This post has become a heated debate. To sum it all up, its DANCER. To know why, carry on reading and definitely check out the comments!
I’m a bit of a Killers fan. I loved hot Fuss, liked Sam’s Town and am hoping I’ll like new album. I seem to be on the losing side but I like their new song, Human. Once it hits the charts I think people will suddenly change their minds and like it too.
At first I thought the lyrics were “are we human or are we dancers?”. Thinking this couldn’t be right I looked up the lyrics and found its not dancers, its denser. It appears I’m not the only one mishearing the lyrics. Popwatch have an entire article about it, crazy.
I’m 90% sure it is denser now, even if it does sound like dancers. It would be funny if the official lyric was dancer.
P.S. This post is just a segway segue (thanks Ann) so that I can gloat I got Killers tickets. 
Edit: Since posting this it seems various other sources are confirming ‘dancer(s)’ as the actual word. I guess I was right, and then wrong, and now just confused.
237 Comments
Oh dear. It has been publically stated by the band and the record label that it’s Dancer. And is a reference to a Hunter S Thompson quote. Yet still the DENSER (which by the way isn’t a word) amongst us still argue..
Who said lyrics had to make sense?
Does ‘I am the eggman, I am the wallrus’ make sense?
I didn’t know Humans were this dense..
DANCER DANCER DANCER
Now that I’ve got that off my chest, I’m off to watch “FlashDense”.
Here is the PROOF link !!!! DANCER!DANCER!DANCER!
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1598299/20081030/killers_the.jhtml
Oct 31 2008 8:00 AM EDT
Killers’ Brandon Flowers Stands Behind ‘Human’ Chorus, Feathery Jacket
‘I think I’m allowed to do whatever I want,’ singer says of oft-debated dancer(s) lyrics.
Namely, the “s” in “dancers.” Ever since “Human,” the first single from the Killers’ Day & Age album, debuted last month, fans have been debating just why Flowers has decided to drop the letter and make the song’s chorus (“Are we human/ Or are we dancer?”) a singular affair. It seems like the whole thing didn’t make much sense, and some fans even wondered if he was singing something else, like, say “denser.”
So when MTV News caught up with Flowers last week at the Killers’ NYC show, we decided to ask him about the chorus controversy.
“It’s taken from a quote by [author Hunter S.] Thompson. … ‘We’re raising a generation of dancers,’ and I took it and ran. I guess it bothers people that it’s not grammatically correct, but I think I’m allowed to do whatever I want,” he laughed. ” ‘Denser’? I hadn’t heard that one. I don’t like ‘denser.’ “
Might as well add my two-bits worth. In the foundling of modern American – from the time of the pilgrims – those who “danced” were often considered in league with the Devil for “to dance” was to SIN. My guess is that when the Pilgrims came across Native American Indians (noted for their PowsWows; their Dances), they would have been maligned. So (and I am only putting it out there for thought and possible comment), maybe the words contained within the line – ARE WE HUMAN OR ARE WE DANCER- could be put into the mouth of a Native American Indian who thus is asking a question of his or her adversary. This is also influenced by the video clip itself
So guys, have fun with this as an alternative explanation
From The Killers’ official website:
it would be “dancers” (many) if it was correct ….
“are we humen , or are we dancers” ….
but it is not
so it has to be denser
yep ! denser
Can we just say it’s both? Then it has two meanings and can keep bith groups happy
I fought with my mother about this. I say its denser, she says its dancer. So we agreed it’s both.
hollina said it very well…
Hollina Says:
October 26th, 2008 at 3:02 am
Poetry often breaks the confines of grammar and punctuation. To believe that Flowers just made an accidental grammatical error or that he somehow ruined the song by saying “dancer” is akin to saying that e e cummings ruined all his poetry because he didn’t use capitals.
Flowers doesn’t say “Are we humans” He says “Are we human” the singular version of human is used commonly in English as an adjective. He has then deftly utilizes this construct and applies it to the word dancer.
We don’t normally see the word used this way in English, and because of this — the turning of the word from a noun to an adjective to be “dancer” — we’re forced to more carefully analyze what it means to be “dancer.” It is a description of all those who follow along without critical thought to why they move as they do, metaphorically and literally. It calls to mind the dehumanization of society. We no longer feel as much as we used to. There is less compassion in the world. We have become so digital that human interaction is no longer a must in our society, and hence we have in essence become without a heartbeat, our hands cold and our sensibilities systematic.
