The Killers - Smile Like You Mean It - Lyrics Meaning

Smile Like You Mean It is the fourth single on the Killer's 2005 debut album Hot Fuss. The track found chart success and peaked at number 11 in the United Kingdom and number 15 on the Billboard U.S. Modern Rock chart. The song was written by front man Brandon Flowers and bassist Mark Stoermer. There has been a lot of discussion about the meaning of the song. The most popular interpretations of the song include suicide, looking back at life after death, empty relationships or recalling better times. The music video clues into the fact that the song is about looking back at better times. Ghostly figures of the band are shown roaming around their old homes in a Christmas Carole type of scene. A literal interpretation of the lyrics suggests it is about an empty relationship.

One particular sentence giving insight into the song is when Flowers sings about looking back at the sunsets on the eastside and playing a game in the house where he grew up. The song was covered by the band Tally Hall as part of the television series The O.C. soundtrack. It also received a great amount of airplay in Australia and Ireland.