and British new-wave bands such as New Order among their influences. Formed in 2002 and fronted by the lead vocalist and keyboard player Brandon Flowers, The Killers released their first album, Hot Fuss, in 2004. Propelled by catchy hooks and chart-topping anthems such as Mr Brightside and Somebody Told Me, the album achieved triple-platinum status in America, selling more than three million copies. In Britain, the NME hailed it as a "head-mashingly brilliant arsenal of tunes". Flowers, known as much for his booming baritone as for his stage make-up, dramatic hand gestures and bedazzling costumes, is joined by Dave Keuning on guitar, Mark Stoermer on bass and Ronnie Vannucci Jr on drums. Their second album, Sam's Town in 2006, won a Brit Award for best international album and has sold more than 1.2m copies in Britain. A compilation of rarities and B-sides, Sawdust, was released in 2007. The Killers recently headlined the European festivals V 2009 and T in the Park 2009 to promote their third studio album Day & Age, which was released last year. The album went straight in at No 1 in the UK album charts, selling more than 200,000 copies there in its first week. The first single, the dance-floor anthem Human, has been a top 40 radio hit around the world. Readers of the US magazine Rolling Stone voted it the best song of 2008. Although chart success has brought the group mainstream stardom, they remain popular in indie music circles. Mr Lickrish hopes bringing a "cult stature" act to Abu Dhabi will help to develop the capital's concert scene, "taking it beyond being able to offer only the mainstream, high-profile, international artists to our audiences". Flash organised Coldplay's appearance in the grounds of the Emirates Palace in March before a 15,000 sell-out crowd. A marketing director for the company said: "You're probably looking at a similar size to the Coldplay show. We're basically hoping for the same scale and it should be a similar success." mkwong@thenational.ae
