Bright Lights (The Killers song)

Last updated
"Bright Lights"
The Killers Bright Lights Cover.jpg
Single by the Killers
ReleasedAugust 9, 2024
Recorded2024
Genre
Length4:11
Label Island
Songwriter Brandon Flowers
Producers
The Killers singles chronology
"Your Side of Town"
(2023)		"Bright Lights"
(2024)
Music video
"Bright Lights" on YouTube

"Bright Lights" is a song by American rock band the Killers, released as a non-album single on August 9, 2024 to coincide with their 20 Years of Hot Fuss residency. [3] A music video, directed by Micah Bickham, was released on the same day. [4]

Contents

The song received positive reviews from critics, with Rolling Stone calling the track a "rousing, upbeat track". [5] The song peaked at No. 37 on Billboard's Alternative Airplay chart and No. 12 on Billboard's Adult Alternative Airplay chart. [6] [6]

Background and release

"Bright Lights" was written by frontman Brandon Flowers, and produced by Stuart Price, known for producing most of Flowers' debut solo studio Flamingo (2010), and Shawn Everett, known for his work on the Killers' albums Imploding the Mirage (2020) and Pressure Machine (2021). [7] [8] [9]

Flowers recalled in an interview with 89.3 KCMP radio that he got the idea for "Bright Lights" from an Elvis Presley song. He explained that he "thought about how we occasionally will cover 'Viva Las Vegas,' and that opening line, 'Bright-light city is going set my soul on fire,' and I just sort of used that as a launching pad, you know, 'Turn 'em on, because I'm coming home.' And it became kind of this beautiful metaphor for so many different things that you could apply it to," adding that he "started seeing all these beautiful analogies, and it sort of finished itself right away once I saw all that." [10] [11]

"Bright Lights" was first teased by the Killers on social media on July 29, 2024 with a short 9-second video, posted on Instagram and X, showing the stage for their upcoming 20 Years of Hot Fuss residency, which commenced later that year, with a small snippet of the song playing in the background. [12] [13] The next day, a second short video was posted to social media showing more of the residency stage with a different snippet of the song in the background. [14] [15] A third video detailing the stage, with a different snippet of the song, was posted the following day. [16] [17] The cover art for "Bright Lights" was revealed on both platforms on August 5, and the final 30 seconds of the song and music video were teased the day before release, August 8. [18] [19] [20] [21]

"Bright Lights" was released on streaming platforms on August 9, 2024, and the song was further played at all fifteen 20 Years of Hot Fuss shows. [22] [23] The song is the first time the four original members have played together, excluding one-off shows, since 2017. [24]

Music video

The music video for "Bright Lights" was released on August 9, 2024, the same day that the song was released. [24] The video, directed by Micah Bickham, shows the band's original lineup, as well as background singers, dancing on the residency stage for their 20 Years of Hot Fuss residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. [5] The video was described as "glitzy" by NME , and has 2 million views on YouTube as of October 2025. [25] [26]

Reception

The song received positive reviews from critics. Atwood Magazine praised the song for being "a larger-than-life anthem about keeping the dream alive," while NME remarked how the song "contained a bold, pulsing guitar part and triumphant echoed vocals from frontman Brandon Flowers." [24] [26] Euphoria Magazine explained how the song "delivers an anthemic punch that reminds us why The Killers have been a staple of the rock scene for over two decades." [27] Consequence of Sound noted that the song is a "big, arena-ready song, offering a celebratory chorus centered on homecoming," with Rolling Stone describing the song as an anthemic single that "sees frontman Brandon Flowers celebrating Vegas." [3] [28]

Charts

Chart (2024)Peak
position
US Alternative Airplay ( Billboard ) [29] 37
US Rock & Alternative Airplay ( Billboard ) [30] 48
US Adult Alternative Songs ( Billboard ) [31] 12

Release history

RegionDateFormatLabelRef.
VariousAugust 9, 2024 Island [32]

References

  1. ↑ "The Killers – Bright Lights Review". Cult Following. 2024-08-18. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  2. ↑ Mosk, Mitch (2024-08-14). "The Killers Turn the "Bright Lights" on in a Larger-Than-Life Anthem". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  3. 1 2 Zemler, Emily (2024-08-09). "The Killers Find Their Way Home on Anthemic Single 'Bright Lights'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2025-09-23.
  4. ↑ Monroe, Jazz (2024-08-09). "The Killers Share Video for New Song "Bright Lights"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2025-09-23.
  5. 1 2 Zemler, Emily (2024-08-09). "The Killers Find Their Way Home on Anthemic Single 'Bright Lights'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  6. 1 2 "The Killers | Biography, Music & News". Billboard. Retrieved 2025-09-23.
  7. ↑ Flamingo (deluxe edition liner notes). Brandon Flowers. Island Records. 2010. B0014745-02.
  8. ↑ Imploding the Mirage (liner notes). The Killers. Island Records. 2020. B0032028-02.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ↑ Pressure Machine (liner notes). The Killers. Island Records. 2021. B0034000-02.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. ↑ "Viva Las Vegas by The Killers Concert Statistics | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 2025-10-08.
  11. ↑ "Brandon Flowers of The Killers reflects on a remarkable year (so far!)". www.thecurrent.org. Retrieved 2025-10-08.
  12. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  13. ↑ Killers, The (July 29, 2024). "#BrightLights". X. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  14. ↑ Killers, The (July 30, 2024). "#BrightLights". X. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  16. ↑ Killers, The (July 31, 2024). "#BrightLights". X. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  18. ↑ Killers, The (August 5, 2024). "Bright Lights out this Friday. #BrightLights". X. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  19. ↑ Killers, The (August 8, 2024). "Tomorrow... #BrightLights". X. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
  20. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  21. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  22. ↑ The Killers - Bright Lights, 2024, retrieved 2025-10-08
  23. ↑ "Bright Lights by The Killers Song Statistics | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 2025-10-08.
  24. 1 2 3 Mosk, Mitch (2024-08-14). "The Killers Turn the "Bright Lights" on in a Larger-Than-Life Anthem". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  25. ↑ TheKillersVEVO (2024-08-09). The Killers - Bright Lights . Retrieved 2025-10-06– via YouTube.
  26. 1 2 Duran, Anagricel (2024-08-08). "The Killers preview new single 'Bright Lights' in glitzy music video snippet". NME. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  27. ↑ Otero, Nicole (2024-08-12). "The Killers - Bright Lights". EUPHORIA. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  28. ↑ Siroky, Mary (2024-08-09). "The Killers return with anthemic new song "Bright Lights"". Consequence. Retrieved 2025-10-06.
  29. ↑ "The Killers Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  30. ↑ "The Killers Chart History (Rock & Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  31. ↑ "The Killers Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  32. ↑ "Release group "Bright Lights" by The Killers - MusicBrainz". musicbrainz.org. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
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