A Dustland Fairytale

Background

In 2013, Brandon Flowers described the track as an extension of the band's previous album, Sam's Town, rather than a departure from it. He noted that he was unable to completely let go of that record, and the song's words and sentiment reflect that attachment. Flowers called it one of his more personal narratives, and observed that increased personal content in his writing tends to strengthen fan attachment to the song.

Music video

The music video was directed by Anthony Mandler, who also directed Killers videos for "Tranquilize" and "When You Were Young." It was released on US iTunes on June 8, 2009, and premiered in the UK on June 16 on Channel 4 and 4Music. The video's style references the cult classic movie The Outsiders. It opens with an old man named Joe White, who has a tattoo of the number 7 on one of his fingers and is smoking.

The video then shows a younger man, Joey, with the same tattoo, dressed in a leather jacket, white shirt, and leather pants, about to fight a rival gang member named Billy for his gang, the Sevens. Joey is shown dating a brunette girl, and there is a flashback of him looking at her through her window.

The older man visits the same locations, reflecting on his youth. A letter reveals that Joe has been released from prison, implying he killed Billy in the fight. The video ends with Joe visiting a house, ringing the doorbell, and embracing an older brunette woman.