Hot Fuss

Wouldn't call myself a killers fan but the first half of the album is full of hits. Reminds me of uni. Second half isn't as good All killer(s), half filler..... I'll see myself out

This album was massive and inescapable when it was released, and it's a banger. I believe that as time goes on and the band is less oversaturated in the popular culture, appreciation for this album will grow. Best track: Mr. Brightside

** VOMITS LOUDLY **

Today, in 2023, I am no longer a 12-year old American boy. No longer am I the pimpled king of "Roller Kingdom," scared to death to meet the eyes of my middle school crush in the adjoining Birthday Party Room. Nor do I wait for the 6:45am bus, scribbling frantic answers to a history worksheet– a poor writing surface, those bus seats!– that has small, pitying holes in it from my erasable pen. These facts put me at an extreme, almost disqualifying disadvantage to rate an album like this. A genuine handicap for an album whose influence is foundational to many of my 2000's peers, but in retrospect may only be a good time if you're deep in Angst Mode. I knew kids who picked up guitar because they listened to this CD! The patron saints of Lazer Zones everywhere. In seriousness. I like my Blur, I like my Arctic Monkeys, I like my Strokes. This is hard to get through. Grating. This shouldn't happen, because I know all the songs already. Halfway through, I'm thinking, "Maybe I'm having fun! Maybe I should sneak one of these songs in at my wedding." Alas. Not Enough Fun. A generous 3 might be possible. But I have dutifully deducted a point for the refrain, "I've got soul but I'm not a soldier," sung forty times behind a gospel choir. That line's been bouncing around in my head since the Roller Kingdom Days, and unfortunately, now illuminated by the scribes of Genius, it yields no special magic. 2/5

How is this album better than their greatest hits one

I find the Killers fatiguing. They fatigued me when I first listened to them when this came out in high school, and they still fatigue me 18 years later. They just zap my energy. I will say, Mr. Brightside is the one bright spot on the album. They really nailed a particular emotion, and it resonates. I was at a karaoke bar in Minneapolis this weekend, and someone sang that song - the whole bar sang along, which was really a blessing since the guy was tone deaf. But the song still resonated, and we could all feel the energy. I watched a Song Exploder episode on one of their songs recently - I like that show, but this episode was boring, it lacked content, and I blame The Killers. The song was not from this album, but it doesn't matter that much because all their stuff sounds kind of the same. It added to my dislike of them, hearing how they could barely articulate where the lyrics came from, or what the song was about. The most compelling moment was when they said the guitar riff sounds like "the desert" - they are from Las Vegas. But the song sounded more like Las Vegas itself - a grotesque manifestation of capitalism, an illusion of prosperity and vitality, a thin veil concealing a vast emptiness. That's how this album makes me feel, and not in a good way.

Not ground-breaking, not deep lyrics, but simply banging tune after banging tune.

The front of this album is phenomenal, hard to believe they had so many hits on their first release.

Love

Amazing

I don’t know who decided this band was good, but it wasn’t me.

Initial thoughts: some good moments shine through but overall the vocals are mediocre and the mixing is terrible. You can tell Mr. Brightside is what they put effort in because they knew it would be the radio hit, everything else is filler so far. Final thoughts: bad. Mixing and vocals stay horrible, lyrics are lame and sometimes misogynistic or slightly transphobic?? Best song: Mr Brightside Worst song: Everything else (specifically On Top, Midnight Show, Everything Will Be Alright)

