Brandon Flowers Samples ’80s Synth-Pop Classic on New Song, ‘I Can Change’
Brandon Flowers is debuting new songs at a rate fast enough to ensure that fans may not need to buy his sophomore solo LP when it drops in a few weeks. His latest track "I Can Change" dropped today (May 1), following the earlier releases of "Lonely Town," "Still Want You" and "Can't Deny My Love."
"I Can Change," which samples Bronski Beat's massive 1984 hit "Smalltown Boy," is an '80s-infused synth-pop plea of desperation. The line "I can change" is repeated ad nauseam, as Brandon proclaims his absolute willingness to forgo everything they teach you in middle school about staying true to yourself just to win the affection of a nameless person. Brandon's vocals—and that iconic sample—are the true stars here, and you can listen to the plaintive track above.
In other news, Brandon recently made headlines when he commented on the "genius" moniker that's bestowed upon Kanye West over the span of his career. In an interview with Rolling Stone the Killers frontman said, "Everyone's afraid to say anything contrary to him being a genius. It's crazy, man! And it's frustrating. I'm not going to tear him down, but I will say I find that to be frustrating. [Laughs] That's my stance on it. A lot of people might agree with me now. I may have been a little bit ahead of my time. But I think he wants to be good. I think he wants to be great, and that's something that we all want to strive for. We've just got different roads of getting there, I guess." Brandon also believes Mitt Romney would have made for a "great president."
Flowers' sophomore solo album The Desired Effect is slated for a May 19 release, and you can listen to the Bronski Beat song "I Can Change" samples below.