the killers in sonika, october 2006. photos by anthony mendler and anton corbijn (spread in the last 2 pages)
translation from spanish available thanks to @dayandage
(page edges) THE KILLERS | BANDS THAT MATTER
THE KILLERS: More than temptation and fake Elvises.
Inside this musical battle, in which there are thousands of new bands throwing guitars around, there are some bands that after their first album, look to win a new battle with their next production. In the case of the Killers, many will be surprised when listening to Sam’s Town, material that brought together good producers, a great photographer, and great songs to take the next step that many bands are afraid to take or don’t want to take in order to conform to moderate success.
For the tour of Sam’s Town, we had Brandon Flowers as a guide. The singer, keyboardist, and lyricist of the band has given us more clues about this record that’s been one of the most highly anticipated albums of the year that, believe it or not, will not disappoint anyone and will mark the birth of the trajectory of a great new band.
What did The Killers offer you that none of your previous bands did?
A voice. Nobody really knew about my older projects. This project has let me meet people all over the world.
What did Las Vegas influence?
There has always been an element of Las Vegas in our music. I think myself in particular, I’ve been influenced by the image of a frontman like Frank Sinatra or Elvis. All of those images of casinos and shows have been in my head as I’ve lived in that place. It’s always been in our blood to create a rock group for the people.
The Killers offer something completely different than what Las Vegas usually offers, like fake Elvises or temptation on every corner…
We don’t care if someone who may not know of Las Vegas relates us to that ambient. For example, when people talk about Liverpool, they think about the Beatles, or when people talk about Manchester, they think about the Smiths, or the Flaming Lips, or Oklahoma. I hope we’re doing the same thing with Las Vegas, so one day the city feels proud of itself.
Did you ever think that Hot Fuss would be so successful?
You never really know what can happen. When we recorded the album we were enchanted with our songs, above all the thought of playing them live. We were very fortunate with everything that happened with that album… Just thinking about it makes me smile. Hot Fuss opened a lot of doors for us and helped us leap over things that most bands have to learn with time. As such, we don’t feel that much pressure to take risks and try things to stand out.
The part of the song, “All These Things That I’ve Done,” that says, “I’ve got soul, but I’m not a soldier.” Where did that come from?
I was at my sister’s house writing the lyrics in a bedroom and suddenly the sentence came to me. It’s one of those moments that you hope will happen, but you can’t force it to happen. That’s part of the interesting things about this career. It’s a gift from the universe. [laughs]
With the release of the second album, you could say that you’re now in a period where you can still experiment and make mistakes. A lot of bands that have been around for years would be jealous of the moment in time you’re currently living.
We’re in a difficult situation because we’re successful for something that we’ve already made and it would be easy to do the same thing again to keep that success. But, we’re growing and changing and I think it’s important to establish that in a song. In Sam’s Town, you’ll hear four completely different people than who we were in Hot Fuss. The songs are wiser, bolder, and more well rounded, so that’s why I think that songs are like a mirror. With this I understand why so many bands don’t make it.
Sam’s Town was produced by Alan Moulder and Floor, two of the most important producers of the 90’s. How did it feel to be in the studio with them?
We knew Alan already because he mixed Hot Fuss and we thought he would be ideal for this second album. He brought Flood, who had worked on Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness by the Smashing Pumpkins. To think that they’ve done something so spectacular together, we started to get nervous, because we knew that together they’d do something marvelous. We’re very lucky to be able to work with them. We really respect their opinions, because it’s good to have someone who has a lot of knowledge about producing.
What song from Sam’s Town do you think will sound best live?
Probably “Read My Mind.” It’s my favourite baby. "When You Were Young” is very emotional. “Bling (Confession of a King)" was one of the first songs we recorded for this record. It’s a song that transports you to different places. It’s one of those songs that make you part of the song as you listen to it. It’s weird to explain but that’s what happens to me.
Many songwriters write about personal experiences and others about what they see in life. Which are you?
I think I’m a bit of both. I love admiring my surroundings and writing things that are familiar to me. I’m also capable of writing about the things other people experience, because if I just wrote about things that happened to me, only a few people would be able to relate.
KILLERS FACTS
City of Origin: Las Vegas, Nevada
Before the Killers: Blush Response, the synthpop band in which Brandon Flowers played.
The Band: Brandon Flowers: Vocals. Dave Keuning: Guitar. Mark Stoermer: Bass. Ronald Vannucci Jr.: Drums.
What they did before The Killers: Flowers was a bell boy for the Gold Coast. David Keuning worked at a Banana Republic. Mark Storemer was a medicine deliveryman and was studying Philosophy. Ronnie Vannucci studied percussion, aside from being a wedding photographer for a church.
They debuted in: A gay bar called the Tramps
Discography: Hot Fuss (2004) Sam’s Town (2006… it released on October 2nd!)
Singles: From Hot Fuss: ‘Somebody Told Me,’ ‘Mr. Brightside’ ‘Smile Like You Mean It’ ‘All These Things That I’ve Done’ From Sam’s Town: ‘When You Were Young’
Have you ever written a song so personal, that some time later you’re surprised by it?
It happened with this album. I’ve never mentioned someone so close to me in a song. ‘Uncle Jonny’ is about my actual uncle Jonny, my mom’s brother. He’s someone very important to me. In the song ‘Sam’s Town’ I wrote about my grandma Dixie. I feel strange singing these lyrics in the studio… moreso embarrassed at talking about someone so close, but at the end of the day, it came out really well.
Anton Corbjin worked with you for the art of the album and he usually creates a special connection with the band he’s working with (U2, Depeche Mode.) Are you starting a good working relationship with him?
We’ve always been fans of Depeche and U2 so we’ve always been interested in his work. When we met him we felt a special connection, he’s a great person. And if he doesn’t want to work with someone, he won’t, even if there’s a lot of money involved. He has good taste and very high standards. We realized that when we recorded ‘All These Things That I’ve Done.’