I remember when I first heard “Mr. Brightside” in a middle school PE class where we had to select songs to choreograph a dance too. We played that song 500 times and it never got old. I remember the first time I heard “All These Things That I’ve Done” on the radio on KROQ in my Mom’s Ford Explorer and it stopped me dead in my tracks; I had to know who wrote this; probably the first time I ever felt that. I remember first hearing “Somebody Told Me,” also on the radio, and wondering how a boyfriend could look like a girlfriend. I remember when I finally bought the CD and discovered this band of 3 radio-friendly songs had numerous other hits on the very same debut album; namely, “Jenny,” “Smile,” “Andy,” and, my favorite, ”Change Your Mind.” I remember high school, and feeling ashamed for ever having liked these songs. I remember in college when it became cool to play these songs again, at parties and karaoke and such; later, weddings. I remember Phoebe Bridgers’ atmospheric rise and how she and her moment suddenly made Brandon Flowers “cool” and “significant” again. I remember at one time thinking this album was front-loaded with hits, but listening again, I can attest it is truly front-to-back loaded with hits. Last week, this album hit me like a ton of bricks. Not only because of the nostalgia I have wrapped up inside it. But truly because of how solid and emotional a record it is. How good the songwriting is. How good it all sounds. I have it on CD. The same CD I bought all those years ago—one of the first CDs I ever bought honestly—and still in great condition. The production and mix is awesome. This album and this band is as good as any that came to fruition in the mid-aughts. I’d take this in the same hand I’d take the Strokes debut. And honestly, a comparative study of those two albums might yield an interesting piece on music criticism, fashion trends, song-writing, rock populism, and stardom in the first decade of the century. They are perhaps the two most significant debuts of the era, after all. Sadly, where the troubled Julian Casablancas was heralded as some kind of genius and critical darling, Brandon Flowers was written off as a pop star. When critics turn their back on bands, bands tend to turn their back on critics. And when band’s turn their back on critics, they play for fans. I think you can see that happen to The Killers after this album. Where this album is specific, nuanced, and personal, latter efforts are broad and populist. Where Hot Fuss finds a group of Las Vegas natives stumbling upon songs that would speak to hundreds of millions all across the globe, subsequent efforts finds that same group working to write more songs like that. All I can say is it’s a shame. It’s a shame we didn’t foster and encourage the artistry of a band that gave us one of the best debuts of any era. I’m giving this a 5 for posterity’s sake if nothing else. But Hot Fuss is every bit deserving.

Absolute classic - entire album is sublime.

Classic all time rock album

Hot Fuss is one of the best alternative albums of the 2000's. An absolute classic. "Mr.Brightside" is one of the best songs ever made in the genre and it's popularity proves that. You'll discover something new you love about the album every time you listen. For me this listen, I really appreciated "On Top". 5/5. Favorite Songs: "Mr. Brightside", "Smile Like You Mean It", "All These Things That I've Done", "Jenny Was A Friend of Mine", "Change Your Mind", "On Top"

Booo

Great album

Plenty of skill there, a great mix of electronic and rock. Kept being surprised at how many great songs kept coming

What a strong debut album. With several hit singles, it's got a great combination of new wave and post punk influenced indie rock.

I felt sure this would be a 5 based on personal history with this record; an actual listen left me feeling it was a 4 but I will maintain my rating based on nostalgia (which is probably wildly inconsistent with other scoring decisions). There were many THE ALBUMS during my college tenure, but this one might have been the most played of all of them. Wore this album out with friends, it was perfect background music for a party, a card game, or a quieter Sunday morning. The Vegas synth vibes are so unique and defining. Every song such a turn from the last, but still cohesive. My recollection was that this was a non-stop 12 tracks of greatness; my revisit made me realize I don't remember the last 3 tracks on it very well at all, and there is a fall off. Strange how memory is. Regardless, there is a 7 song tear here that's unparalleled.

Cuando el primer disco de un grupo es así de bueno luego pueden pasar dos cosas, que se superen (creo que lo hicieron al menos con algunas canciones) o que nunca brillen tanto. Es un grupo que me sigue gustando, pero creo que el impacto general que me causó este disco no lo han repetido. Imprescindible del nuevo siglo. Empieza fuerte con 4 canciones como son "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine", "Mr. Brightside", "Smile Like You Mean It" y "Somebody Told Me". Tiene un parón y remonta con "On Top", "Change Your Mind" y "Believe Me Natalie" para llegar al final catártico de "Everything Will Be Alright". 5 estrellas *****

Not one of the 1000 most valuable albums of all time in my opinion

So gooooooooddddd

*inhales* SOMEBODY TOLD ME was no one going to tell me the other killers songs are actually good too? I should have listened to this sooner

Oh I know this one, so many fave Killers songs. Jenny was a friend of mine is a banger opener, love that bass line. A couple songs I did not recognize.

The perfect early 2000s alt-pop album. Hot Fuss is one I revisit a few times a year. The Killers is a solid band all around.

great bass playing, full of classics, and before what i think is their best album. shame they didnt fire on as many cylinders afterwards.

