Gig: The Killers Andrew's Birthday @ Festival Hall 01/02/07

First Shamil turns 33, now Andrew turns 25; I am starting to see a pattern here.

If we thought the gods were smiling on us on Monday night, last night they were positively beaming at us. Somehow, despite it being fully booked until next Tuesday, we managed to score a table at Movida. Best restaurant in Melbourne. Well, my favourite anyway. The costillas con sobrasada are to die for and certainly a good primer for the night's entertainment.

The Killers rocked. The sound was shit, the seats were shit but it didn't matter. The Killers rocked!

And Brandon Flowers is SO gay. (And not in that school yard way.)

I was a little worried in the beginning when they opened with a song that only the people in the mosh pit seemed to know (and I think they were just pretending so they looked like they were cooler than the rest of us), then they chimed up with "We Hope You Enjoyed The Show". By the second line I was getting ready to push back into my seat and settle in for a night of disappointment but they didn't finish the song, it was simply a lead into "When You Were Young", which in turn pushed into "Somebody Told Me".

As soon as they kicked off, Festival Hall stood up and didn't sit for the rest of the gig. The crowd were instantly on side. Fuck, Brandon Flowers (SO gay) didn't have to sing for the whole gig - the crowd did it for him. By the time they got around to "Mr Brightside" someone could have recorded a live album from the other side of the Westgate.

I'd like to develop an algorithm to ascertain the success of a live performance. I am convinced it has something to do with the spread of the mosh, the angle and number of rock hands, the persistence of the clap and the volume of crowd singing. However the formula works out, last night's gig was a success despite the fact that we were sitting in the focal point of Festival Hall's plentiful echoes.

I'm trying to hunt down a setlist for y'all but it is proving difficult. It was a good set though. I would have liked to have heard "Midnight Show" but we all need something to grumble about.

*UPDATE* Setlist:

Sam's Town
Interlude
When You Were Young
Somebody Told Me
Smile Like You Mean It
Bones
Bling (Confession Of A King)
Read My Mind
Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine
This River Is Wild
Why Do I Keep Counting
Mr Brightside

My List
For Reasons Unknown
All These Things That I've Done
Exitude