“We’re The Killers and we’re a great rock 'n' roll band,” teases effortlessly charismatic frontman Brandon Flowers, laying his cards on the table in front of a 20,000-strong crowd at The O2 Arena. 

“Here, lemme show you,” he adds, having appeared from behind a towering white curtain. 

While his opening gambit is undoubtedly cocky, he’s right to be.

The Las Vegas group are in the middle of a 20th-anniversary six-date residency at the massive venue before heading home for a similarly lengthy stint. 

Immediately proving his point, ‘Mr. Brightside’ kicks things into gear as everyone inside the building shouts along. 

Followed up by ‘Spaceman’ (with it’s undeniable ‘woah oah’ hook) and an arms-in-the-air ‘Shot at the Night’, this opening trio comes packed with stadium-sized choruses and instantly-recognisable guitar riffs.

You have to wonder if they’ll sustain such huge audience reactions, but they deliver anthem after anthem with very few moments where the energy dips (though this is suitable for the slower Americana twang of ‘Quiet Town’). 

Sensing that track might have been met with a more subdued response, they pick things back up with the rollicking ‘Somebody Told Me’ which is paired with club-friendly colour-changing neon strobes.

The kaleidoscopic visuals that accompany 'Human’ burst to life, too, while a confetti cannon explosion showers the crowd during the 80s-indebted ‘boy’ – rock shows don’t come any more glitzy than this. 

Whether its their name shining in lights on an American billboard, the diamond-shaped stage, the casino-style carpet, the shapeshifting hanging lighting rig, the giant K framing the keyboard, or Flowers’ sparkling jacket, there’s nothing shy and unassuming about this big budget production. 

Perhaps expectedly, the mid-song chat is very American too (“did you bring your dancing shoes tonight? It’s a Monday night outside but it’s a Saturday night inside), as is the gold lettering and roulette tables on screen - but there’s no denying Flowers’ power as a (rather sweaty ) showman.

However, there are more poignant spoken moments, like when Flowers leads a tribute to his mum and the audience’s late relatives as a frilly chandelier descends from the ceiling ahead of ‘A Dustland Fairytale’, and the arena lights up with phone torches. 

The galloping drive of ‘Runaways’ - which sees Flowers climb down to (almost) within touching distance of those up front - is cleverly-positioned to stop the previous track’s sentimentality from lasting too long.  

The hit rate is kept up with ‘Read My Mind’ which, sharing a similar mentality (and galactic visuals), ends with Flowers giving his three backing vocalists their moment under the stars (quite literally). 

The synth-led ‘Smile Like You Mean It’, shortly followed by ‘When You Were Young’ (which ends with a pyro storm and the chorus being belted back to a wall of static sound) proves just how many huge singalongs they have in their arsenal. 

But, somehow, they’ve still got more to give: having changed into a smart white and black jacket, they return for a three-song encore that culminates in fan favourite 'All These Things That I've Done'.

Considering this is night three of a six-date residency at The O2, they’re on unbelievable form all night long, delivering a career-spanning 20-song spectacle that certifies Flowers' early statement: The Killers are one of the best bands in the world.

The tour continues at The 02 on Wednesday and Thursday.