Hot Fuss

For the 2007 action comedy film, see Hot Fuzz.

Hot Fuss
Studio album by The Killers
Released	June 7, 2004
Recorded	February–November 2003, The Hearse, Berkeley, California; Cornerstone Studios, Los Angeles, California; Dave's Apartment, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Genre	Indie rock, post-punk revival, New Wave
Length	45:39
Label	Lizard King/Vertigo (UK) Island B0002468-02 (U.S.)
Producer	The Killers, Jeff Saltzman
The Killers chronology
Hot Fuss (2004) Sam's Town (2006)
Singles from Hot Fuss
"Somebody Told Me" Released: March 15, 2004 "Mr. Brightside" Released: May 24, 2004 "All These Things That I've Done" Released: August 30, 2004 "Smile Like You Mean It" Released: May 2, 2005

Hot Fuss is the debut studio album by Las Vegas-based American rock band The Killers, released on June 7, 2004 in the United Kingdom and on June 15, 2004 in the United States.

Background

The album was recorded between February and November 2003 at Cornerstone Studios in Berkeley, California, with Mark Needham and Jeff Saltzman; and in Las Vegas with the help of Corlene Byrd. Many of the tracks were originally recorded as demos, which the band decided to keep for their spontaneity. They did, however, have some tracks remixed by Alan Moulder at Eden Studios in London.

Hot Fuss is mainly influenced by New Wave and post-punk artists such as New Order, The Cure, Morrissey (with and without The Smiths), Duran Duran, and The Cars. Other influences include David Bowie, U2, Oasis, Smashing Pumpkins, and Lou Reed.

The album includes the second and third parts of the so-called Murder Trilogy, "Midnight Show" and "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine". The first part, "Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf", appears on The Killers' B-sides and rarities compilation, Sawdust.

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	(66/100)
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
BBC	(favorable)
Entertainment Weekly	(C)
NME	(7/10)
Pitchfork Media	(5.2/10)
Q
Rolling Stone
Slant Magazine
The Times
Uncut

Hot Fuss was released on 7 June 2004 in the United Kingdom and on 15 June 2004 in the United States. In 2005, it was reissued as a box of eleven 7" vinyl discs, with an album track on each A-side and non-album tracks on the B-sides. Rolling Stone ranked Hot Fuss the 43rd of its "100 Best Albums of the Decade", and it is one of the five most recent recordings listed among the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Hot Fuss was The Killers' first No. 1 album in the UK. It reached No. 7 on the US Billboard 200 chart. It is estimated to have sold more than 7 million copies worldwide, including more than 3 million in the United States and more than 2 million in the UK, where it has been certified six-times platinum. It has also been certified platinum or multi-platinum in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand. Hot Fuss produced several commercially and critically successful singles, including Mr. Brightside.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Jenny Was a Friend of Mine"	Flowers, Stoermer	4:04
2.	"Mr. Brightside"	Flowers, Keuning	3:42
3.	"Smile Like You Mean It"	Flowers, Stoermer	3:54
4.	"Somebody Told Me"	Flowers, Keuning, Stoermer, Vannucci	3:17
5.	"All These Things That I've Done"	Flowers	5:01
6.	"Andy, You're a Star"	Flowers	3:14
7.	"On Top"	Flowers, Keuning, Stoermer, Vannucci	4:18
8.	"Change Your Mind"	Flowers, Keuning	3:11
9.	"Believe Me Natalie"	Flowers, Vannucci	5:05
10.	"Midnight Show"	Flowers, Stoermer	4:02
11.	"Everything Will Be Alright"	Flowers	5:45

UK edition

"Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll" replaces "Change Your Mind" as Track 8 on the UK and Australian editions of Hot Fuss.

Vinyl edition

"Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll" appended onto the end of the album.

European edition

"Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll" & video of "Somebody Told Me" as bonus tracks.