The video for “When You Were Young” was recorded at an hacienda in Tlayacapan, Morelos. When you came to shoot, was Mexico what you expected?
I had no idea what it was going to be like. I imagined it was going to be just mountains and fields. When we landed in Mexico City, I was very surprised, I thought it was going to be all desert. At first it was weird to film the video in Mexico because we already have desert in Vegas, but later I understood why they chose that location. It was a great experience and I’d love to go back.
Did you try the Tlacayapan sorbet?
No, what we did try was corn with chile and cheese (Esquites) and hot chocolate. Walking down those streets and trying that food was an experience we’d never had and it was really fun.
What similarities did you find between Las Vegas and Mexico?
Well, I feel that the people from both places are great. The people of Mexico were very welcoming to us and were happy to see us. They didn’t care that we had gringo accents. I liked that a lot.
Dzerkalo: “Your country is taking a big risk.” The President of Ukraine for the first time since the beginning of a full-scale war gave a big interview to the Belarusian media – “Dzerkalo”
This interview with Dzerkalo has been sought for almost four years – from the very beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. For a long time, nothing worked out, but we did not despair and continued to remind about ourselves and how important it is for Belarusians to hear an opinion about what is happening from the leader of the neighboring country. Partly due to perseverance, but probably even more of the understanding of the Ukrainian authorities that the Lukashenka regime is not equal to the people, this conversation still took place. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky told Dzerkalo when he ceased to perceive Belarusians through the “prize of war” and realized that “it is necessary to communicate”, whether he is ready to help in the release of political prisoners, as he sees the future of our countries. And he shared information about whether Nikolai Lukashenko really called him, and speculated why he “touchfully with the Belarusians.”
“Mr. President, since the beginning of the war, we tried to organize this interview. Probably dozens of different ways. And now, after almost four years, we are finally talking. Why did you agree now?
- Firstly, I want to say openly: I have always treated Belarus with great respect, to the Belarusian people, I have been to Belarus repeatedly. But, honestly, after the war... it wasn't just some kind of resentment. We stand on the threshold of understanding that not only Russia started a war, that Russia has an ally – Belarus. Thank God that we are talking about the regime of Lukashenko, we are not talking about the Belarusian people. But, nevertheless, when the missiles are flying, Belarusians must understand that the Ukrainians are dying, and for them Belarus at this moment is an ally of the aggressor, an ally of Russia.
Therefore, to be honest, it was not easy to see you. That's all. Because I am focused on the war and perceive Belarus through the way they talk about it in this regard, how Belarus itself speaks about itself, as Russia says about it. These are allied states, one of which is definitely fighting on our territory and kills our people with ours. And Belarus says that allegedly “we do not control them [Russians] and so on.
At some point, you realize that the Russian army, which is located on your territory, probably, does not control Belarus, but does not fully control. Why, let me explain now.
Now we see a new format of relations [between Belarus and the Russian Federation], when Belarus knows exactly what is happening on its territory. And it is impossible to say, as Lukashenko told me after the beginning of a full-scale invasion, that the missiles [to Ukraine] flew, but they “have been there for a long time, we have not controlled it, the launch is not controlled.” Now drone repeaters have appeared on the territory of Belarus, and now this new technique, which appeared there, helps the Russian Shahedam to hit our people, the civilian population and energy, because there is an adjustment thanks to these repeaters.
And the next step is to prepare a platform for the deployment of the “Oroshnik” (the missile system and the eponymous ballistic missile of medium range, which Russia strikes at Ukraine. – Approx. ed.).
These are all new steps, it is not about old actions that did not depend on Lukashenko, as he said about it. It's definitely up to him now. Coordination, repeaters, information, adjustment of the reactive "Shahedov" - all this definitely depends on the local [Belarusian] authorities.
Therefore, we are now in the moment when Belarusians must understand all risks. Russia has always wanted to drag Belarus into this war, so that the people of Belarus, the Belarusian military fought against the Ukrainians. You used to be embroiled by other things. For example, your factories – sorry that I say “your”, [we are talking about factories] of Belarus – produce artillery shells. And at the very beginning of the war, after Lukashenko was lied to me, that he did not control anything, all your [military] warehouses were taken to Russia. All artillery was taken to Russia. According to our data, maybe I’m wrong, but the Russians had to return it all. But they did not give anything to Belarus, they paid money, as far as I know. And the most important thing is that your country continues to produce artillery for Russians. That is, it suggests that they [the Belarusian authorities] are taking part [in the war].
And if the production of artillery can still be explained, saying: “Well, sorry, Ukrainians also buy it in a particular country.” Yes, but on the territory of other states there are no repeaters of our drones, who lead them [to attack] on certain territories. At least, nothing [from us] certainly over the territory of Belarus does not fly. “Oridnik, aimed at Belarus, is not on our territory, and we do not have other missiles aimed at you.
And I agreed [to the interview], although I do not have a lot of [free] time, because I believe that Belarus is at great risk. Lukashenko is pushing you to Putin. And now it is a question not only of the sovereignty of Belarus, but of security. You're being used. You have technology, equipment that threatens Ukraine, and today all of Europe. All Europe! I believe that these are high risks, and Belarusians should know about it.
- Do these repeaters and "Oridnik" Ukraine considers a legitimate military goal?
- I will not say in what way, but our guys were engaged in ensuring that three or four repeaters no longer work on the territory of Belarus. We simply have no other choice, otherwise attacks on our land will continue. And from this direction now flies much less, I want to tell you.
And “Orushnik” – in my opinion, NATO should look at it as a legitimate goal. Well, we will observe, assess this threat.
I'm just saying that Lukashenka makes a big mistake. It’s not just a question in the “Hands.” Everyone sees that they are making a big show from him now. They still [in Belarus] did not bring the whole complex, but only the appropriate machines, but already represent everything as if [everything there is]. Frightening Europe. But Lukashenko is played in vain, because after these steps, of course, without asking him, the Russians will bring Orshnik to the territory of your state.
