In just four years The Killers have helped save pop rock.

With retro-punk and an obsession with all things Eighties on the rise, the Noughties was in danger of becoming the replica generation — with pure pop going down the pan.

But through the musical mire, the Vegas band breathed some glitz and glam into a dying genre — producing some killer tunes along the way.

And they’ve pretty much stuck to that simple but effective modus operandi of guitar, drums and sensational soaring vocals courtesy of dramatic frontman Brandon Flowers.

Latest album — their third studio longplayer — Day And Age sees our fab four staging a foray into a world usually occupied by the Pet Shop Boys, complete with the camping up. Songs build and burst open with electrifying effect.

Day And Age is full of atmospherics and shimmering sophistication, added to a finely honed melodic mastery and a dash of the flamboyant. While the Pet Shop Boys is a definite reference point you can also hear Bowie and Cars-like sound-bites.

And it wouldn’t be a Killers album without the odd anthem — and on this album there are at least four including the two cracking singles Human (with the fantastically barking line ‘Are we human or are we dancers?’) and Spaceman.

But there is so much more to enjoy. The Killers have bottled a formula that leaves each one of their tunes catchy and memorable.

Day And Age also explores the band’s enthusiasm for UFOs and alien life. Living near the secretive Area 51 in Nevada, Flowers and co have always had an interest in that other-worldly life — and while their new album is not quite out of this world, it is certainly well up to the high standard The Killers set for themselves back in 2004 with Hot Fuss.

Best tracks are Dustland Fairytale and one of the greatest ever Killer tracks, the flawless This Is Your Life.