Brandon Flowers: “I was able to do whatever I could dream of”

Recorded in “increments” in both his own Battle Born Studios and in Los Angeles, the follow-up to 2010 solo debut, ‘Flamingo’, was pieced together over the past year, whenever he could make his way into the producer’s diary. “He’s sort of an in-demand guy right now,” he chuckles, “so it was all about when I could get Ariel to Las Vegas, or when I could get to LA.” His second effort has a fair bit riding on it. At the time of press, Flowers has already sold out six sizeable UK shows after debuting just one track. Now, with a further song out in the open, fans are beginning to get a feel for the album’s flair, and it’s fair to say that it’s treading entirely different ground.

“I definitely wanted to do something different,” he says with certainty. “When I sought out Ariel as a producer, I knew that I was going into unchartered territory for me. What you wanna do with any album is stay true to yourself and that was really the goal, but you’re putting it through a different person’s perspective any time you let anyone else work with you, or collaborate with you, so it’s going to go through different shapes and sizes.”

The record still, however, possesses his stamp of grandiose. Whether in the Springsteen-inspired twang of ‘Lonely Town’ or the foot-stomping 80s beat of ‘I Can Change’, ‘The Desired Effect’ sees Flowers turn just about everything up to eleven. “Because he’s such a capable producer, that gave me a lot of freedom,” he reflects, again referencing his partner-in-crime. “I was able to do whatever I could dream of; it seemed like it was possible with him.”

It wasn’t just Rechtshaid that Brandon decided to draft in; he also set about drawing up a dream cast of supporting musicians. In among the bombast, there’s contributions from the likes of Bruce Hornsby, Ethan Farmer and Tony Levin, alongside his own peers Angel Deradoorian (of Dirty Projectors), Danielle Haim and Killers bandmate Ronnie Vannucci Jr. “It was fun to have people who have their own little corners of expertise and letting them get back into that, letting them do their thing. I’ve never worked like that and it was really fun.”

“I’m feeling more…” he continues, touching upon his growing confidence as a solo artist. “It’s a big pair of shoes that you have to step into when this is your job, I guess. There have been so many great people who have gone before me, and I’m finally starting to feel like I belong. That it’s okay for me to go for it and really let loose a little bit more.”

The result is infectious; ‘The Desired Effect’ sees Flowers really coming into his own as a solo star; he manages to do it all with an insatiable wink.

“I mean, I want people to take away from it just what I take away from music,” he offers up on how he hopes listeners will react, “I don’t know that it’s a specific thing but it made my life better. It genuinely made my life better and it still does. I mean, if you’re in the car and ‘Don’t Get Me Wrong’ comes on by The Pretenders, how do you not feel good?!” he laughs again. “It’s a powerful thing, music. I’m so grateful for all it’s done for me and I just wanna repay the favour.”

Taken from the May issue of DIY, out now. Brandon Flowers’ new album ‘The Desired Effect’ will be released on 18th May via Vertigo.