Wonderful Wonderful (The Killers song)

Background and release

Brandon Flowers stated that the title idea came while he was in the desert watching a storm approach, and he used the phrase "wonderful, wonderful" in a song co-written with bassist Mark Stoermer, which became important to the record. Flowers noted the song has "some of the coolest production on the record." Drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. described Jacknife Lee's studio as resembling a child's playroom with pedals and wires, where no idea was too unconventional. Flowers explained the track explores "darker territories" than the band had previously ventured, with a minor-key influence from Stoermer. The song premiered on August 24, 2017 on Beats 1 as Zane Lowe's World Record, and was released digitally as the album's first promotional single.

Critical reception

The song received generally positive reviews. Kory Grow of Rolling Stone called it a "dusky mood piece" recalling later Depeche Mode and Talk Talk. Mark Savage of BBC News described it as built around a menacing bassline with Flowers in "full ranting preacher mode." Stereogum's Pranav Trewn wrote that the song expands The Killers' palette by pushing outward the range of sounds in their arsenal, rather than through bigger choruses or Springsteen affectations.

Did You Know?

• It is a post-punk and gothic rock song with a minor-key composition, mournful horn lines, and glitchy electronic accents.
• Flowers said the song reminds him of things he grew up loving that he had not been able to touch upon before.