After earning its wings as Rolling Stone magazine’s Must-Have “Download Now” choice, “When You Were Young” becomes the first #1 song at Alternative/Modern Rock radio this week for Island Records group the Killers. At the same time, the Killers make a colossal debut at #2 this week with their eagerly anticipated second album ‘Sam’s Town’ on first week sales of 315,000 units.
“This record is an epic release from a band with incredible talent,” says Antonio “L.A.” Reid, Chairman, Island Def Jam Music Group. “With their amazing sense of artistry, The Killers make me excited about the future of rock music. Sam’s Town will absolutely stand the test of time.”
‘Sam’s Town’ is making huge noise worldwide, starting in the U.K. where it debuted at #1 on the national chart with first week over- sales of 269,000 units – an amazing accomplishment considering that the U.K. population (approx. 60 million) is one-fifth of the U.S. population.
This marked the 3rd biggest debut week of the year in the U.K. Putting the U.K. success of ‘Sam’s Town’ in perspective – it ranks as the country’s biggest digital album ever, and achieved the biggest pre-orders ever at both HMV and Play.com (an Amazon competitor).
VMA Award-winning, Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum band the Killers were the special musical guest when NBC’s Saturday Night Live premiered on September 30th, hosted by Dane Cook. The Killers went on to make history as the first band to perform three consecutive nights on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live (October 3rd, 4th & 5th). Next up for the Killers is CBS’s The Late Show with David Letterman on October 24th.
Meanwhile, the Killers kicked-off their first major North American tour in support of ‘Sam’s Town’ with back-to-back shows this past week in Los Angeles (October 6-7th) and San Francisco (8-9th). The 15-city tour – sold-out in minutes – heads across the U.S. and Canada before wrapping up in the Killers’ hometown of Las Vegas for the 2nd annual pre-Halloween weekend VEGOOSE Festival. The Killers will be on-tour in Europe during November, then return to North America to resume their schedule here.
‘Sam’s Town’ is now available at Amazon . Visit the music database for more information and a link to M&C’s review of the album.
Killers North American Tour dates include:
Date City Venue
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