Another story – I know that they [Lukashenko and Putin] talk about joint military exercises on the territory of Belarus. We’ll see how big they really are. When they were last mass, you remember, the offensive on the territory of Ukraine began (we are talking about the exercises “Union Resolve” in February 2022, which began a full-scale invasion of Russia. – Approx. ed.). Therefore, all these are great risks for Ukraine is for sure. And I think there are big risks for Belarusians.
- At the beginning of the full-scale war, in 2022, Russian troops were flowing to Ukraine, planes took off, missiles were launched. However, you did not hit military targets in Belarus. Why?
“Lukashenko, in response to my words, that they are aggressors and allies [of Russia] and are drawn into the war, because missiles flew from your territory and the troops were sent, he told me on the phone that he did not control this situation and said: “Whis, you can answer us, hit Mozyr, [there is a refiner] plant there.” With our team, we discussed this – everyone wanted to answer. But, in my opinion, Putin only expected that – that’s what we were hitting strikes at the time. Then he really wanted that from this direction the Belarusians could come in with their troops. We are not saying that [the Armed Forces of Belarus] had great forces or capabilities, but nevertheless. We should have thought about how to defend ourselves on this side.
The Russians drew Belarus into the war for only one reason. When they pressed on us in the east and there was the main concentration of their troops, they wanted to stretch our forces [on the front line]. And one of the ideas was that the Belarusians began to enter [the territory of Ukraine], frighten us. In this case, of course, we would have to react and transfer some part of the troops. They would weaken the east.
Now he [Putin] just uses this territory. Well, Lukashenko – I don’t know if it can be called a dead end, because he does not control anything or provides an opportunity for it. It seems to him that his, let’s say, a new stage of relations with the Americans gives him some kind of inviolability there, you know. No.
First, he has no immunity in his country, and the people must understand that he is drawn into war. Secondly, the Americans do what they need – get certain political prisoners. Thank goodness people are alive and free. I don’t know the details about these people, but the fact that they’re out of prisons is positive. Americans do that. Under what conditions [they communicate] with Lukashenko – frankly, unfortunately, if this is solely due to the lifting of certain sanctions or intentions [to remove them], well, you can not just forgive, in my opinion.
But these are the fantasies of Lukashenko that they will help him if he continues to get involved in this war. Moreover, now is not the first year of the war, and it is technological. We do not use our drones against Belarus, because we are not at war with your country – I will emphasize this again. We are not in the first year of the war, and we do not need to use our manpower and our military. We can manage many things from the territory of Kiev. And therefore, I believe that he still needs to “come to the tami”, as they say in Ukraine, sober up, not to get involved in the war. “Oshnik” for us is an escalation of already difficult relations with Belarus.
- You imposed personal sanctions against Alexander Lukashenko, talked with political prisoners expelled to Ukraine, appealed to Belarusians and warned about the involvement of our country in the war. You even said that Spitz Lukashenko has more rights than the Belarusian people. Previously, there was no such attention to Belarus - as well as an official meeting with Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. Didn't you do this so as not to provoke Lukashenko and not to cross certain "red lines"?
- I believe that now he provokes us [to these steps]. As for the sanctions [against Lukashenko] – I have been approached by Europeans, who imposed restrictions, many other countries. We had our own red lines about it. We are now demonstrating political steps our attitude to the fact that he is drawn into the war and helps Putin. But these are exclusively political or economic steps that do not concern, by the way, the finances of ordinary Belarusians. It’s just about this person.
But, nevertheless, he must understand this: we are watching, the Europeans turn to us, we will continue the appropriate policy if Lukashenko does not come to its senses and does not stop.
- Who passed about the shadow, commenting on the next statement of Alexander Lukashenko to Ukraine, you said: “He will still pay for what he did, namely, to allow an offensive from his territory. No one will forget it.” By imposing personal sanctions against the Belarusian politician, you in your telegram channel listed the forms of support that official Minsk provides to Russia in this war, and ended the post with the words: “For this there will be special consequences.” My question is, what?
Sanctions policy is the first step, as I said. We will develop and are now working on the legal basis for its continuation. It will concern not only Lukashenka. We are talking about his entourage, about his sons and so on. And another story, as I said: we will follow all the military assistance that it gives [Russia].
We did not raise Lukashenko’s question with the American side, because we saw that the Americans were determined to find communication with him, to reach the result diplomatically. We will be on this track now and we will talk with the United States that it cannot be that it supports the Russian regime – it supports war, not just its geopolitics. It helps kill civilians. We have evidence, we have all this on the maps, everything is recorded on video and so on: as from the territory of Belarus, thanks to the relays, the Shaheds came in. It’s a crime because they helped the aggressor is a fact. After these strikes, civilians were killed. That is, it is a crime for us. And now we will deal with the legal component of these crimes.
- Will a criminal case against Olganizen Lukashenko be initiated in Ukraine?
This is a question for other departments. I will not talk about it yet, but all relevant bodies will also be engaged in this direction.
- I want to return to what you said about the talks between Alexander Lukashenko and the United States. Are you against it?
“No, I am not against America’s negotiations with Lukashenko. I certainly do not support the lifting of sanctions against him. I don't think the war is over. Sanctions were imposed because of illegitimate elections in Belarus [in 2020]. But these are the issues of the countries that imposed sanctions. We then supported the entire civilized world and the people of Belarus and did not support Lukashenko at that time - this is the first reason [why to lift the sanctions incorrectly].
And the second reason, which concerns exclusively Ukraine: sanctions were imposed against the economy of Lukashenko due to the fact that he is an accomplice of aggression against our country. We have always been very careful in the UN, in the geopolitical direction. When certain resolutions were raised, we did not usually talk about aggression [from] Belarus. We never allowed ourselves this, because we believe that okay: there are questions [touching] Lukashenko, there are issues [touch] Belarus, there are issues [touch] the Belarusian people.
