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"The Killers really caught the world&amp;#039;s attention with their breakthrough second single &amp;#039;Mr Brightside&amp;#039;, now a classic song that fills the dancefloors of nightclubs as well as arenas and stadiums.  Brandon, Dave, Ronnie and Mark have gained critical acclaim for their live performances and are hailed by their fans as the greatest band in the world right now. After taking some time off, they&amp;#039;re back with an appropriately killer album, Battle Born, and UK tour. To refresh your memory, here are ten facts about the band. 1. The Killers are made up of lead singer Brandon Flowers, guitarist Dave Keuning, drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr and bass player Mark Stoermer. 2. They formed in 2002 and after catching the eye of a talent scout in a Las Vegas club, they recorded demos and performed a showcase for Warner Bros. Although Warner passed on signing them, British label Lizard King Records heard the demos and signed the group in July 2003. When asked what stood out about the band, label head Martin Heath said: &amp;quot;Great and interesting, original-sounding songs.&amp;quot; 3. After going top 3 in the UK with their debut single &amp;#039;Somebody Told Me&amp;#039;, follow-up &amp;#039;Mr Brightside&amp;#039; went top ten in both the UK and the US. Double-platinum Stateside, it was named &amp;#039;Song of the Decade&amp;#039; by XFM and remains a favourite with fans and fellow musicians who often perform cover versions.      4. In 2005, the group won &amp;#039;Best International Band&amp;#039; at the NME Awards, with leading man Flowers also collecting the &amp;#039;Best Dressed&amp;#039; and &amp;#039;Sexiest Man&amp;#039; awards. Although they have been nominated seven times they are yet to win a Grammy, but in 2007 they won both &amp;#039;Best International Group&amp;#039; and &amp;#039;Best International Album&amp;#039; prizes at the Brits. 5. The Killers have released three studio albums, Hot Fuss, Sam&amp;#039;s Town and Day and Age, all of which reached number one in the UK. Having taken a break in 2010, they are preparing to release their fourth album, Battle Born. 2007 rarities compilation album Sawdust features the &amp;#039;Tranquilize&amp;#039; duet with legend Lou Reed and Joy Division cover &amp;#039;Shadowplay&amp;#039;, while 2009&amp;#039;s Live from the Royal Albert Hall is their first official live document.      6. During their break in 2010, the band worked on various solo projects with Flowers releasing an album, Flamingo, which reached number one in the UK charts. He also went on a solo tour. 7. Flowers is a devout follower of the Mormon faith and took part in an ad campaign for the religion last year. After meeting with fellow Mormon Mitt Romney, there were rumours that The Killers were set to make a political stance on the upcoming presidential election. Flowers denied this, saying: &amp;quot;We&amp;#039;ve always been neutral, so we just kinda stay out of it. None of us is planning any rallies for anybody.&amp;quot; Bass player Stoermer added: &amp;quot;Anyone&amp;#039;s allowed to like us\u00E2\u20AC\u00A6 If it&amp;#039;s just about music, I guess it&amp;#039;s not a negative thing.&amp;quot; 8. The Killers is a great band name, but where did they get it from? The answer comes in New Order&amp;#039;s 2001 comeback single &amp;#039;Crystal&amp;#039;. Instead of featuring the aged Manc dance rockers, they smartly had some young chaps miming along to their track. The name emblazoned on the drumkit for this fake band? The Killers.      9. Hailing from Las Vegas, the band are proud of their Nevada roots. Their second album Sam&amp;#039;s Town was named after a Vegas casino. Flowers also named a song on his solo album &amp;#039;Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas&amp;#039;. 10. In a recent interview, Flowers spoke out against the lack of guitar bands writing great songs, saying: &amp;quot;Well, guitar bands aren&amp;#039;t writing songs. Write a f**king song, get over yourself. There aren&amp;#039;t any. Where are they? Dance music cannot compete with a really great rock n&amp;#039; roll song. There ain&amp;#039;t no DJ that&amp;#039;s gonna play something that can&amp;#039;t take &amp;#039;Mr Brightside&amp;#039; or &amp;#039;Don&amp;#039;t Look Back in Anger&amp;#039;. Those songs are better than that.&amp;quot; Watch the trailer for The Killers&amp;#039; &amp;#039;Battle Born&amp;#039; below:       "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/showbiz/10-things-about/news/a405278/ten-things-about-the-killers/>