After Two Cancellations, The Killers Finally Perform at Houston’s Toyota Center
Written by Keylee Paz on May 19, 2023
Third time’s a charm, right? the Killers finally play their long awaited show at the Toyota Center on Mother’s Day.
On a beautiful Mother’s day afternoon, the Toyota Center in Downtown Houston was filling up with fans from all over the state. As soon as the Lemon Twigs finished their opening set, they
Everyone panicked as soon as they saw a doctor, who claimed to be Dr. Lazlo Bane, walk on stage with bad news – “the band tested extremely positive [everyone gasped and frowns took over…] “FOR ROCK & ROLL.” Everyone in the stadium let out a sign of relief, and shortly after, the Killers took the stage. They opened their set with “My Soul’s Own Warning” from their album Imploding the Mirage, followed by the welcoming “Enterlude” from Sam’s Town and frontman Brandon Flowers’ comment – finally.
The band proceeded to perform “When You Were Young” and “Jenny Was A Friend of Mine,” where Flowers gave a heartwarming speech stating that third time was the charm. After performing more fan favorites like “Smile Like You Mean It” and “A Shot at the Night,” they played more tracks from their newer albums such as “Running Towards a Place” and “Boy.”
What made the whole night extra special was the performance of “The Way It Was” from their album Battle Born, where the band serenaded the crowd with Flowers’ powerful vocals and Ronnie Vanucci’s incredible drumming. Flowers gave a speech about the reasoning for the band’s previous cancellations, asking Houston to forgive them about the elephant in the room. He continued to state the band was its finest and most well-oiled, that Houston would prefer to see them the night of May 14th rather than 6 months ago. Before hitting the final chorus of the track, the band promised Houston exclusive posters for everyone in attendance.
Another highlight of the night was the performance of “For Reasons Unknown,” where two fans near the barricade held arrows and poster signs flagging the band that they could play drums and bass for the track. Flowers let Houston decide whether or not to bring the fans on stage, and Houston absolutely roared. The two brothers joined the band on stage, and they absolutely killed it – the band was definitely impressed.
The band took it down a notch with their performance of “Runaway Horses” from their lockdown album Pressure Machine, followed by “Runaways” and “Read My Mind.” They continued to perform more tracks from the new album Imploding the Mirage, even dedicating “Caution” to all the women and moms in the audience. They ended their set with “All The Things That I’ve Done,” where Houston chanted the bridge like never before.
The night was not over – the Killers returned for the encore where they resumed with “Spaceman” from their album Day and Age, followed by a energetic performance of “Run for Cover” from the album Wonderful Wonderful. They ended the night with the band’s most well-known track “Mr. Brightside” – the band performed an elongated remix version of the track to get the crowd hype, and immediately transitioned to the original version. Everyone was jumping and Houston was at its loudest, and the Killers were more than happy to see that Houston welcomed the Las Vegas hospitality.
It was definitely worth the wait – the band’s energy dispersed throughout the Toyota Center, and everyone sang their hearts out. Houston hopes for the Killers’ return, hopefully with no postponements or cancellations.
