Brandon Flowers, frontman of The Killers, looking out to crowd of an almost sold out show at The Schottenstein on Tuesday March 21st. Photo by Chris Phelps
On March 21st, The Schottenstein, home of the Ohio State Buckeyes, welcomed The Killers on their long awaited tour. This arena is located in Columbus, Oh on the Ohio State University Campus. It is a great place that holds many different events, besides concerts. Schottenstein was the perfect place to have this almost sold out show. There was plenty of room for the fans to comfortably enjoy the concert.
As the lights went out, fans jumped out of their seats ready to experience the show they had been waiting for. The show started with an explosion of confetti that dispersed over the fans. This was the first of many bursts of confetti that went off throughout the show. When looking at the stage, the first thing I noticed was how they used the space to their full potential. They had many different aspects they brought on stage, including two female backup vocalists. I enjoyed
seeing that because I believe backup vocalists enhance the live version of the songs.
Some songs I enjoyed were “Spaceman”, “Shot At The Night”, “Somebody Told Me”, and of course “Mr. Brightside.” All of these songs sounded amazing live and sounded better than the studio version. Only one song sounded similar to the studio version, which was “Somebody Told Me.” I personally was expecting this song to be different from the studio version, but it was still a great song to experience. When “Spaceman” played, its sound and visuals made me have a warm happy feeling. It made me want to explore an unknown place I have never been before. “Shot At The Night” had great crowd participation. Everyone was waving their hands back and forth throughout the whole arena. During “All These Things That I’ve Done”, red, white, and blue confetti and streamers were shot off again. It was an unforgettable moment because I personally enjoy confetti. Whenever I see confetti shot off, I am always amazed and I love admiring it. It is also something that allows you to remember that night and the great show you have experienced. The show ended on the band's most popular song, “Mr.Brightside.” The singer first had the fans sing most of the first part and then he transitioned into him finishing the song. Bringing back all the energy to end the show on a high note.
Throughout the show, there were aspects that stuck out to me. As I said before, they used the stage to its full potential. The singer also had great stage presence and moved around constantly. Flowers used the platforms they brought on stage and went to both corners to interact with fans as much as possible. I always love when artists interact with fans because I believe it shows that they want to be there and care about their fans because it makes them happy when their favorite artists interact with them.
Another aspect I noticed is how well the sound was, especially the drums. They sounded very powerful throughout the show and that is something that I love when seeing a live performance. Throughout the concert, they had great visuals on the screen behind them and awesome lighting. The pictures were clear and colorful. During certain songs, the visuals presented the song very well and told the story of what the song meant. They also had an infinite sign on center stage where Flowers' keyboard was as well. When the show first began, there was one thing that distracted me, which was the mobile camera. Although I do understand why they had it because it gave some great angles. It was distracting at first because it was moving across the whole stage. At times, it did get right in front of the singer which could possibly block the view of the fans at the barricade.
Overall, I believe The Killers show was great and represented rock ‘n’ roll. It shows who they are as a band and how they connect with their fans. If you were thinking about going to a show of theirs, I would definitely go. This was my first time seeing them live and I had a great time. The sound, light show, confetti, visuals, and the crowd reactions all made me want to see them again in the future. This was also their first time playing an arena in Columbus, Oh. Brandon Flowers, the lead singer of The Killers, mentioned “this isn’t Promowest Pavilion, did we make it big?” They were meant for the big stage and everyone should experience their show at least once to get that authentic rock ‘n’ roll
Ronnie Vannucci Jr. the drummer for The Killers in action Photo by Chris Phelps