Battle Born

This article is about The Killers' album. For the Five Finger Death Punch song, see Battle Born (song).
Battle Born
Studio album by The Killers
Released September 17, 2012
Recorded October 2011 – May 2012
Studio
Genre
Length 51:18
Label
Producer
The Killers chronology

Day & Age
(2008)		 Battle Born
(2012)		 Direct Hits
(2013)
Singles from Battle Born
  1. "Runaways"
    Released: July 17, 2012
  2. "Miss Atomic Bomb"
    Released: October 23, 2012
  3. "Here with Me"
    Released: December 16, 2012

Battle Born is the fourth studio album by American rock band The Killers, released on September 17, 2012, through Vertigo Records in the UK and the following day on Island Records in the US.[3] The phrase "Battle Born" appears on the state flag of Nevada and is the name of the recording studio owned by the band, where the majority of the album was recorded.

Recorded following an extended hiatus, the band worked with five producers during the recording of the album: Steve Lillywhite, Damian Taylor, Brendan O'Brien, Stuart Price, and Daniel Lanois.

Background and recording

Following the completion of the band's Day & Age World Tour in January 2010, the Killers announced that the band would be entering an extended hiatus. During this time, frontman Brandon Flowers and bassist Mark Stoermer released solo albums, Flamingo (2010) and Another Life (2011), with drummer Ronnie Vannucci releasing a studio album with his side-project, Big Talk, and recording with Mt. Desolation. Regarding the band's hiatus, Flowers noted, "Dave needed to see his kid and rest up. That was just how it worked. And so we ended up going off and doing solo things, and spending our time that way, and that was good, too. It was a good experience. It definitely taught us different ways of thinking about music."[4]

In October 2011, the band ended its hiatus to begin work on a fourth studio album.[5][6] Initial sessions were strained, with Flowers noting that the band members spent "about a week just eyeballing each other in a room."[4] The composition of the album's first single, "Runaways", marked a turning point in their reunion, with Flowers noting: "That and "Miss Atomic Bomb" were the backbone of this record. They made me feel we were on the right track."[4]

Working at their Las Vegas studio, Battle Born, the band worked with producers Steve Lillywhite, Damian Taylor, Brendan O'Brien, Stuart Price, and Daniel Lanois.[7] Initially, the band had wanted to work with just one, but scheduling proved difficult for each.[8]

The album was partially mixed by Alan Moulder, who also worked on the band's first two albums.[9]

Release

On June 7, 2012, The Killers released a trailer for Battle Born.[10] The track listing was announced on August 16.[11] The album' first single was "Runaways", which received its first radio play on July 10. The single was leaked on Tumblr only hours before its official radio preview.[12] Battle Born was released on September 17, 2012, in the United Kingdom and on September 18 in the United States. A week later, on September 25, the album was released as a vinyl disc.[11]

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 3 in the US on the Billboard 200, selling over 113,000 copies in its opening week and maintaining a top 10 position in the second week.[13]

The album was their fourth consecutive number-one album in the UK and Ireland, despite same-week releases from Pink and Kanye West. Battle Born sold 94,000 copies in the UK in its opening week, at that point the third-highest opening of 2012.[14] The album also debuted at number three on the Canadian Albums Chart selling 12,000 copies.[15] The album reached the top 10 in twenty countries and sold approximately 1 million copies worldwide in 2012.[16]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source Rating
Metacritic (64/100)[17]
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic [18]
The A.V. Club B[19]
Entertainment Weekly B[20]
The Guardian [21]
Melodic [22]
NME 7/10[23]
Q [24]
Rolling Stone [25]
Slant Magazine [26]
Spin 8/10[27]

Battle Born has received mostly positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic—which assigns a "weighted average" rating out of 100 to selected independent ratings and reviews from mainstream critics—the album has received an Metascore of a 64, based on 27 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[17]

Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly wrote:

The Killers themselves have always gone for the gold, boldly aiming to fill exotic stadiums with full-throated anthems about big ideas. Like the band's previous output, Battle Born only knows how to be epic: Opener "Flesh and Bone" begins as a glitchy Soft Cell throwback before rapidly expanding into a glorious fireworks-and-brimstone sermon, while "Miss Atomic Bomb" drives into the desert sunset in a convertible fueled by echoey guitars and glistening-eyed nostalgia. These are big songs, determined to deliver photo-finish climaxes every few seconds.[20]