If he were to have said “dancers” people would not have even thought twice about the significance of the main line in the song and they would have said, “Oh yes, dancers, those people who go up on stage, what a pretty song.” Instead we get all of this lovely discussion on websites where people might for a moment look to their lives and ask the question,
“Am I human or am I dancer?”
it is definetly dancer i know it
i Dnt no wat it is…but i think denser makes more sence…but lots of people are saying it is dancer!!??? :S:S
You know I never realised how many dense people where out there. The killers web site says dancer, flowers says dancer, every lyric place says you guessed it dancer so how come you thickos are still on here and saying its denser lol get a life and dance
okay.
it has to be denser.
humans are dense.
so hes saying are we human or are we denser. like are we something thats not human.
dancers does not make anysense what so ever.
whats the difference between a human or a dancer. they are both still himan.
any thing that is not that dense is NOT human.
so thats what he means!
Man the dumb people I’ve seen in my days and here they are arguing over such something that is written in stone who cares you can cry about it being denser but maybe your the one who is dense dancer has a lot more meaning then denser so were dense? that just doesn’t make any sense. it has such a deeper meaning when you think of it as a dancer. being this yes they aren’t using it as dancers but isn’t that how they wanted it to show us are we really human or do we conform to everything our society gives us. what beautiful words they have wrote they don’t calls us dense but ask us are we really human. a song that i can say i listen to everyday and love it so please would the idiots who think its denser. just put it as your last name and there your completely dense to what this song truly means to us as humans. you are the dancer thank you and goodnight.
Sincerely Jordan<3
i think it is dancer, brandon said so anyway im a victim, us victims just know
7 months of debate on this thread!! If you don’t know it’s Dancer by now, then you’re denser than anybody could ever realise! lol
At 46 it astounds me to read all this drivel, when the debate was settled several times over in many different way, and yet it still goes on.
Great song, not so great fans.
Why would it be dancer???
Think about it are we human or are we denser translates to me as are we human or is there more to us!
Dancer dosnt make sense!!! I apologise if i am wrong but i really cant see it being dancer!!!
I take back the previous!!
It dancer!!! Of course.
Love the song;
Love this never ending thread
This is silly!! I think it could be either but it is only one word in a song!! There are loads of comments on this and it just seems a waste of time!!!
I thought it was “are we woman, or are we dancer” but I listening the song several times, and I am sure it is:
Are we… hu.. hu…
or
Are we… da.. da…
like the la la la words in a songs. It leaves you the listner te freedom to put the words you like better.
It is actually dancer NOT DENSER!
If any of you people who think it’s denser actually spent some time researching it you would know
it is actualy dancer! The killers confirmed on their offical website that IT IS DANCER, ther are thousands of lyrics websites saying it is DANCER. The whole “are we human or are we dancer” thing might not make sense when you first listen to it but if you look at the meaning behind it, it actually doe’s fit pretty well. Its a quote taken from this writer and their is meaning behind the word dancer “are we human(having free choice) or are we dancer(puppets on strings, doing what we’re told etc.) If you all really REALLY listen to the song you will realise that it is DANCER and the whole song is about life,death and suicide!!! SO IT IS DANCER !!!!!!!!!
it´s dancer when I first heard this song I thought that he said dancer but my english is very bad you can see that, when he said “when the call came down the line” I thought that he said when the cocaine down the line” I think that I need to learn more.
You know, it can be taken both ways, Dancer can mean something more complex, more dense in mind, a state of mind like the ravers for example.
What does denser mean? I speak spanish and I’m not quite sure what it means,,,,!
i believe that this relates to “lord of the flies”. its inside ourselves, its whatever we want it to be. we cant control what we believe, regardless of who said it. i believe that it is what you believe in. Anyone agree with me? btw- great song
dancer not denser proof-> http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/11/19/brandon-flowers-wound-up-over-miquoting-of-killers-human/
rinsed
Personally I think it’s an example of how the overall vibe and sound of a song can strike a real chord deep down with people – and people understandably want the lyrics to convey some meaning too. I am the same – I love the song and WANT the lyrics to have the emotional impact of the music. Unfortunately, despite all the debate above, I feel the lyrics are poor, except the line ‘and I’m on my knees looking for the answer’ which I think is very powerful. It’s a shame – I think many songwriters could have come up with lyrics that could have been as powerful as the music.