Some Russians ask, “What’s the difference? Why are we guilty in Russia that Putin has started a war and there are no Belarusians?” Because Lukashenka did not start the war. Putin started the war. Lukashenko is an accomplice. But there are no Belarusian people, officially the Belarusian army on the territory of Ukraine. There is an army of Russia. And therefore, Russians who pay taxes and thereby support the army go into it on mobilization, are direct criminals. And Lukashenko is an accomplice – but not yet the Belarusian people.
Why “proportion”? Because, once again, Belarusians are being dragged into this war. You can't let that happen.
Therefore, [I hold] and intensive meetings, and conversations with representatives of the opposition forces, with journalists. These are not signals, no matter how Lukashenko interprets it, that Ukraine wants to fight Belarus. No, we want Belarus not to fight against us. We do not measure strength, nothing. We just think it’s a big mistake. A huge terrible mistake is [what] the Russians did. And this [toang of Belarus] will also be a huge terrible mistake. That's what we're talking about.
Therefore, I use all channels to convey this information to Belarusians - peaceful people, calm people.
- At the end of January, speaking in Vilnius, you said: "The Belarusians' uprising should have won in 2020 - so that there was no threat from there today. Europe and the world had to support the rebellious people – and history would be safer.” Do you think that if the protests won in 2020, Putin would just come with the army to Belarus and do exactly the same thing that is doing to Ukraine now?
- I don't know... I can't tell you what would have happened. But you can't let you give your freedom. That's all. And especially you can not give someone the right to sell your freedom.
Look, it's a choice of Belarusians. I was just talking about the military track, because I think it's very scary, it's a tragedy. Because we're in war, but we didn't choose her. When the man came to us, began to kill us. And now a man lacks strength.
10 thousand North Koreans are now on the territory of Russia [for the war with Ukraine]. He [Putin] lacks people. He does not want to mobilize Muscovites and St. Petersburgers. Well, he just doesn't want to. Basically, he takes people from villages, poor people who will not even be remembered. That's what he's doing. He negotiates with others for money.
And I think he's pulling out Belarusians. Retracts – but this does not mean that Belarusian soldiers, military, border guards will come to our territory today. As I said, now another war can be drawn technologically. It involves placing its auxiliary technical forces on your territory. [And therefore] Lukashenko can no longer say: “I did not control [the missiles], it was here before, and therefore it flew.” But there were no such drones as they now did not exist before the war, there were no such repeaters as they used, no “Oryushnik” physically on the territory of Belarus. And he can't just show up. That's what I'm talking about. I'm sorry that so many times [I repeat myself]. You know, I feel the risk. I feel it.
“In our country right now, hundreds, if not thousands, of Belarusians and Belarusians are in prison for helping Ukraine: someone fought on your side, someone guerrilla on the railroad, someone tracked the movement of Russian troops. Is Kiev doing something to get these people out? Do you see that there is such a problem?
- We see. But I want to tell you: in my opinion, first of all, Belarusians have to do something to free these people. I do not shift the appropriate steps to anyone, but about seven thousand Ukrainians are now in prisons in Russia. I do not believe that Russian prisons are in any way different from the prisons of Belarus. I think these are the same regimes with hatred of people. The only difference is that Belarusians are sitting in Belarus, and Ukrainians are sitting in Russia. And they [the Russians], I think, are more cruel to Ukrainians than to [seat] political prisoners who are citizens of other countries. I think so, because we see the consequences on the bodies of our prisoners of war, we see their injuries, traces of torture.
It’s not easy to free people. We have to negotiate everything. About Lukashenko – we can negotiate with the Americans [for help in liberation], we are ready to help, we helped. When the US was negotiating with Lukashenko about the release of [parts of political prisoners], we provided our territory, gave transport, medical care for those Belarusian prisoners who were released now (speech released on December 13, 2025. We took them on our territory. And we are ready to continue this, we will provide the Belarusian prisoners with any assistance that is in our power. But it is very difficult to get out of prisons.
I specifically gave an example with our Ukrainian citizens, who are a priority for me as president. I think you understand that. And this is very important: you always have to change someone for someone. To free Belarusians, you need to find something to change.
- There are Belarusians who fought on the side of Russia and are now in captivity in Ukraine.
- We are changing prisoners of war to prisoners of war. I want to give you an example: we were approached by several Asian countries (I think you understand which) – we took captive their people. I can't change their military to any military, no matter how they ask me. I can change their military, who fought and killed Ukrainians, only to Ukrainian citizens who are in captivity in Russia. The Chinese can take our captives from the Russian Federation, and I will give them the Chinese. I can only change for citizens of Ukraine.
I will tell you frankly: we had guys from Belarus who changed their citizenship, and they are citizens of Ukraine – and they are the same attitude to the Ukrainians who were born Ukrainians. We change all citizens of Ukraine first. Well, just a very large number of military - more than 6 thousand [in Russian captivity]. I think you understand that.
You said, “Everything needs to be negotiated.” If Belarusians in prisons could be released, but would need to talk to Lukashenko, would you?
First, I talked to him during the war. I said it: he called me, he wanted to talk. We didn’t have the nicest conversation, but it was nonetheless. Secondly, today we have the opportunity to contact at the intelligence level and raise relevant issues. These questions were raised with the Americans. This is what I said: we took part in the fact that political prisoners of Belarusian came out. I stress once again, we will continue to work in this direction.
- You yourself reminded of your conversation with Lukashenko at the beginning of a full-scale war. You said he apologized to you. Later, Belarusian propaganda claimed that there was no apology, and the conversation itself allegedly took place solely due to the emotional reaction of his youngest son, who had your personal contact on his phone. How did this conversation really happen and what role did Nikolai Lukashenko play in it?