The Guardian‍ '​s Kate Mossman gave the album three out of five stars, saying:

With stagey soundscapes more Meat Loaf than Springsteen, and lines overloaded with postcard imagery ("Your star-spangled heart took a train for the coast"), you struggle to find the energy till the third or fourth listen, when "Heart of a Girl" (co-written with Daniel Lanois) and "From Here on Out" (which sounds just like the Eagles) reveal themselves to be the sweetest, most sincere explorations of a kind of US rock that will always raise hairs on the necks of those who like this sort of thing.[21]

Accolades

Battle Born was voted the second Best Album of 2012 by the readers of Rolling Stone magazine.[28] Fuse's staff listed it as the 23rd Best Album of 2012.[29]

Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Fuse[29] US The 40 Best Albums of 2012 2012 23
Rolling Stone[28] US The Best Albums of 2012: Readers' Poll 2012 2

Track listing

Battle Born marks the first time someone other than a member of the band has received a writing credit on a Killers studio album; Daniel Lanois has credits on three songs, and Fran Healy co-wrote "Here with Me".

No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "Flesh and Bone"  FlowersLillywhite, Taylor 4:01
2. "Runaways"  FlowersO'Brien, Lillywhite, Taylor 4:04
3. "The Way It Was"  The Killers, LanoisO'Brien 3:51
4. "Here with Me"  Flowers, HealyO'Brien 4:52
5. "A Matter of Time"  The KillersTaylor, Lillywhite 4:11
6. "Deadlines and Commitments"  FlowersTaylor 4:22
7. "Miss Atomic Bomb"  Flowers, VannucciPrice 4:53
8. "The Rising Tide"  FlowersThe Killers 4:17
9. "Heart of a Girl"  The Killers, LanoisLillywhite, Lanois 4:34
10. "From Here on Out"  FlowersLillywhite 2:27
11. "Be Still"  Flowers, LanoisTaylor 4:33
12. "Battle Born"  The KillersLillywhite 5:13

Personnel

The Killers

Technical personnel

  • Steve Lillywhite – production (tracks 1, 5, 9, 10 and 12), additional production (track 2), mixing (track 9)
  • Damian Taylor – production (tracks 1, 5, 6 and 11), additional production (track 2), mixing (tracks 1, 6, 11 and 12)
  • Brendan O'Brien – production and recording (tracks 2–4), mixing (track 4)
  • Stuart Price – production and mixing (track 7 & 13)
  • Daniel Lanois – production (track 9)
  • The Killers – production (track 8)
  • Robert Root – recording (tracks 1, 2, 5–12), mixing (tracks 1, 3, 8–10)
  • Alan Moulder – mixing (tracks 2, 5 and 12)
  • Emily Lazar – mastering engineer
  • Joe LaPorta – mastering engineer
  • Kenta Yonesaka – assistant engineer (tracks 5 and 12)
  • Catherine Marks – mixing engineer (track 2)
  • John Catlin – mixing engineer (track 2)
  • Felix Rashman – mixing assistant (track 2)

Additional musicians

  • Stuart Price – keyboards and programming (track 7)
  • Damian Taylor – keyboards and programming (tracks 9 and 12)
  • Las Vegas Master Singers; Antoinette Bifulco, Elizaveta Polyanskaya, Chiara DeJesus, Susan Easter, Jenna Tracey, Brian Neau, Jeff Stults, Jonathan Baltera, Kaymen Carter, Bob Tracey – backing vocals (tracks 9 and 12)
  • Alissa Fleming – violin (track 12)
  • Jennifer Eriksson – violin (track 12)
  • Nate Kimball – trombone (track 15)
  • Isaac Tubb – trumpet (track 15)

Artwork

  • Warren Fu – art direction and design
  • Martin Gomez – layout
  • Williams + Hirakawa – photography
  • Wyatt Boswell – additional photographs
  • Kristen Yiengst – art and photography production
  • Doug Joswick – package production

