Maps of Music

Hot Fuss (2004)

Where the lyrics of Hot Fuss take you, and where it was really made.

The album's signature vocal sound came from a single default preset on a stock effect unit, and that default became the vocal tone across the whole record.

Key places

Recorded in Berkeley (2004)

Recording site Zellerbach Auditorium (Berkeley) — The album was recorded throughout 2003 in Berkeley, California, with Jeff Saltzman. The Hearse is listed as one of the recording locations. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Cover shot in southern Beijing (2004)

Album cover Southern suburbs of Beijing — Matthias Clamer photographed the album cover in 2000 in the southern region of the suburbs of Beijing, China. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Hot Fuss: debut studio album by the American rock band the Killers
• Released 7 June 2004 in the UK and 15 June 2004 in the US, by Island Records
• Music is mostly influenced by new wave and post-punk
• Spawned four singles: Mr. Brightside, Somebody Told Me, All These Things That I've Done, Smile Like You Mean It
• Reached number 7 on the Billboard 200 and number 1 on the UK Albums Chart
• Sold more than seven million copies worldwide as of December 2012

Background

• Line-up on the record: Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Mark Stoermer, Ronnie Vannucci Jr.
• Many tracks were first recorded as demos, and the band kept them for their spontaneity
• In 2012, Brandon Flowers said he felt depressed after hearing the Strokes' album Is This It
• Mr. Brightside was the only song from the sessions that survived after the band threw away the rest of its work in progress

Recording

• Recorded throughout 2003 with Jeff Saltzman in Berkeley, California
• Everything Will Be Alright was recorded by Corlene Byrd in guitarist Dave Keuning's apartment
• Mixed by Mark Needham at Cornerstone Studios in Los Angeles and by Alan Moulder at Eden Studios in London
• The vocal effect Echo Farm is heavily featured on Flowers' voice

Cover

• Photographed by Matthias Clamer in 2000 in the southern suburbs of Beijing, China

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals).
• Mark Stoermer (bass, rhythm guitar, backing vocals) and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. (drums, percussion) joined in 2002, completing the lineup.
• The name comes from a fictional band in the music video for the New Order song "Crystal".

Members

• Brandon Flowers: lead vocals, keyboards, synthesizer.
• Dave Keuning: guitar, backing vocals; on hiatus since 2017, returned in 2020.
• Ronnie Vannucci Jr.: drums, percussion.
• Mark Stoermer: bass, backing vocals; on hiatus 2020–2022.

Career

• Seven studio albums, each topping the UK Albums Chart, from Hot Fuss (2004) to Pressure Machine (2021).
• Sold more than 35 million records worldwide and performed in over 50 countries.
• Annual Christmas singles for Product Red from 2006 to 2016 raised over $1 million for AIDS-related charity.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Critics gave generally positive reviews: Metacritic weighted average 66 out of 100 from 20 reviews
• The album and its first three singles earned five Grammy Award nominations at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards in 2005

Reappraisal

• Rolling Stone ranked Hot Fuss 43rd on its list of "100 Best Albums of the Decade"
• Rolling Stone ranked Hot Fuss 33rd on its list of "The 100 Greatest Debut Albums of All Time"
• Gigwise readers voted it the number-one "Best Debut Album of All Time" in 2013
• The album was at one point listed among the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die

Records

• UK Albums Chart: number 1 for two consecutive weeks in January 2005
• Billboard 200: number 7 on the US chart
• 26th bestselling album of the 2000s decade in the UK
• Listed among the top 40 longest-charting albums in UK chart history, with 254 weeks
• UK: BPI septuple platinum certified on 22 July 2013; 2,335,495 copies sold in the UK by August 2020
• US: RIAA triple platinum certified on 1 December 2005; 3.75 million copies sold in the US as of January 2017
• Platinum or multi-platinum in Australia, Canada, Ireland and New Zealand
• Sold more than seven million copies worldwide as of December 2012

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Many tracks were first recorded as demos, and the band kept those versions for their spontaneity.
• The vocal effect Echo Farm's default preset became the default vocal tone across the whole record.
• In 2005 the album was reissued as a box of eleven seven-inch vinyl discs, with album tracks on the A-sides and non-album tracks on the B-sides.
• The cover was photographed in 2000 in the southern suburbs of Beijing, China.
• Mixing was split between Mark Needham in Los Angeles and Alan Moulder at Eden Studios in London.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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