Close to a month since announcing his new solo country record, Killers frontman Brandon Flowers is releasing the single, “Paradise.” The song will appear on Thrasher, due out Aug. 21.
On the song, Flowers knows when to hold ’em and fold ’em as he spits out gambling puns over galloping banjo, keening steel guitar, and country-honkin’ harmonica. The song is ostensibly about his extended family working at Las Vegas casinos but beneath the sparkling optimism of the music lies a darker, fatalist message: “It’s just another day in paradise/Another raindrop in the sea,” he sings. “Count the hours to quittin’ time, trying to cross the silver line that always leads just beyond the shadows of my dreams.”
Flowers recorded Thrasher in Nashville with producers Shawn Everett and Jonathan Rado. Some of the musicians who recorded on the album include Gillian Welch collaborator David Rawlings, pedal steel guitarist Bruce Bouton, and harmonica player Charlie McCoy, whose playing graced Bob Dylan’s Nashville LPs. Flowers previously released the album’s “Plans” and a live version of that song filmed at RCA Studio A, as well.
“This is not me running away from rock & roll,” Flowers said in a statement when he announced the album. “I don’t want to replace my old songs. I simply found room for more.”
Flowers has also announced solo tour dates. Tickets go wide to the general public today beginning at 10 am local time. Full details are on the artist’s website.
Brandon Flowers’ North American Tour Dates
Sept. 1 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren
Sept. 4 – Los Angeles, CA @ John Anson Ford Theatre
Sept. 5 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
Sept. 7 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
Sept. 8 – Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre
Sept. 9 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox
Sept. 11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Red Butte
Sept. 12 – Denver, CO @ Ogden
Sept. 15 – St Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
Sept. 16 – Chicago, IL @ The Riviera Theatre
Sept. 18 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount
Sept. 20 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
Sept. 21 – Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall
Sept. 23 – Boston, MA @ Roadrunner
Sept. 24 – Toronto, ON @ History
Oct. 2 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
Oct. 6 – Las Vegas @ Wynn Encore Theater