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (2012) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart[30] 2
Austrian Albums Chart[31] 3
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[32] 6
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia)[33] 14
Canadian Albums Chart[34] 3
Croatian Albums Chart (Foreign Artists)[35] 6
Czech Albums Chart[36] 17
Danish Albums Chart[37] 8
Dutch Albums Chart[38] 7
Finnish Albums Chart[39] 10
French Albums Chart[40] 29
German Albums Chart[41] 2
Greek Albums Chart[42] 23
Hungarian Albums Chart[43] 37
Irish Albums Chart[44] 1
Italian Albums Chart[45] 7
Japanese Albums Chart[46] 38
Mexican Albums Chart[47] 2
New Zealand Albums Chart[48] 2
Norwegian Albums Chart[49] 2
Polish Albums Chart[50] 22
Portuguese Albums Chart[51] 4
Russian Albums Chart[52] 16
Spanish Albums Chart[53] 3
Swedish Albums Chart[54] 5
Swiss Albums Chart[55] 2
UK Albums Chart[56] 1
US Billboard 200[13] 3
US Billboard Rock Albums[57] 1
US Billboard Alternative Albums[58] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (2012) Rank
Australian Albums Chart[59] 98
Mexican Albums Chart[60] 57
Swiss Albums Chart[61] 98
UK Albums Chart[62] 27
US Billboard 200[63] 154
US Billboard Rock Albums[64] 39
US Billboard Alternative Albums[65] 23
Worldwide[16] 45
Chart (2013) Position
UK Albums Chart[66] 188