Limited edition

Features the original US release tracklist and three bonus tracks:

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
12.	"Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll"	Flowers, Keuning, Stoermer, Vannucci	4:14
13.	"The Ballad of Michael Valentine"	Flowers, Keuning	3:49
14.	"Under the Gun"	Flowers, Keuning	2:33

iTunes Deluxe Edition bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
12.	"Somebody Told Me" (Mylo Mix)	7:17
13.	"Smile Like You Mean It" (Fischerspooner Mix)	6:24
14.	"Smile Like You Mean It" (Ruff and Jam Eastside Mix)	7:35

Limited Edition 7" boxset bonus tracks

Each track is found on the b-side of the corresponding track from the album. Also note, "All These Things That I've Done" is edited by fading out about 30 seconds before the track finishes.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Somebody Told Me" (Josh Harris Remix)
2.	"Under the Gun"
3.	"Show You How"
4.	"The Ballad of Michael Valentine"
5.	"Why Don't You Find Out for Yourself" (Morrissey/Boorer)
6.	"Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town"
7.	"Mr. Brightside" (Thin White Duke Remix Edit)
8.	"Glamorous Indie Rock and Roll"
9.	"Smile Like You Mean It" (Acoustic Version)
10.	"Who Let You Go"
11.	"Get Trashed"

Japan Limited Tour Edition - Bonus DVD

1. Somebody Told Me (Video)
2. Mr Brightside (Original Video)
3. Mr Brightside (New Video)
4. All These Things That I've Done (Video)

UK Special Edition - Bonus DVD

1. Smile Like You Mean It
2. All These Things I've Done
3. Somebody Told Me [Glastonbury 2005]
4. Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine [Glastonbury 2005]
5. Mr Brightside [Glastonbury 2005]

Charts and certifications

Charts

Chart	Peak position
Argentina Albums Chart	1
Australian Albums Chart	1
Austrian Albums Chart	60
Belgium Walloon Albums Chart	1
Belgium Flanders Albums Chart	1
Canadian Albums Chart	4
Dutch Albums Chart	46
Finnish Albums Chart	15
French Albums Chart	8
German Albums Chart	75
Irish Albums Chart	1
New Zealand Albums Chart	5
Spanish Albums Chart	35
UK Albums Chart	1
US Billboard 200	7

Sales and certifications

Region	Provider	Certification	Sales/Shipments
Argentina	CAPIF	Gold	20,000+
Australia	ARIA	3× Platinum	210,000+
Belgium	IFPI	Gold	15,000+
Canada	CRIA	3× Platinum	300,000+
Europe	IFPI	Platinum	1,000,000+
France	SNEP	Gold	100,000+
Germany	IFPI	Gold	100,000+
Ireland	IRMA	7× Platinum	105,000+
New Zealand	RIANZ	Platinum	15,000+
United Kingdom	BPI	6× Platinum	1,800,000+
United States	RIAA	3× Platinum	3,000,000+

}

End of decade chart positions

In the United Kingdom Hot Fuss was the 26th best selling album of the decade, it also spent more weeks on the UK Album Chart than any other album, in total spending 173 weeks in the Top 75

Region	Certification
Chart (2000–2009)	Position
UK Albums Chart	26
Australia ARIA Albums Chart	97
US Billboard 200	131

Awards and accolades

Year	Ceremony	Award	Result
2004	Shortlist Music Prize	Shortlist Music Prize	Nominated
2005	BRIT Awards	Best International Album	Nominated
2005	Grammy Awards	Best Rock Album	Nominated
2005	Meteor Ireland Music Awards	Best International Album	Nominated

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
Q	UK	250 Best Albums of Q's Lifetime 1986-2010	2011	17
Drowned in Sound	UK	Best Albums of the Year	2004	2
Rolling Stone	US	Top 100 Albums of the 2000s	2009	43
The A.V. Club	US	Top 100 Albums of the 2000s	2009	41
The Daily Mail	UK	Top 50 Best Albums of the Noughties	2009	3

Personnel

The Killers

• Brandon Flowers – lead vocals, keyboards
• Dave Keuning – guitar, background vocals
• Mark Stoermer – bass guitar, background vocals
• Ronnie Vannucci – drums, percussion

Technical personnel

• Brandon Flowers – Writer / Composer / Producer
• Dave Keuning – Writer / Composer / Producer
• Mark Stoermer – Writer / Composer / Producer
• Ronnie Vannucci – Writer / Composer / Producer
• Sweet Inspirations – Gospel Choir
• Jeff Saltzman – Producer / Engineer
• Corlene Byrd – Engineer
• Alan Moulder – Mixing
• Mark Needham – Mixing

External links

• Island Records with American and British versions