Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Review: The Desired Effect by Brandon Flowers


Review by: Kristal Solis
Artist: Brandon Flowers
Album:The Desired Effect
Date Released: May 18, 2015
Duration: 39 minutes

When Brandon Flowers isn’t working his usual day job, fronting The Killers, he finds time to write and record material for his solo project. On May 18th Brandon released his sophomore album: The Desired Effect. In a previous interview conducted by Luke M. Britton from nme.com, Brandon has hinted that this might be his last effort to release a solo album. I’m not sure if Brandon was already thinking this when he was writing and recording, but the record leaves the listener questioning the meaning behind his lyrics and allows you to take a sneak peek into the other creative side that the fans don’t see when Brandon is with The Killers.

Being a religious-affiliated man in his 30’s with children and a solid 11 year marriage to his wife Tana, this album has a reflective tone to it where you can tell that Brandon is entering a new phase in his life and talking about the ups and downs of his personal life. I would say almost every song discusses different aspects of being in a relationship, some fans may not see it this way, but as I read the lyrics to the songs I sensed that Brandon is basically writing short, poetic stories about what it’s like to be in love for the first time while simultaneously describing what it’s like to be in love with the same person for several years. Another theme I felt Brandon touched a bit was religion, I think anyone who is religious or at least wants to do the right things struggles between following their morals or completely surrendering control and doing whatever they desire. For anyone who may believe that the record was rushed or didn’t have much passion put into it because it might’ve been Brandon’s last solo album is completely wrong. The best part about this album are the simple, relatable and magnificent music videos released. For the fans that weren’t fond of his solo debut album, I would highly recommend that you give The Desired Effect a chance because it’s truly a well-written,soulful work of art that has excellent songs that deserve to be listened to. I hope you all enjoy this album as much as I did, it really took me by surprise and I hope that Brandon continues to release solo material in the future!


Instead of listing my favorite songs off the album I thought I would do something a bit of out the usual and post my favorite, music video, live performance, and set of lyrics from The Desired Effect.

Favorite Music Video-- "Still Want You"

Favorite Live Performance-- "Can't Deny My Love"

Favorite Lyrics:

Song: “The Way It’s Always Been”

Lyrics: I took a long walk yesterday,yesterday
To a field where I used to play
I saw myself in the corner of my mind
I was twelve years old and blind to the big wheel and grind…
Tackle or touch, you sink or swim
And hoping that he’s really got the power to save us from these sin

Track Listing:
Dreams Come True
Can’t Deny My Love
I Can Change                                                                                                                         
Still Want You
Between Me And You
Lonely Town
Diggin’ Up The Heart
Never Get You Right
Untangled Love
The Way It’s Always Been

Click here to purchase the album!

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