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[67] Gold 35,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[68] Gold 7,500x
Mexico (AMPROFON)[69] Gold 30,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[70] Platinum 300,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ "Interview: Brandon Flowers Talks The Killers’ ‘Direct Hits’, M83 Collaboration, Underappreciated Singles".
  2. ↑ "The Killers: Battle Born".
  3. ↑ "The Killers reveal new album title - Battle Born". Rekwired (Yerevan). May 28, 2012. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 NME Magazine August 18, 2012, pg.22
  5. ↑ "The Killers' Brandon Flowers: "We've recorded six songs for our new album" - News". News.qthemusic.com. Retrieved October 30, 2011.
  6. ↑ "The Killers Back In Studio Next Week". Xfm. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
  7. ↑ "the Killers fourth studio album". NME. Retrieved May 23, 2012.
  8. ↑ NME Magazine August 18, 2012, pg.18
  9. ↑ "The Killers are dying to cut loose". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved March 19, 2012.
  10. ↑ "The Killers reveal Battle Born album trailer". Rekwired. June 7, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Daniels, Colin (August 17, 2012). "The Killers unveil new album 'Battle Born' tracklisting". Digital Spy.
  12. ↑ "Listen: The Killers' 'Runaways' debuts online". Gigwise. July 10, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Caulfield, Keith (September 26, 2012). "Pink Earns First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  14. ↑ "The Killers notch up fourth UK Number 1 album with Battle Born". Officialcharts.com. September 23, 2012. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  15. ↑ "Battle Born" (PDF). Dl.dropbox.xom. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 http://i.cubeupload.com/kRxg5o.png
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Metacritic. "Critic Reviews for Battle Born by The Killers". CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
  18. ↑ "Battle Born - The Killers". AllMusic. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
  19. ↑ Marc Hawthorne (September 18, 2012). "The Killers: Battle Born". The A.V. Club. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Kyle Anderson (September 5, 2012). "Battle Born - review - Battle Born Review | Music Reviews and News". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Mossman, Kate (September 13, 2012). "The Killers: Battle Born - review". The Guardian (London). Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  22. ↑ Wippsson, Johan. "The Killers - Battle Born". Melodic. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  23. ↑ "The Killers - 'Battle Born'". NME. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
  24. ↑ "The Killers: Battle Born". Q. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  25. ↑ Dolan, Jon (September 18, 2012). "The Killers: Battle Born - Island". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  26. ↑ Henderson, Eric (September 17, 2012). "The Killers: Battle Born". Slant Magazine. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  27. ↑ Walters, Barry. "The Killers, 'Battle Born' (Vertigo/Island) | SPIN | Albums | Critical Mass". SPIN. Retrieved September 28, 2012.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 "Readers' Poll: The Best Albums of 2012". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 "The 40 Best Albums of 2012: Fuse Staff Picks". Fuse. December 14, 2012. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  30. ↑ "Australian Charts - The Killers - Battle Born (album)". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  31. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Austria Top 40 - The Killers - Battle Born (album)" (in German). austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  32. ↑ "Charts Vlaanderen - The Killers - Battle Born (album)" (in Dutch). Ultratop / Hung Medien. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  33. ↑ "Charts Wallonie - The Killers - Battle Born (album)" (in French). Ultratop / Hung Medien. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  34. ↑ "The Killers Album & Song Chart History - Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  35. ↑ "Top Stranih - Tjedan 41. 2012" (in Croatian). HDU-Toplista.com. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
  36. ↑ "TOP50 Prodejní - Killers - Battle Born" (in Czech). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  37. ↑ "Album Top-40 - Uge 39 2012" (in Danish). Hitlisterne.dk. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  38. ↑ "Dutch Charts - The Killers - Battle Born (album)". MegaCharts / Hung Medien. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  39. ↑ "Finnish Charts - The Killers - Battle Born (album)". Finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  40. ↑ "Classemeents - The Killers - Battle Born (album)" (in French). Lescharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 September 2012.
  41. ↑ "Album - The Killers, Battle Born" (in German). Retrieved September 25, 2012.
  42. ↑ "Official CYTA - IFPI Charts - Top-75 Albums Sales Chart - Εβδομάδα 39/2012" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on October 8, 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  43. ↑ "Official MAHASZ Chart - Top-40 Albums Sales Chart - 39/2012" (in Hungarian).
  44. ↑ "Irish Charts - Week ending 20th September 2012". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  45. ↑ "Album - Classifica settimanale WK 38 (dal 17/09/2012 al 23/09/2012)" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  46. ↑ "012年09月17日～2012年09月23日のCDアルバム週間ランキング（2012年10月01日付）" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on September 29, 2012. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  47. ↑ "Top 100 Mexico - Semana Del 17 al 23 de Septiembre del 2012" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 2, 2012. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
  48. ↑ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart - 24 September 2012". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
  49. ↑ "VG Lista - Topp 40 Albums - Uke 39 2012". VG-lista. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  50. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży". OLiS. October 1, 2012. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  51. ↑ "Top AFP - Semana 39 2012" (in Portuguese). Artistas-espectaculos.com. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  52. ↑ Лена и музы Российские музыкальные чарты. Недели 39 и 40 - 2012 (in Russian). Lenta.Ru. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
  53. ↑ "Top 100 Albumes" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 29, 2012.
  54. ↑ "Veckolista Album - Vecka 39, 28 september 2012" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Hitlistan.se. Archived from the original on September 29, 2012. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  55. ↑ "Swiss Charts - The Killers - Battle Born (album)" (in German). Swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 26, 2012.
  56. ↑ "2012 Top 40 Official UK Albums Archive - 29th September 2012". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  57. ↑ "Rock Albums Chart - Week of October 06, 2012". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  58. ↑ "Alternative Albums Chart - Week of October 06, 2012". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  59. ↑ http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-top-100-albums-2012.htm
  60. ↑ "Los Más Vendidos 2012" (PDF) (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved January 23, 2013.
  61. ↑ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2012" (in German). Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. Retrieved December 30, 2012.
  62. ↑ Lane, Dan (January 2, 2013). "The Official Top 40 Biggest Selling Albums Of 2012 revealed!". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
  63. ↑ "The Killers".
  64. ↑ "The Killers".
  65. ↑ "The Killers".
  66. ↑ http://ukchartsplus.co.uk/UKChartsPlusEOY2013.pdf
  67. ↑ "ARIA Australian Top-40 Albums - 08/10/2012". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved October 7, 2012.
  68. ↑ "Irish album certifications – The Killers – Battle Born". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  69. ↑ "Top 100 Mexico - Semana Del 01 al 07 de Abril 2013" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 19, 2013. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  70. ↑ "Mercury Records".

External links