- It's some kind of phantasmagoria, to be honest. First: you still need to remember what phone he [Alexander Lukashenko] called - it is unlikely that my phone. But, nevertheless, I talked to him. Second, he apologized, and he was very afraid that we would strike [in response]. And he said, "Well, let's put on the factory," because he didn't know what we could do. And I think that he realized that we were “not finished off” in the first day – our people did not kill us, did not kill our army and did not kill me personally. And when he realized that, he began to look for an opportunity to talk to me. He was looking, I didn't want to. I didn't immediately react, I didn't want to talk, I was angry about him. Well, in principle, we had a conversation with him.
Belarusian propaganda is propaganda. And I have witnesses to this conversation, and if necessary, then I think you can even read this conversation.
“We wrote to your Office’s adviser Mikhail Podolyak and asked if there was a recording of the conversation, he said, “No comment.”
- Podolyak, maybe there is something, maybe he's overheard something there (laughs).
- And Nikolay Lukashenko has nothing to do with this conversation?
- No, no. I only know about Kola Lukashenko that he is Kolya Lukashenko. I don't know anything else about this guy.
- How was your meeting with Svetlana Tikhanovskaya?
- It was a good meeting. But we're not the first one.
Officially, the first one.
- Well, you can say so, probably in this format it was the first conversation. Although I met her, I think, before a full-scale invasion. We had such a meeting on the sidelines of the summit, yes. I think it was Lithuania. Oh, I'm sorry, I don't remember. But I have met several times at different international venues.
But such a bilateral meeting is officially the first. Good meeting, we talked normally. It’s very fun to talk to Belarusians — I [at moments like such] I think how Belarusians are fun to talk to Ukrainians. We speak different languages, but we understand. And that's very fun. Well, really, it's very cool.
For example, when you talked so before with the Russians ... I had a story at the beginning of the summit [in the Normandy format with Vladimir Putin, Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron] in December 2019. I remember, our official part began: I spoke Ukrainian, Putin spoke Russian, Emmanuel spoke French and Merkel spoke German. So when they said, it's okay. When I started in Ukrainian during my official speech, the entire Russian delegation of the basement – you know, so with the sound – [to show] that they were unpleasant, that I can speak Russian with them.
Although in principle with the Russians, too, we can talk, because we should all understand and respect each other. But, you see, with Belarusians very, very pleasant and very simple. There's no problem. Zero.
And we talked the same with Svetlana. I believe that we need to strengthen contacts with Belarus. With Svetlana, with journalists, as with you today. Thanks for this conversation. In my opinion, we need to communicate more. I agree with her idea that there should be a Ukrainian special representative for Belarus - to contact Svetlana, with her people, with other Belarusians who are not in the country for obvious reasons. And that's why I told her I'd be working on it. We'll pick up a man, I promised her.
How do you see the future of Belarus and Ukraine?
I believe that the best is the member countries of the European Union. I do not know whether this will support the Belarusian people, but from the point of view of geopolitics and independence, in my opinion, it is right. From the point of view of the economy ... The fact that in Belarus people are smart, I am sure. I just think that the anti-European propaganda that has been conducted in your country for many years, brings one thing - there will be restrictions in the development of Belarus, in business, prices will be only high, salaries will be small, you will be poor. But, in my opinion, it is just propaganda. [A better future] to be in the European Union. But this will certainly be the choice of Belarusians.
What's more important? These are strong relations between the two independent countries – Ukraine and Belarus. This can be developed, I believe, if there will be a leadership that will give freedom to Belarusians, which will respect the independence of Ukraine. We are sure to respect the independence of Belarus. I think that's the best thing that might be. Peaceful relations when we respect each other’s sovereignty. And the rockets do not fly from one country to another.
- Please continue: Belarusians are...
- It's complicated now. It's very hard to say. I'm sorry, but it is. War. Before the war, it was friends, neighbors, like us... and now war before all these words. That's why there are three points. War is the three points. And I would very much like the war to end and probably something has changed in relations between our countries. After all, the Belarusian people did not start a war against Ukraine. I think this is the wisest choice and status in which the Belarusian must remain.
Interviewer: Finally, it's a casual question that comes to mind. In the past 15 years, your hairstyle hasn’t changed much, but in contrast Thom’s hairstyle has changed quite often. Do you think that sort of reflect the differences in your personalities?
Jonny: I hate going to get my hair cut and I hate mirrors. That’s why it doesn’t bother me at all. (Snoozer, December 2008)
Hi everyone, this is a translation for Måneskin’s interview in Russia on 01.09.2021 with the radio station Europa Plus. I translated using just the Italian/Russian translator and of course Måneskin’s answers since I only know Italian, so if you speak Russian and I missed something feel free to tell me <3 This is also my first time translating such a long video so thanks for your patience! :-)
You can download the interview here (Thanks @definitelynotdamiano for this link!)
Tr = Translator
[ ] = My notes
Enjoy! (Under a read more because it’s pretty long)
Tr: We had to meet you, we are also your fans because we were at your event last night. We’ve been in love with you since Eurovision
All: thanks!
Tr: After the event last night we came here this morning without even changing
Vic: Right on *laughs*
Tr: It’s the first time that we [the interviewers] have our makeup like this, it’s unusual [for us], the first question is do you put on your makeup by yourselves or do you have a stylist to do it for you?
Thomas: Depends
Vic: When we are working we are fortunate to have a stylist because-
Thomas: Exactly
Vic: -if we were to do it ourselves every morning it would be very bad
Thomas: Very very bad yes
Tr: Today your makeup looks very nice. How are you finding Russia? Is it your first time in Russia? Do you like it/not like it?
Thomas: It’s very pretty
Damiano: Yes it’s the first time we’ve come
Thomas: We haven’t been able to see very much however it seems very pretty
Tr: The Russian audience is very different from other European countries; are you surprised at the amount of fans you have here in Moscow?
Damiano: Okay, it’s not so different, it’s very very hot. But yes we were surprised at the quantity of the fans we have
Tr: How did you ever decide to come to Russia? No one knew, it seemed a bit, as they say in Russian, an “all of a sudden snow”
Damiano: People have been asking us for a long time
Vic: They messaged us to try coming there and therefore we are inevitably here
Tr: You are exactly the type of singers that listen to fans and go where people ask you to go in regards to other countries then?
