<p id=”par-1_54″>Some of the <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/classic-rock/”>classic rock</a> songs never seemed to go away. <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/outkasts-hey-ya-the-killers-mr-brightside-among-distracting-songs-listen-driving.html/”>The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside”</a> has been part of our collective musical memory since it debuted in 2003. The lead singer of The Killers revealed what he was thinking when he first penned the song. Interestingly, the band released a sequel to “Mr. Brightside.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-mr-brightside-was-the-killers-1st-song-ever”>‘Mr. Brightside’ was The Killers’ 1st song ever</h2>
<p id=”par-2_82″>During a 2013 interview with <a href=”https://ew.com/article/2013/11/14/brandon-flowers-stories-behind-songs/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Entertainment Weekly</a>, The Killers’ <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-killers-admitted-1-songs-david-bowie-rip-off.html/”>Brandon Flowers discussed</a> the origin of “Mr. Brightside.” “This was literally the first song that me and Dave [Keuning], our guitar player, wrote,” he recalled. “We didn’t have a drummer yet but he gave me a cassette, and it had a few demos with complete songs of him singing, and then there would just be these riffs that he had — so he basically had the guitar for ‘Mr. Brightside,’ and the pre-chorus.</p>
<p id=”par-3_53″>“I had an idea already of this sort of monotone, linear delivery, and it just fit so well over his guitar line,” he said. “So I slapped a chorus on it, and it was written pretty quickly.” Perhaps that’s why “Mr. Brightside” is one of those rare songs that’s brilliant in its simplicity. </p>
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<iframe title=”The Killers – Mr. Brightside (Official Music Video)” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/gGdGFtwCNBE?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-how-the-strokes-inspired-the-killers”>How The Strokes inspired The Killers</h2>
<p id=”par-4_93″>Another band changed everything for The Killers after “Mr. Brightside.” “I remember the first time I heard it [set] to a beat, it was a monumental experience,” he said. “We wrote a lot of songs after that, but then The Strokes’ first record came out and we ditched everything we wrote except for that song and started again. [<em>Laughs</em>] Because that record’s so good, you know? It was just … we realized that they raised the bar.” Flowers said he didn’t know if The Strokes were aware of their influence on The Killers.</p>
<p id=”par-5_41″>The album in question was <em>Is This It</em>. That record is seen as one of the defining moments in the post-punk revival of the early 2000s. <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-killers-somebody-told-me.html/”>The Killers’ debut album, <em>Hot Fuss</em>,</a> is probably more remembered today than <em>Is This It</em>.</p>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”The Strokes – Last Nite (Official HD Video)” width=”925″ height=”694″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/TOypSnKFHrE?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
<p class=”related-article__title”>
<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-green-day-performance-that-the-killers-lead-singer-called-cheap.html/”>
The Green Day Performance That the Killers’ Lead Singer Called ‘Cheap’ </a>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-mr-brightside-was-a-hit-for-a-shockingly-long-amount-of-time”>‘Mr. Brightside’ was a hit for a shockingly long amount of time</h2>
<p id=”par-6_59″>“Mr. Brightside” reached No. 10 on the <a href=”https://www.billboard.com/artist/the-killers/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Billboard Hot 100</a>, staying on the chart for 38 weeks. The tune became the band’s first, and still only, top 10 single in the United States. The song appeared on the album <em>Hot Fuss</em>. That record climbed to No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and lasted on the chart for 98 weeks.</p>
<p id=”par-7_78″><a href=”https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/23332/killers/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>The Official Charts Company</a> reports that “Mr. Brightside” became a much bigger hit in the United Kingdom. That tune peaked at No. 10 and lasted on the chart for a staggering 437 weeks. “Mr. Brightside” was so popular in the U.K. that The Killers would have been successful even if they never released another song afterward. Meanwhile, <em>Hot Fuss</em> reached No. 1 in the U.K. for two weeks and lasted on the chart for 256 weeks in total.</p>
<p id=”par-8_32″>“Mr. Brightside” is so popular that it inspired <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-killers-sequel-prequel-mr-brightside-inspired-elton-john.html/”>a sequel titled “Miss Atomic Bomb.”</a> The sequel isn’t quite as good. However, it provides more detail about the relationship in the original song.</p>
<p id=”par-9_22″>“Mr. Brightside” is a great song and it managed to survive after The Strokes raised the bar for 2000s rock ‘n’ roll.</p>