It’s hard to disentangle nostalgia from merit on this album, but I definitely enjoyed listening to it. The songs do a good job of feeling distinct but tied together

Huge nostalgia bump for this one - was popular with the crowd I ran with when I first moved to Japan. "Mr Brightside" is a stonking karaoke tune, but there are a bunch of other tunes I regard fondly too, it turns out. Fave track - toss up between "Mr Brightside", "All These Things That I've Done", and "Somebody Told Me"... They really front loaded this one, eh.

que buena banda the killers

Ja lekker hoor, lekker vrolijk, goede beats en paar echte klassiekers. Misschien iets te poppy/fout, maar ach. 5*

Great album!

Wahnsinn. Teil meiner Jugend. 10/10 für mich!

I really wasn't expecting to give this 5 stars but I don't see any other option. There was a little bit of a lull in after the first half or so, but that first half was pretty incredible.

i'm not sure how it got in my head that this had soured for me, perhaps a slight overdose of mr. brightside and the fact that i maybe never spent as much time with the album as a whole as i thought, but wow does this still hold up start to finish (listened previously) 1 albums listened/heard previously

In a full circle moment, as the album's penultimate track "Everything Will Be Alright" plays, that first curious memory and through today, the absolute satisfaction of an album being more than a single song plays into the rating. While nostalgia is an unreliable judge, here is an album where it gets it right without much if any argument.

Know most of these already

Overplayed but still a classic

such an iconic album. can’t get better than mr bright side and somebody told me when you’re going 2000s. i loved this throwback 😂 also sweet disposition by the temper trap came on after the album ended and nothing can put me in a better mood. such a jam

Fantastic album from start to finish, just straight up good music with a rollercoaster of sounds and feelings starting off just above mid-level, rising up to peak and then gradually coming back down with some fast bumps finally tailing off with a bit more subtlety and delicacy. Full of great hits and not a single bad song among them; this is an album that almost anyone can listen to in some sort of capacity and not really have anything negative to say about it other than a song or two has probably been overplayed when it came out but those were certainly deservedly overplayed.

Maybe I’m just looking for a (mister) bright side right now but this was a nice throwback to arena alt-rock, lots of songs I thoroughly enjoy. Really didn’t expect to enjoy this as much as I did, but in terms of surprises, this was a nice one.

Did you know that in Super Metroid if you place bombs in sync to Mr Brightside you can propell yourself up and sequence break?

Throwback, strange to listen through again. Mr bright side isn’t even the best song.

Really liked this. Knew Mr. Brightside from many a club night obviously, but some of the others were surprisingly familiar too.

Fine. I feel like I’m watching TV in the late ‘00s. Full disclosure: I’m pretty bummed and currently not in a music mood. Sorry, The Killers.

Perhaps it’s just the dim aftermath of the events of yesterday that have left me with a disconnected inability to enjoy things, but the numbness I felt while listening to this gave me a pretty “meh” reaction to it. It’s fine.

I was surprised how much I knew some of these songs having never intentionally listened to them. Almost a manufactured in a lab feel. The hits are full on ear worms. The vocals are often obfuscated to probably make up for something lacking or it seems to be just a producer obsessed with a new vocal effect. It's one of the more listenable versions of New Wave. Sonically it can feel a little repetitive at times. Andy, You're a Star had some cool bits. I hate the last track. Started as a high 4 for me but halfway through cracks formed.

So these are the lads who did "I've got ham but I'm not a hamster"?

Not super into it, but it wasn't bad either. The Killers are good at writing tunes that are catchy at first but don't have a lot of real substance. But there's nothing in their music I actively dislike, so I guess it's a solid "average" record for me.

Corporate indie for elliptical machines and hockey games. Super high-energy hype up music expertly assembling the most excitable elements of millennial guitar rock from alt rock, emo & pop-punk, post-rock and garage revival (epic reverby guitars, driving bass, synth hooks, marching drums) to create an explosive anthemic sound. They blow their wad on track two with Mr Brightside though and the rest can't reach that level. A compilation of the best of Killers, Bloc Party, Snow Patrol, Twilight Sad, post Is This It Strokes, mid-career Arctic Monkeys, Franz Ferdinand, the Arcade Fire jock jams and all the other bands from this era that sound like this would be an awesome CD-length album representing the last gasps and final dying fling of guitar rock. But there's too much samey filler on this album and oh my god the 'soul not a soldier' and 'INDIE ROCK AND ROLL' bits made me throw my headphones into the bin. What about this makes it sound incredibly British?

literally only tried for the first three songs, they're calling it the worst closer in history, tragic loss of life, etcetera, etcetera.

