The third album from The Killers sees them return to the 80s-influenced pop sound of their debut release.

The word “Anglophile” refers to a non-British person who admires all things British (see staff writer Andrew Ho’s work). The Killers, from Las Vegas, are called Anglophiles because their first album, 2004’s Hot Fuss, sounded like 80s British pop band Duran Duran.

It is an album full of catchy tunes but many music fans disliked it because they felt the band were all 80s style and no substance. Those criticisms did not stop them from selling over five million units worldwide.

And yet they must have been stung by the criticism because for their second album Sam’s Town they rejected the 80s glam in favour of heartland rock music about the hopes and struggles of blue collar people from America.

Their third album Day & Age is a return to the glossy pop of the first album with some songs resembling the second. Losing Touch begins the album in a bold fashion with epic-sounding horns. When Brandon Flowers sings “of how you got lost… but you made your way back home” it is as if he is acknowledging losing touch with his fans on the second album.

The first single Human has a memorable chorus: “Are we human or are we dancer?” (No marks for the bad English though.) The lyrics are inspired by US “gonzo”journalist Hunter S. Thompson who said that America was “raising a generation of dancers.” What he meant was that Americans were taught to follows steps and were afraid of going in a different direction. Could this be Flowers hitting back at his critics?

Spaceman is a silly yet infectious song about being kidnapped by aliens and looking down at Earth. A Dustland Fairytale has string and piano arrangements and tackles the death of the American dream, but it is difficult to take seriously because the lyrics are nonsense (“Castles in the sky sit stranded, vandalised, the drawbridge is closing”).

Even though the album has catchy melodies they have yet to prove that they can escape from the shadows of their idols.