Advanced Copy: Brandon Flowers

Brandon Flowers, the eccentric and opinionated front man of the Killers, has always had a nasty habit of overstepping his bounds. Green Day, U2 and even Kurt Cobain have been the victims of a few of his bold quotations in the past, causing unnecessary commotion and feeding a growing ego. 

Even though the Killers' second album, "Sam's Town," was a bombastic mess, Flowers firmly believed that it was one of the best albums to come out in 20 years, which, to his credit, might've been a really bad joke.  

In 2008, the Killers found a bit of their stride again with "Day and Age," which turned out to be more danceable and enjoyable than its predecessor. Now, instead of working on a follow-up with his band, Flowers has decided to go it alone, letting the rest of the Killers sit this one out. Flowers makes his solo debut with "Flamingo," an album that shows the adult side of the Killers' front man and pays homage to his hometown of Las Vegas. The album sports some of the same flair of the Killers but not quite the same charisma. 

Flowers has always been one of those artists who owes Bruce Springsteen big time. His wavering voice and small-town rock anthems are in the same ballpark as E Street but can never quite make it out of the dugout. "Flamingo" features a lot of the Killers' Springsteen-esque vigor, but as the album moves on, it seems as if Flowers wants to try something different yet can't figure out how to break out of his shell. 

"Only The Young" isn't a bad start. It's built around steady percussion and a humming organ with Flowers crooning in a chorus that isn't too big for the song's overall feel. On the song, "Hard Enough," Flowers shares the mic with Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis for a duet. The song's pleasant enough, even though it flirts a bit with Fleetwood Mac territory. 

The album's single, "Crossfire," sounds like a "Sam's Town" outtake; it's extremely radio-friendly but easily forgettable. Songs like this and "Jilted Lovers and Broken Hearts" have always been Flowers' Achilles' heel; he's always reached for something bigger in his music than he could actually manage. 

Give Flowers credit though — he talks a big game and finally decided to act upon it. It takes guts to go out on your own without your three band members to back you up and catch you when you stumble. It was good for Flowers to get this whole solo thing out of his system, for he'll soon learn that he needs his band more than he originally thought. 

There's that old adage that says, "You don't know what you got 'til it's gone," and this is something that Flowers will learn first-hand. He still needs his band, and quickly before he ends up like his song "Jacksonville," asking, "Where did it go?"