The Killers' Brandon Flowers Says His New Album Will Contain 'Country Western Music'

Flowers indicated that he’d drawn inspiration from the music of his upbringing, including classic country stars Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings.

The Killers

The Killers’ Brandon Flowers is preparing to release a new solo album, one that he says will contain “country western music.”

Flowers, best known as the iconic voice behind 2000s rock hits like Mr Brightside and Somebody Told Me, is gearing up to release his first solo album in over a decade. The album, Thrasher, is scheduled for release on Friday, 21 August.

The first single, Plans, will be unveiled this Friday (26 June). Check out the track listing below.

Brandon Flowers isn’t the only unexpected artist to embrace country music. Artists such as Post Malone, Diplo and Beyoncé have pivoted to release country-fused albums, with the former headlining this year’s Strummingbird Festival in October.

Billboard notes that Flowers’ new album was recorded at Nashville’s renowned RCA Studio A. Produced by Shawn Everett and Jonathan Rado – two of the singer’s longtime collaborators – and featuring contributions from guitarist David Rawlings, pedal steel player Bruce Bouton, and harmonica player Charlie McCoy, Flowers revisits his love for country music.

In a statement, Flowers indicated that he’d drawn inspiration from the music of his upbringing, including classic country stars Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings.

He explained, “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found my way back to my father’s music — ‘Country-Western’ (as he called it) — and discovered that the stories I carry really feel most at home in the skin of this beautiful American tradition.”

In an album trailer, Flowers further delved into country-western inspiration. “I unlocked a room that I feel that has been waiting for me all along: country western music,” he said. “It has offered itself to me and the stories I have to tell at the moment with a breezy enthusiasm.”

He added, “This is not me running away from rock & roll. I don’t want to replace my old songs. I simply found room for more.”

Check out the trailer below.

Thrasher is the long-awaited follow-up to Flowers’ 2015 solo album, The Desired Effect. It also follows The Killers’ Pressure Machine, released in 2021, and their 2023 greatest hits collection, Rebel Diamonds.

The band last visited Australia in December 2024, bringing Rebel Diamonds and their 20 Years of Hot Fuss tour to arenas across the East Coast.