Brandon Flowers

Brandon Richard Flowers (born June 21, 1981) is the American vocalist and keyboardist in the band, The Killers.

Early life

Flowers, the youngest of six children, was born on June 21, 1981 in Henderson, Nevada (outside Las Vegas) to parents of partial Scottish and Lithuanian ancestry. They lived in Henderson until he was a preteen and then moved to Nephi, Utah. Brandon lived in Nephi until his junior year in high school, when he moved back to Las Vegas. He then took a job as a bellhop at the Gold Coast Hotel. His mother was a homemaker. His parents raised Brandon and the rest of the family as active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He attributes his fashion sense to his doting sisters. His parents made him take piano lessons, but the person responsible for Flowers's musical education was his brother Shane, 12 years his senior, who showed him Smiths videos and U2's Rattle and Hum movie. He mentions his older brother quite often when asked about his taste in music or things relating. The Cars became a major influence for him after he listened to an old album of his brother's.Vorlage:Fact He once used a Ouija board and gained a fear of the number 621, which relates to his birthday, June 21. Flowers is convinced he is going to die on that day. He said: "It's just stupid, it is not a way to live. Once I had to fly to Glastonbury on my birthday; that was a real mess."

Career

Flowers, after dropping out of college, was a bellhop for a while at the Gold Coast Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. In 2001, He was abandoned by the first band that he was in, a synth pop band known as Blush Response, after he declined to move with the rest of them to Los Angeles, California. Shortly thereafter, Flowers attended an Oasis concert, and, realizing that he wanted to make the transition from a keyboard band to a true rock band, began searching for a guitarist. He responded to an ad that Dave Keuning had placed in the paper that listed, among other things, Smashing Pumpkins and Oasis as influences. The two hit it off immediately and began rehearsing. They were joined by bassist Mark Stoermer, and later drummer Ronnie Vannucci, and they became the Killers.Vorlage:Fact

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, his parents have always supported his decision to become a rock singer, and were often the only people in the audience at The Killers' first performances in the band's early days.Vorlage:Fact

Although primarily a vocalist and keyboardist, Flowers plays bass guitar live in concerts for the song "For Reasons Unknown".

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Brandon playing the piano in T in the park 2007.

Controversies

Flowers was known for initiating feuds between The Killers and other bands, such as The Bravery, Fall Out Boy, and Panic! at the Disco.Vorlage:Fact In July 2006, however, he apologized to the bands in an interview to AOL Music, saying "I'd like to take it all back. These people are just doing what they want to do, just like I am...I'm actually a nice person and I love people. I just am opinionated, and sometimes jealous. It's not something I'm proud of." Frontman Sam Endicott (of The Bravery) and bassist Pete Wentz (of Fall Out Boy) reportedly received, and accepted, telephone apologies prior to the article's publication. With regard to the criticisms leveled at Panic! at the Disco, Flowers said "I don't even know what their music's like, or if I would even like it...That made me feel even worse, to think they could have been fans of ours and I hurt their feelings. That's just stupid." Flowers has also criticized Green Day for what he sees as their calculated anti-Americanism. Specifically, Flowers found a video of Green Day performing the song 'American Idiot' in the UK distasteful. The taping of the concert, featured on Bullet in a Bible, shows thousands of Europeans singing along to 'American Idiot.' He said, "I just thought it was really cheap. To go to a place like England or Germany and sing that song - those kids aren't taking it the same way that he meant it."

Rufus Wainwright, a Canadian singer-songwriter wrote a song about Flowers called, "Tulsa", for his fifth album "Release The Stars". Wainwright has stated in numerous interviews that it was inspired by their first meeting in a bar in Tulsa, Oklahoma. According to Wainwright, Flowers has yet to contact him and reply to the song.

Flowers also had a feud with Tom DeLonge of Angels & Airwaves after Tom called him a "boast biter". This remark came when Flowers was quoted saying Sam's Town would be "one of the best albums in the past twenty years". DeLonge made a similar remark before the release of his band's debut album, "We Don't Need To Whisper".

Personal life

On August 2, 2005, Flowers married longtime girlfriend Tana Munblowsky in a private ceremony in Hawaii The two dated for approximately four years before they wed. On July 14, 2007, the Flowers welcomed their first child, a boy named Ammon Richard Flowers.

Although an active Mormon himself, in the past Flowers has smoked cigarettes and drunk alcohol to cope with his fear of flying, behavior prohibited by the LDS church's beliefs (see LDS health standard). However, he has said that he belongs to a "very tolerant gathering." In an August 2005 interview with Rolling Stone, Flowers mentioned trying to cut back, and as of November 22, 2006, Flowers gave up smoking by using a chamomile concoction prescribed by a German doctor (Flowers says it's good for his voice).Vorlage:Fact

Selected events

Flowers won NME magazine awards in 2005 for "Best Dressed" and "Sexiest Man."

References

http://www.nme.com/news/the-killers/29731

External links

Commons: Brandon Flowers – Sammlung von Bildern, Videos und Audiodateien

• The Killers official site, from Island Records
• The Killers official site (U.K.), from the Vertigo label
• "The Music That Changed My Life: Brandon Flowers", Interview by Kyle Anderson, from Spin magazine
• "Former BYU's student's brother is lead singer of the Killers", interview by Erin Pierce and Dan Monson about Flowers visiting his brother at college, from The Daily Universe
• Songs of Praise, Craig McLean talks to the Killers' singer about resisting temptation, from The Observer
• [2] Indie Rock Fans Website]

Vorlage:The Killers