Vic: Yeah if we can
Ethan: Absolutely
Tr: [One of the interviewers] is learning Italian and when she hears you speaking Italian she is already happy and jittery (in an excited way) so really you can talk about anything. Anything you want she will be happy.
Thomas: Great
Damiano: Perfect
Tr: After your Eurovision win, has your life changed a lot? Or even before were you pretty famous in your own country [Italy]?
Damiano: No, no we’ll say not too much [of a change] however of course in Italy we already had good results. Surely it was a big change from before really just touring around Italy to now going and touring around Europe.
Tr: What objectives did you have for Eurovision, did you go to have a little fun or with the goal of winning for Italy? To, let’s say, defend the honour of your country?
Damiano: No, let’s say, both the things but more so to prove to Italy and others we could win with a genre of music that’s different from the traditional Italian music that is always supported; music that’s more melodic and light. We wanted to make another side of music in our country.
Thomas: Exactly. This type of music isn’t very public or wide-spread and we’d like to see it grow obviously
Tr: I would like to thank you because every once in a while I listen to as well as share Italian music to impressionable kids and the [traditional Italian] songs are more melancholic and sad and I was missing that “drive” that you bring into our lives.
Tr: It’s been a pleasure especially to watch your press conference after your Eurovision win and in my opinion they should let everyone put their feet up on the table when they are responding to the questions of the journalists.
Vic: That’s my opinion too
Damiano: True true true
Ethan: I agree
Tr: A question for Damiano: as a singer, at times you will have problems with the voice due to stress, if you have these problems how much time do you need to recover?
Damiano: It’s a thing that can happen but I try to prevent it from happening with various techniques that I am happy to follow to do everything [I can] so that it doesn’t happen
Vic: Yeah it never happens
Ethan: Damiano is very disciplined
Tr: Therefore no chocolate or honey?
Damiano: Exactly
Tr: Why did Ethan say Damiano is disciplined? In what sense did he mean?
Ethan: Well, he’s a person that really looks after himself, and if he commits to something he will do it and will see it through to the end
Tr: During concerts you all seem very lively. But in your private lives you all seem very calm, preferring to stay at home with family, not going out too much, in your private lives are you more outgoing or the reverse?
Damiano: The 3 of them [Ethan, Vic, Thomas] are more outgoing in respect to me, I prefer to stay at home.
Tr: How were you all welcomed back in Italy after the Eurovision victory? Because the last [Italian Eurovision win] was 1990 if I’m not wrong.
Ethan: Full of journalists!
Vic and Thomas: Good!
Vic: Almost like a soccer team welcome!
Ethan: In short, when we returned after the victory to our country we celebrated with our families because we hadn’t seen them in a while
Tr: If I’ve understood well, you will do a world tour and therefore you still have little time to see family
Vic: Exactly. In general, we have little time to relax *laughs*
Tr: And maybe then you have a little time to write other songs too
Damiano: No those are-
Thomas: No, no we find the right moments for them, obviously we have moments of inspiration with whatever we are doing. If we are live, doing different promotions, or meeting different fans, we always find moments of pause whether its 3 hours in the day to be writing
Vic: Yes, exactly the most important thing is the need to be truthful; inevitably we will be too busy or too tired and we will say “Okay, wait we need time to write”
Tr: When you compose music, how does it work? Are you working together on some parts, waiting on a muse, or saying “no, today we’re going to make a song”
Damiano: No, creativity comes at unexpected moments but it’s also a thing you can train. We find that when we have the time to write for a couple of days in the studio it’s usually in the morning and the evening when we throw out ideas, search for influences… unfortunately you can’t always expect an epiphany; otherwise it’s a bit difficult
Tr: You all know Little Big, right? [Little Big is a Russian band Måneskin in a different interview said they knew of]
All: Yeah yeah
Tr: So then while we are talking about Little Big, they said that during the pandemic lockdown they lived all together in a house and every day worked; did you do the same thing?
Vic: Unfortunately no, during lockdown we could not be together so we had to experiment with different ways of writing at a distance… obviously it’s not the same [difficult] for a group that’s fundamentally together, so therefore until we could meet again we were doing that.
Tr: We want to talk about your style, it’s a little inspired by the 70s, glam rock… and is this a style that you have chosen or is someone giving you advice about what to wear
Vic: For us it is very important to choose because the clothes that you wear really express you and we want to represent that. Therefore we’ve always been ourselves from when we were little up until now.
Tr: Do you have any intentions of launching a clothing collection?
Damiano: For now we’re focusing on music but maybe in the future when we have more free time
Tr: Going back to your style, it comes off strong, do you ever come across people who don’t understand and maybe complain about it? How do you react to this “aggressive” perception [of you]?
Damiano: In reality, even now that we have success, those types of comments get sent to us and we just rise above them. But when we were playing on the streets it was particularly difficult because there was a concentration of people just yelling insults at us, but luckily there are four of us and we support each other and grow to be more confident in ourselves.
Tr: Before coming out on stage at your concerts, do you have any particular rituals that bring you luck? That you do every time and it brings you luck?
Vic: Ehhh there’s some swear words
Ethan: We say “C’mon c’mon c’mon!”
Damiano: “C’mon c’mon c’mon” is the censored version
Ethan: Exactly
Tr: Before going on your transmissions, now every time you will change out the swear words!
All: Exactly *laugh*
Damiano: In Italian though
Tr: We have noticed that when someone doesn’t understand Italian, you can say anything in Italian [to them] and it just sounds really nice
Vic: Thank god *laughs*
Tr: What music do you listen to, what music inspires you? Are there artists that inspire you but you never listen to them? To avoid contamination and eventual plagiarism in your case?
Thomas: For us contamination is a very important topic… anyway we listen to different artists big and small and we search to mix them and we have a clear idea of what we want to do. It’s really important to take inspiration from many different artists and take the best parts from each of them.