you know what i think, they just need to ask the band that way we will know
I think that it is dancer cauz I am a dancer and no one can dominate me. so HHhAAAAa. beat that everyone else!
well i think it is saying denser because it’s like there saying are we human as in, well human or if there is more to us then that.like we have feeling and can love…………………beat that
Clara: But the song isn’t yours so it’s not ur choice. Flowers said its dancer so it’s dancer. End of story…
Dancer makes sense because people are a system’s puppet. We dance a government’s dance… we can’t (in general)thing for ourselves and so we must live our poor human condition as puppets (even if we want to change they don’t let us)…
It’s Dancer. The official merchandise from their website shop says “or are we dancer?”
i didn’t say it was my song i was just suggesting the idea of it being denser.
i didn’t say it was my song i was just suggesting the idea of it being denser!
It’s not “Dancer” or “Denser”
Its….
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“Pretentious Gibberish”.
(good band though)
For those of you that have the argument that “dancer” is not plural, just look at the phrase ahead of it. He doesn’t say “Are we humans?” He says “Are we human?” So for sentence structure it just sounds better when he says “Are we human, or are we dancer?”
It does not make syntactical sense to say “dancer”, actually, so I don’t know where you learnt to write English. The song has some of the stupidest lyrics but it is “dancer” not “denser”. It’s derived from what Thompsons (Hunter S. Thompson) said about America raising a generation of dancers. The plural is derived from the plural pronoun “we”. It does not make sense to say “are we dancer”. He is not asking “are we humans” because there is no need to use the plural “human”. It’s like having to say “are we Englishmen?” rather than “are we English?” .
It doesn’t sound better, it makes him sound like a retard.
I dont know why all you all are going about it only two ways. i actually think its neither. my ears tell me its “done soon”. are we human or are we done soon.
I think it should be up to people themselves, to tell if the word is denser or dancer. In that way, you make the song have a meaning to yourself, which frankly would satisfy everyone.
If you look at what the other lines in the song sing, you will see that the speculation of denser fitting better is purely and absolutely wrong. The song is indeed about the dehumanization of society. It is a question. “am I human, or am i dancer?” If you are human, you belong with all the other humans, and fit in with them. What is the dancer, then? That would be the rest who don’t follow the norm of being “human.” It calls for a change in the norms of “fitting in” with society.
to “the_one_who_is_not_an_itiot” on 24th november.
you ay want to learn to spell idiot before you say you’re not one my darling
and the rest of you need to get a grip.
you’re arguing over the lyrics of a song. does that not sound rather erm pathetic to you?
if brandon flowers says it’s dacer then tbh its blatently dancer unless he lies about the lyrics of his own song (hmm that sounds likely)
settled.
now shut up all of you
Human=>free will, freedom of action & choice
Dancer=>following routine
dancer not denser; though denser would’ve caused less confusion.
Sweet Holy Mother Of Forums!!!!!!!!
If it is “denser”, show some proof!
EXCEPT from your own stupid, narrow-minded opinions on song-writing and the hold english grammer has on expressing art!!!
I thought for sure it was DANZA. Flowers is asking us if we are HUMAN and therefore real or are we DANZA and therefore stupid and fictitious like Tony Danza’s character “Tony” in “Who’s the Boss” and countless other ridiculous characters he has played in his career.
I don’t understand.
Can no one see the true behind the lyrics?
The song is about Santa Claus and his reindeer s.
The word is actually PRANCER because Rudolf doesn’t rhyme!!
I think is dancer…justa like a race…human or dancer…not dancers…I think they are trying to make a point of view…We victims are dancer…
))))
you all sound like those wankers that stand in front on abstract art. just enjoy the ride. stop analysing……can you recommend another killers song as good as human btw……
Ha, I agree, but I’m glad to see so many comments on my blog!
If you’re looking for decent Killers songs, check out the Hot Fuss album. I guess thats the closest to the sound on ‘Human’.
at first i thought it was denser and the guy was just prononcing it weird but after i searched it up on Google it does seem that it is dancer because this guy (forget his name) said we are going to raise a generoration of dancers (or something like that, dancers being like all in unison and not indiviual and just with the beat. although i except that the actual lyric is dancer i think it would have been a better (with more impact) to say denser. how ever the band’s reason for the word they chose is perfectly clear and does make sense once you know their reason (which i said above). but guys don’t get to worked up over it beacuse in all it is just 1 word in a fantastic song.:)
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