"Didn't nobody tell you... the house will always win"

Apparently nobody told Brandon Flowers, for he bet against the house, risking the credibility of his stardom status as Killers' frontman to go it alone with his debut album. Yet for Flowers, the gamble paid off, as 'our Nicole' describes in this brilliant article written for the Badger Herald, a local newspaper here in Madison.

http://badgerherald.com/artsetc/2010/09/12/killers_frontman_deb.php

I think most of you will have already seen this article by now, having linked to Nicole's blog, but I wanted to post it anyway, and offer my own opinions on Flowers' new album. Of course, Nicole should have had this published in real print in the newspaper, but somebody had already been assigned the task of reviewing it. Someone I might add, who just found the tracks on youtube. She didn't like the album, but did not give a very comprehensive view. The article can be found on the above website too, should you feel so inclined to compare.

Anyhow, my opinion of the album. Well right off that bat, I love it. The whole album has quite an 80s feel to it, but I just love the synth, the poppy, lively attitude of the songs. Some songs are through and through ballads, but they too have a great quality. And I reallylike the lyrics too, the ones I actually know (learning lyrics and me just don't go together).

I never knew that Brandon, despite hailing from Sin City, is a practising Mormon; the religious aspect is evident in a number of these songs.  For some reason I often think I won't like songs which have religious tones to them, maybe because I feel they are going to be preaching at me when I'd rather just be enjoying the tunes. However, I find every Killers and Flowers songs great, and I really enjoying listening to the Fray too, another heavily religious band.

In contrast to the religious lyrics, Brandon also offers various advice on gambling, evidently having grown up around it, encouraging listeners to "show your cards and roll the dice."

As for the sound of the album, though it does have a unique Flowers flair- see ha ha ha ha, on Only The Young -  it still retains all the elements one would expect from a Killers album. In fact, in many ways, it can hardly be called a debut, for Flowers largely continues what we would expect from him. Sure, just as Flowers himself has evolved from nervous, emo kid to moustache touting superstar, so too has the Killers' sound steadily improved. And yet essentially, it is the Killers, without the rest of the band; almost every song can be matched to a previous Killers track, if you listen carefully. However, that is no band thing, for though the songs are similar, they are different enough to make them stand out. And, I don't want different- I like the Killers sound, and that's what I want to hear. Therefore, Flamingo gets a big thumbs up from me.

It also assures Brandon Flowers status as a name in his own right, not just a member of a band. Some great bands are just that, bands with names. I couldn't give you the name of lead singers. But others, Queen, U2, Coldplay, and the Killers, are largely impotent without their lead names. Freddie, Bono, Chris and Brandon. With this effort, Flowers deserves to stand among the greats.

On The Campaign Trail

Apologies for the lack of posts these last couple of days. I'm currently in South-East Wisconsin on the campaign trail. It's the primary elections today, which promise to yield very interesting results. There's lots of unsure feelings about what's going to happen, in what everyone seems to be calling a 'strange and unusual' election year. A number of Democrats are facing strong challenges from within their party; some only to have to win today, as they are uncontested by Republicans. Others have a fight today and then another fight in November. Money, time and patience are all running low. Anti-Obama, anti-government spending, and anti-incumbent feelings are strong; so much so that some people are proclaiming to only vote for new candidates, regardless of their party affiliation. Morale about politics has never been so low.  Some Democrats have been forced to distance themselves from their own party, acting independently, in order to have a shot at re-election.

Voter turnout is expected at 28% in this state, which considering this is only an election to decide who will run in the election, is predicted to be the highest turnout since 1964. Only time will tell. If you're in the US, make sure you get out the vote.

I'm off to meet a guy who will hopefully become the next governor of Wisconsin. And then if all goes well, there will be a fun election party this evening. More to come on these last couple of days when I return to Madison.

Welcome To Our Home

An introductory tour of our apartment here in Madison... try not to laugh too much, we aimed for cheesy! You can see how professional we are.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UlPxKgvp7Q]

The Beautiful Nicole

My lovely girlfriend, who is a much better writer than I am, has also set herself up a little blog.

Its new, so there isn't much on it yet, but I know its going to be a great read too.

http://atasteofh0ney.tumblr.com/

She also wrote a great review for the Badger Herald of the new Brandon Flowers album which I will be posting later. We both agree its a must buy, but I have some differing opinions which I shall divulge later.

Addendum to Snail Mail

While on the whole the postal service across the pond seems very efficient, naturally things still slip through the cracks.

Everything I was expecting in the mail came, except one item. The item that was posted first. We waited and waited, as everything else we were expecting came. Then finally Saturday morning, the packet arrived. That one took almost two weeks; not very fast at all. In fact, as everything else had arrived, we had all but given up hope of it making it here. Why other mail overtook it, I do not know. Where did that packet go? What did it get up to on its travels? An interesting thought, the life and journey of a letter. I bet it saw some interesting things.