Vic: Yes, of course we have particular artists that we take lots of inspiration from but we search to listen to a lot of music and center in on the little details we want.
Tr: Why did you decide to do a cover of Beggin’, did you have any fear before doing it?
[Damiano scrunches his face at this, I’m actually not sure if I translated it wrong or if that’s just a weirdly phrased question]
Vic: No, in reality it was very very small [that is to say, not scary?], compared to the first songs that we played together and now that we’ve written our original songs. In fact we never expected this [Beggin’ becoming a hit] to happen.
Tr: And maybe it’s the first time that a cover became big before your own songs; you’ve had such resounding success even on social media everywhere
Damiano: No no yeah it’s absurd
**Instrumental break where 2 songs play, Damiano gets up and comes back**
**A caller speaking Russian calls in, it seems they are playing a game with the caller about their Måneskin knowledge. During this time Måneskin does not speak except to each other, which cannot be heard**
Tr: We have received a bunch of questions but there are 3 questions that everyone is asking in particular. I will ask them now.
Tr: Is it true that you all have matching tattoos?
Damiano: Two
Tr: Where? Let us see
[They only show them the heart with arrow tattoo, not the Må one]
Damiano: How can I show you, uh, *unbuttons shirt to reveal his*
Ethan: *turns around and moves his hair to reveal his on the back of his neck*
Vic: *rolls up her sleeve to reveal hers*
Thomas: *rolls up his sleeve to reveal his*
Tr: The question for Ethan from yesterday [this is the same translator from the other interview and he was asked this yesterday] is “What shampoo do you use”
Ethan: I use shampoo based one hundred percent from love
Tr: The last question, and maybe the weirdest question, who of you follows the cosmos [space, like NASA] account and why?
Ethan: It’s me, I follow it because I've followed it a long time from when I first started following things on social media, because when I was little like 12-14 years old I had a love of astrophysics and therefore I followed all the pages.
Tr: Going back to your hit, I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE, what inspired this song. What message did you want to transfer to the public with this?
Damiano: The inspiration for the most part like all our songs comes from personal experience and this piece talks about the various “hidden” aspects of sex, like the “strange” or “excessive” acts and we wanted to normalize it by writing a song because we live like this ourselves.
Tr: When can your fans expect a new song? Do you have anything ready?
Vic: Yes
Damiano: Believe believe believe
Tr: You probably don't have any more secrets for your new album?
Damiano: We are full of secrets
Tr: We’ll try the other part, we know that you had a collaboration with Iggy Pop, do you have intentions of collaborating with others?
All: It’s a secret! *laughs*
**At this point they ask Måneskin to create a playlist of songs they like on a piece of paper, Thomas goes first, then Vic, then Damiano, and finally Ethan**
Damiano turns to Thomas: Can I tell you something? Scratch this out because no one can read it. It’s impossible. *Damiano tries to read it, then says no* *He then further insults him, but this is in good fun*
**Vic begins to draw Damiano, and Damiano, Ethan, and Thomas comment on it saying it’s nice and giving tips on what to add. Thomas says to add earrings and the snake tattoo on his chest, and Damiano asks her to “please give him high heels”**
**They then are given posters to sign while they look at Måneskin’s list**
Tr: Who wrote Death II - Pulp
Vic: Me
Tr: Do you have any intentions on covering Death II - Pulp? Or a collaboration? Or is it a secret?
Vic: We have a lot of secrets but they’re secrets from everybody
Damiano: Why not
Tr: Who wrote this one? [Even Flow - Pearl Jam]
Damiano: This one is mine
Tr: Ethan has chosen this one [Achilles Last Stand - Led Zeppelin]
Ethan: Yes
Tr: All the children now are going to school listening to this song so it will be a hell day at school
All: *mild laugh*
Tr: Who wrote Paranoid Android - Radiohead? Thomas.
Tr: After this interview where are you going, there is a crowd of fans outside you must get through to get past
Vic: To sleep!
Tr: In Russia, like most of the world, we are waiting for your concerts. Do you want to play in Russia, and do you know when?
Damiano: We still don’t know when but surely we will
Tr: It’s another secret?
Dami: *laughs* No this one we don’t know for real
Tr: We hope that the next time we see you there will be less secrets. Anyway we are waiting anxiously for your album. We will listen to it. Yesterday we had a lot of fun at your concert and here in Russia you have a lot of fans. We wish you a lot of success and we will always wait here.
All: Thanks very much
Here is the playlist mentioned above, and Vic’s drawing of Damiano ^
A faggy Magnus Uggla talks about half a kilo apples English translation
Uggla: Ohh shit, some juice.
Interviewer 1: What’s up?
U: Sup.
1: You’re really good, that’s indisputable.
U: [Tosses bottle cap on the floor]
1: But, the lyrics… Your–
U: What lyrics?
Interviewer 2: Yeah, that’s exactly it, right?
1: You–
U: Damn good apples actually. Ate half a kilo today. They’re so sweet.
1: You’ve been called—after this third album—a lux fool, cynical sluggard–
U: Yeah, one magazine called me that!
1: Who harbors contempt for humans and contempt for women.
U: Yeah, you could say that.
1: How does it feel to exclude yourself like that?
U: I’m not excluding myself at all, it’s about people out in the city.
1: Your friends?
U: Yeah, my friends. Tengen for example. He’s lying back there sleeping now, but he’s usually out running around town. He was probably out and he looks a bit down. Yeah, in any case–
1: But do you omit yourself completely? Aren’t you a part of this group?
U: … … … … No.
2: But you seem–
U: I’m not.
2: –like you’re destructive.
U: Huh?
2: You seem like you’re destructive as hell.
U: What does that mean?
2: Well, that you want to destroy yourself.
U: Yeah, but I don’t.
1: But I think I’m seeing an irony in your lyrics, which I think you have. Do you, or is it just me who thinks that?