Good pop-alt rock, but overall it does feel like it lacks something to make it special outside of the popular singles

It's like Wonder bread.. flavorless, mushy, boring, soft and pale white.

Never listened to this album end to end before, but felt like I had already such was and is the frequency with which they seem to get air time. Not really my bag. Over produced to hide a poor vocal performance, and the songwriting seems to become progressively more low-effort stadium rock towards the end. Stinks of trying to wrap up an album because you've already written the money-makers. Generous 2.

U2 have a lot to answer for. Soulless arena rock for chartered accountants. Stopped after 4 songs and put on Spirit of Eden 😡.

You can boil this record down to three or four things: Two hit singles A bunch of U2 impersonations A couple Beatles impersonations And the dumbest lyric your ever heard: “I’ve got soul, but I’m not a soldier…” I don’t know about you, but when I think about people who have soul, soldiers are the first people that come to mind…you know how they’re always following and not questioning orders…very soulful. Also, bold choice to include a song with the refrain “It’s Indie Rock and Roll for me” on your MAJOR LABEL DEBUT. Maybe it’s making fun of indie purists like myself (which I doubt, this band is too dumb for that), but the lyrics are too vague and devoid of any real meaning to actually tell what the song is about. This is “indie rock” for people who couldn’t tell you if “Matador Records” was a record label or just another way of saying “Bullfighting Statistics”.

Womp womp

Classic and nostalgic

This is a very good album.

Super good

Hard not to be influenced by nostalgia here. It’s a high four but I’m rounding up because it contains the single greatest pop song of the 2000s.

Instant classic, voice of a generation, etc etc

This is one of my top five albums from the aughts. Five of the songs are in my regular rotation on a couple of different playlists. I'd never heard anything but Mr. Brightside back in the day though...so didn't fall in love with it until more than 15 years after it was released. Favorite track: Change Your Mind

Love this album. Listened to it a ton when it came out. Really enjoyed relistening.

This was an album my friends and I totally loved it is by far The Killers best album to this day and I can sing it all the way through! This is top tier stuff and their break out album! Classic! It's amazing how much I still hear Mr. Brightside to this day haha I don't think I like Sam's Town a little bit more but this is a classic!

Great album, strong 7. Hadn't listened all the way through but has a very nostalgic feel to it. Really enjoyed Change Your Mind.

This came out when I was 14 so, yeh. Still SLAPS.

01) Jenny Was a Friend of Mine - 10,0 02) Mr. Brightside - 10,0 03) Smile Like You Mean It - 10,0 04) Somebody Told Me - 10,0 05) All These Things That I've Done - 10,0 06) Andy, You're a Star - 9,0 07) On Top - 9,0 08) Change Your Mind - 8,5 09) Believe Me Natalie - 8,0 10) Midnight Show - 8,0 11) Everything Will Be Alright - 8,5 12) Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll - 9,0 TOTAL: 9,17 (92/100) Current ranking: 31/488

it's hard to think of an album with a stronger first half than this one. unfortunately, the second half doesn't quite rise to meet it, but it's such an unprecedented slew of heavy-hitters at the start that i don't even really care. perfect time capsule of the early 2000s with a charmingly sleazy sound. mr brightside still hits every time, imo.

i'm a millennial (so i'm definitely biased) but this is a great album and incredible for a debut. the front half is wall-to-wall bangers! mr. brightside has been huge since its release in 2003 and still performs damn well on the charts TO THIS DAY. it's NUTS! the first five tracks are all exquisite. if you lived through this era and not under a rock, these songs were everywhere. this album would've been perfect with just those five. the weaker side B crumbles against the titanic tunes of side A, but the album tells an interesting story as a whole. all in all, probably a 4.5 for me but it's not really fair to punish side A for side B's relative inferiority. favorites: tracks 1-5 1000%, andy you're a star is ok too

10/10 I love every song on this record. Is it rational. I don't know, is your face? ask your face...asking me such weird questions...don't have to justify shit...anemoia is fun. 3-10-2025

I had only really heard a couple songs from the Killers before this, but I really dug this. Actually, one of their big hits, Mr. Brightside, was probably my least favorite track from this album, as it was just a bunch of shouting and no real melodic/harmonic fun. The rest of the tracks were really good, brooding, melodic rock and I really enjoyed them and hummed along the entire time. I listened to it twice -- five stars.

