The Killers – Sam's Town

Was expecting this to be a letdown after the reviews here but I'm pleasantly surprised. It's a clear and detailed pressing of a busy, compressed mix. The disc is flat and heavy, and someone has obviously paid attention to the packaging, which is sourced from the original photographs. The insert, gatefold cover and poly-lined inner are nice touches too.

This is obviously not an audiophile recording and I don't think ever has been, but the separation between instruments is decent, with the vocals really standing out without any sibilance or distortion despite a slightly hot top end in the mix - in other words, a fairly typical DMM sound. There's obviously still a lot of compression in the mastering, but that's the way the album has always sounded and I'm not sure it would really be itself any other way.

Edit: I'd originally said the disc was flat *and centred*, but on playing it again I can see there's a bit of to and fro with the tone arm on both sides - nothing audible and not too bad, but it is noticeable and I don't want to mislead anyone!

This 2 LP 45 RPM vinyl release provides a very enjoyable and high-quality listening experience after employing some additional graphic equalization settings. There is no ear fatigue at higher volumes, bass is quite sufficient and well defined, and there is a wider and richer soundstage than previous CD and vinyl versions. Vocals and instrumental sonic clarity are also improved. Percussion and drums are crisp, dynamic, and forceful where appropriate. The vinyl itself is flat and quiet without background noise between tracks and lead-ins. The attached thick cardboard inner sleeves are prone to scratching the records but thankfully they are large enough to accommodate the insertion of rice paper and poly-lined inner sleeves.

A tip is to not store the record in the PVC sleeve, there’s a pretty high risk it will get irreversibly ”stained” by the PVC with time. With that said my copy still looks and plays great after almost 20 years, not all picture disc’s sound bad!

Pretty much what others have said, this is not music it's merch.
The silver lining is moaning about this is how I found out about discogs.

After listenining back to back, I can safely say this pressing sounds better than my original 33RPM pressing. More dynamics, but unfortunately the higher end of the drums are still lacking in a lot of the tracks. The packaging is nice, and "Peace of Mind" is a fantastic addition.

I’ve never seen such polarizing opinions on a pressing. I’m scared to even play test my copy, lol…

A bit dissapointing, clean sounding record however it's just a bit lacking on the dynamics.

I was glad to buy this as I wasn't going to buy the picture disc as they sound so bad. I overlooked it on CD when I bought it back in 2006. I think it sounds superb here on this pressing. It now has a cult following too! Day & Age from 2008 is the best Killers album for me.

I've had this in my collection for years now and whilst it does sound great for a picture disc theres numerous points on side B where it gets tuck in a loop. Blame the plastic sleeve for that. But, I've been looking for a non-picture disc version but been put off by all the reviews on here. 20 year anniversary should yield something good...

able but not the most dynamic of pressings. Given there was no vinyl offering at the time of the album release in 2006, this sounds like it’s mastered from a digital source years later. I will give a mark just for being able to own on vinyl. I’d imagine the 10th Anniversary 2xLP is probably a better option? Vinyl is flat and quiet. Packaging is top quality.