U: See, it’s like this, right, suddenly a time comes when you start maturing and you start thinking that you’ve, like, gotten tired of going out and stuff.
2: But Magnus, another thing, right, when you talk about this stuff with going out and girls and stuff; you’re a role model for lots of young people aged 14, 15, right?
U: I am?
2: Well yeah, undoubtedly, you’re a big idol who stands there and yells and… But you have an image of being a huge asshole to them, right? You stand up there and you spit at them and all that you do, and in general pretty crude and hot like they–
U: I don’t spit at them.
1: Are you a diva then?
U: I look like this. [stands up] Am I an asshole? Am I an asshole? No. See ya.
(Killer on the Loose Photography)
SŪRU
Excerpt - this is VERY LOOSELY translated.
The new album proclaims the end of the chapter. What kind of work are you creating? What happens next?
We can reassure that our musical activities certainly will not stop, but this album is closing some of the creative phase, which began with the album’s first publication, as well as a certain ideological continuity. The new phase of our vision is somewhat different - changing musical currents - and are looking for different approaches to the same sound.
Obviously, the black metal scene (as indeed many others) have recently mutated. There are interesting groups of black metal beats with shoegaze (Deafheaven), blues (Zeal and Ardor) or Orthodox chants (Batushka). What do you think is the future of the genre and what is Au-Dessus' plans associated with that?
The mutation of black metal is reassuring in these times, as black metal is music that anyone can interpret, expand, or change their perception and emotion with. This is music that is based on emotion, so any quest is a positive phenomenon. What will change our work remains to be seen. We do not want to talk a lot about it - the better to signify the music. However, now you can feel the blues, stoner, sludge, and post-metal influences in our work.
Black metal - quite depressed and aggressive music. what are your pop music guilty pleasures?
Those guilty pleasures often depends on the displacement of tours and parties, but often sounds like Madonna, Scooter, Prodigy, Modern Talking, Alphaville, OMD and other classics, which perfectly supports black metal mood (...) and inspire new creativity.
the killers in rolling stone france, september 2017. photos by anton corbijn
translation from french by @likemonstersinlove
SOMEBODY TOLD ME… [sic]
Brandon Flowers, always looking for new sources of inspiration.
THE KILLERS
Passionate and born killers [tn: this is a play on words in French using the “nés” (born) of “passionnés” (passionate)]
The Killers commit their new crime, five years after Battle Born. Wonderful Wonderful, out on the 22nd of September, is meant as a return to their roots. It’s in London that Rolling Stone met with two members of the gang, Brandon Flowers and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. By Vincent Guillot
Five years between albums is a record for the Las Vegas kids. But the brand new Wonderful Wonderful should once again exceed expectations. In the US and England alike, Brandon Flowers’ band plays with the pop-rock heavyweights. Front of the picture, the charismatic frontman is of a good disposition, smiling, even joking. The drummer and himself have worked on different projects - solo or side - before bringing the whole gang back together. A way of letting their associates breathe. “We’d been touring for two years on the previous album, " confides Flowers. “Some band members don’t necessarily like going on tour. They need their space.”
Once the appropriate space-time elapsed, the Killers went in search of the key man for recording this fifth effort, which turned out to be Jacknife Lee, seen with U2, REM, the Hives but also the One Direction boys band and Taylor Swift. “We set up an honest-to-god producers speed dating. We made tests, talked a lot, says Ronnie. Jacknife had a complete approach, a vision. He spoke the same language we did. We got along very quickly.”
This new opus marks a return to the roots, according to Flowers himself, “Last October, we gave a concert for Sam’s Town’s 10 years anniversary. There were the old sets, the old lights, … We did not have any ideas for the new album yet, and we all wanted to come back to that. I think we made it.” Yet as a starting point, the band does not give themselves any specific direction. “We’re bad at that kind of stuff. We’ve never defined in advance a direction to go in. I had a few ideas previously, we don’t make playlists of songs to listen to prior to deciding what we’re gonna work on.” Ronnie Vannucci agrees. “We experiment, we try to find a way to make the songs go forward. We see where it leads us together. That’s the way I like to work with this band.”
These experimentations can however turn out to be long-lived. The song “Run for Cover” has indeed needed eight years in gestation. “It was never completely ready, " explains Ronnie. “There were issues with the lyrics, the rhythm, the production. We’ve never found it to our taste.” His partner continues: “We weren’t pounding away at it this whole time either. We started eight years ago, then we worked on it from time to time. During the Best Of for instance. And we ended up finishing it in the way it deserved and we’re happy about it.”
In “The Man”, an efficient single where the band reconnect with their classic sounds, peppered with disco-funk samples, yet the obsession with renewing themselves while staying true to their trademark remains very strong in Flowers; who nicely touches on this issue in “Have All the Songs Been Written?”. “When you start a band, you can already ask this question. When you realize everything that’s been made by the greatest masters for the past fifty years, you wonder how you’re gonna be able to contribute to this ensemble.”
Standing up to one’s work, to others’ : behind this idea hides Flowers’ fear of a possible decline. A normal thought for a band boasting - already! - thirteen years of existence. They allude to it in a surprising parable : the fight lost by Mike Tyson in 1990 opposite James “Buster” Douglas in the song “Tyson vs. Douglas”. “It’s a fight that really impressed me. It came back to me, it obsessed me, and I thought I should do something with it. The outcome, after all, was that I did not see the world in the same way after this match. Tyson was at his peak, this fight was a major event in Vegas, and in the world even. He was undefeated. To my kids, I am Tyson, I am this perfection. But I don’t want to step down from my pedestal. It’s what I say in the third verse.”
We argue that at the time, Douglas should have been marked as K.O. before his winning punch. Our man brushes that aside: “The counting was correct. He hadn’t trained enough. It was actually the beginning of the end for Tyson.” A way of saying that for the Killers, high standards are still a requirement to keep pushing back the moment of throwing in the towel.