Sehr gutes Album

This album doesn't let up. I get lost in the songs in such an empowering way - I am a big fan. I loved to roll from Mr. Brightside to Smile Like You Mean It and then into Somebody Told Me. It makes me want to go dancing like it's circa 1992.

- If you want any white person under 40 to feel like the party is popping, turn on "Mr. Brightside." Even my students, who were born years after this album came out, know that song by heart. - An album that I listened to more times than I can count in high school. Wild to think how popular this was and how new this sounded when it first hit the scene. - Flowers is definitely the face of the band, but major props to the basslines in particular. The other members do not get enough credit for the musicality of these songs. - The first five tracks go about as hard as that of any album you can imagine (shout out to "Smile Like You Mean It"). It then suffers a slight lull, but comes back strong. With only one or two exceptions (I never cared for "Andy, You're A Star" that much), you can see justifications for someone calling each track their favorite.

drums is sick, i like synths and vocals.

This must be one of the albums I've listened to most in my life but I haven't heard it for 10+ years now. It's a weird feeling going back to something after that long and realising you still know all the lyrics, feeling very emotional and nostalgic just now. I saw them at my first festival (TITP) when this had only just come out but everyone knew all of words, even to the album tracks, it was lovely being part of that crowd. It's not as full of bangers but I do really love the second half (although I'm convinced Change My Mind wasn't on any version I had and therefore it's bobbins). Andy, You're A Star is my favourite now, not something I thought 20 years ago. I think I'd be kidding myself if I gave it anything apart from a 5, the nostalgia is too strong

Real soft spot for this album as one of the first I ever bought. Opening run immense, probably a 4 musically but giving an extra star for the memories

4

Love this album

I’m glad I listened to this with my good headphones on. The whole first half is bangers that are still hits 20 years later and I really enjoyed the back half of songs I wasn’t as familiar with. The bass player was in his bag throughout this whole album. I expected to like it, didn’t expect to love it. Great album.

So many bangers, so nostalgic.

What a debut. The first five tracks are all bops and bangers, especially "Mr. Brightside", "Somebody Told Me", "All These Things I've Done", and "Smile Like You Mean It". This record was definitely a part of the soundtrack of my life 20 years ago. It is always a treat to revisit this modern classic.

this is my vibe

Just an iconic aughts album. Still holds up well on the ~50th listen.

Reminds me of high school in a good way

Absolute belter. It's rare to meet someone who doesn't dig the killers....

One of the best indie albums of 2000s

Always good to have a bit of the killers

I've heard people say this album is super frontloaded and tbh it is. The second half is still good but it's just the first half is life changing. Anyway Brandon Flowers the goat.

Some of the most played songs on radio show once it came out.

I really enjoyed revisiting this album. It definitely drops off in the second half, and I wish the 4 great singles had been spread out better (imagine All These Things That I've Done as an album closer), but the first half is so strong I'll forgive them. As an aside, I saw Bill Bailey at a festival where The Killers were playing, and he did a version of All These Things That I've Done with a chorus of "I've got ham but I'm not a hamster) and it's been how I sing along to it ever since.

For a debut studio album, IMO The Killers absolutely knocked it out of the park. Unfortunately though, they might have knocked one of the songs too far out of he park. The clip of that 1 hit ended up overshadowing the entire game. Which is what happened here with Mr. Brightside, a song which such staying power that I don't know if there'll ever be a time when people stop listening to it. For me, this is a 5/5

I love this album so much. Bought it in 2004. I will forever right for "Somebody Told Me" supremacy over "Mr. Brightside." This album screamed Las Vegas to me. It was the first time I'd heard a rock band use disco bass lines ("Jenny Was a Friend of Mine," "Somebody Told Me") and I was so hooked. I've blasted this album countless times over the nearly 21 years since its release. Glam rock for the emo crowd.

Great album has most their best songs

The best album of ALL TIME

It's the Killers. Of course it was amazing. But I heard a few deep cuts I'm going to add to my Spotify so that's cool

Great great fun. Excellent debut

First album of theirs that I listened to. Remind me of 80/early 90’s alt music when alt actually sounded different than just rock/pop. Vocals, guitar and percussion all very well done.