NO LONGER A KILLER
KEUNING BRINGS SHARP-HOOKED GUITAR TO DEBUT SOLO ALBUM
Dave Keuning has played plenty packed arenas and massive festivals in the past. But the Killers’ guitarist knows it won’t be the same when he heads out on the road in support of his debut solo album Prismism. He’ll be performing in venues whose capacity probably wouldn’t hold his other band’s tour retinue.
Original bassist Mark Stoermer stopped touring with the Killers in 2016 to return to college. Keuning stepped away in 2017 before the Wonderful Wonderful release, citing the need for a break from gruelling schedules to spend more time with his family and pursue other projects. The 14-song Prismism is the result of the time off and taking his “turn to do what I want.”
“If I want to do a keyboard-driven song or explore as many different sounds on the instrument as I want, which I don’t usually have the chance to do, it’s really fun for me,” he said. “And if I want to do an acoustic song right after that, I will. Every song was a different approach, and I had the freedom to do exactly what I wanted.”
For all that, songs such as the opener, Boat Accident, are the kind of riff-ready new wave rockers with soaring synth-supported choruses that would fit right alongside hits by the Killers such as Mr. Brightside or Spaceman. But he’s inhabiting new terrain on the Cars-like rockers I Ruined You and meditative electropop on the title track. Keuning and producer Brandon Darner and Micah Natera clearly spent a good while getting the songs fine-tuned. One thing Keuning didn’t do that so many guitar players will on their solo recordings was pack in loads of lengthy jams to show off their soloing.
From the Killers to Smashing Pumpkins to his own work, Keuning is a concise, melodic player who likes the impact of brevity over excess. He agrees that is his preference and, where it was in question, he would refer to his producers.
“When in doubt, go with the shorter version. The younger generation doesn’t really go for longer songs and even when I did stretch out like on Prismism, it’s still five minutes,” he said.
“You can learn a lot from classics like the Beatles or Hank Williams who could do so much in a short time. You study that and try to learn what makes a classic.”
Having been involved in some of the most enduring pop hits of the past few decades, Keuning knows what he’s talking about. Naturally, working within the format of the Killers there would be songs that worked for singer Brandon Flowers and ones that didn’t. Prismism is an even mix of ideas that had been around for a time as well as fresh new tunes. Clear plans to record a specific number of songs for a project never work out that way.
“About six or seven were from old voice memos, ideas I’ve had around that didn’t make the cut on previous Killers projects for whatever reason, while the rest were fresh new ones,” he said. “That’s pretty typical for any project by any artist as you are going along and discover that some ideas are much better than you thought, others aren’t as good and then there are these cool things that happen on the spot that turn into something you keep. The song Prismism was like that, beginning as a thing I was playing around with in the studio break that suddenly morphed into one of those, 'I like this, and I’m here in the studio, so why not develop it now?' songs.”
Another thing that happens in recording sessions is that players discover a specific piece or gear or instrument that influences the sound of the session. For Keuning, it was rediscovering a vintage 1980s’ Yamaha PSR6 keyboard.
“It’s an old keyboard from the '80s that my mom gave to the family as a Christmas present a long time ago which was meant to be shared, but my brother and dad showed no interest and I moved it to my room, took it to college and played it constantly,” he said. “But I never used it to record anything with any band ever and when it came time to do this album, I pulled it out of the basement to see if there were any cool sounds on it. I not only used it a lot on the album, now it’s the only keyboard I use live.”
The sentimental attachment to the instrument plays into the sentimental attachment that he has to his new album and touring band comprised of like-minded musicians from San Diego where Keuning resides. While he’s a fan of the connections you make in big venues, he’s looking forward to the dynamics of performing in small venues where that connection is “made beyond the 10 feet and a barrier separating you and the audience.”
“It’s exciting and I’m thrilled, because two years ago it was all a case of, 'What if; should I or shouldn’t I?'" he said. “Despite being in the Killers, it is a bit like starting over still as — let’s face it — a lot of people don’t know what Keuning is or anything unless they follow music or me. You have to play the small places when you are in that position.”
Meanwhile, the Killers recently released a new single titled Land of the Free with an accompanying Spike Lee-directed video that makes a direct statement about immigration, borders and American policies. It’s easily the most overtly political work to ever come from the Las Vegas band, with lines like “we’ve got more people locked up than the rest of the world/right here in red, white and blue/incarceration’s become big business/ it’s harvest time out on the avenue.” Keuning has said he expects to work with the band again but wasn’t involved in this piece.
“I heard the song before it came out and I really, really support the message,” said Keuning. “Brandon and I are on the same page when it comes to those feelings, because there are some obvious moral conundrums going on in this country that come down to what is clearly right or wrong. A lot of people never thought they would be in this position in our lifetimes and shame on anyone who thinks it’s OK to separate children from their families in these days or any days. That’s medieval stuff.”