The Killers
VEGOOSE 2006

Brandon Flowers (vocals/keyboards), David Keuning (guitar), Mark Stoermer (bass), and Ronnie Vannucci (drums) took the fashionista pop world by storm in summer 2004 with "Somebody Told Me." The perfectly stylish song pulls from the band's influences -- the Smiths, New Order, Oasis, and the Cure -- and it was just enough to get them on MTV. Part new wave and part new-millennium post-punk, this Las Vegas foursome originally got together in 2002. Flowers had left behind his former synth pop band, Blush Response, when he noticed a classified ad in the local newspaper placed by Keuning. Both of them were huge Oasis fans, and within weeks the two composed their soon-to-be cult hit, "Mr. Brightside." Stoermer, a former medical courier, and Vannucci, a classical percussion major at UNLV, soon joined the fray that became the Killers. The London-based indie imprint Lizard King caught wind of the band's brewing hype and quickly signed them to issue the limited-edition single for "Mr. Brightside" in fall 2003. In October, the Killers' buzz earned them a prime spot at the annual CMJ Music Marathon. A worldwide deal with Island followed shortly thereafter, positioning the Killers to join the ranks of Interpol, the Rapture, and the Strokes. Shared U.K. dates with British Sea Power and stellastarr* in summer 2004 also gave the band the opportunity to showcase material from its debut album. Hot Fuss appeared in June. Two months later, it was announced that the Killers were among the ten finalists up for the 2004 Shortlist Music Prize.