After teasing it last week, The Killers‘ collaboration with Bruce Springsteen has arrived.

The joint track is called “Dustland,” and is a reworking of the “Mr. Brightside” rockers’ song “A Dustland Fairytale,” a cut off their 2008 album Day & Age.

The original “Dustland,” which is apparently The Boss’ favorite Killers tune, was written by frontman Brandon Flowers amid his mother Jean‘s battle with cancer.

“It was an attempt to better understand my dad, who is sometimes a mystery to me,” Flowers explains. “To grieve for my mother. To acknowledge their sacrifices and maybe even catch a glimpse of just how strong love needs to be to make it in this world. It was my therapy. It was cathartic.”

If that sounds like the kind of thing Bruce Springsteen has been writing about for decades, then you and Brandon Flowers are of one mind.

“Before I really became a fan of [Springsteen], I was in the business of stadium-size everything. Larger than life EVERYTHING,” Flowers explains. “Certainly larger than the lives of Jeannie and Terry Flowers. But Bruce has written a lot about people like my parents and found a whole lot of beauty in otherwise invisible people’s hopes and dreams. Their struggles, and their losses.”
 
“I’m grateful to him for opening this door for me,” Flowers adds of The Boss. “I’m grateful to my parents for their example to me. Now go find something new out about your dad, give your mom a big hug, and for god’s sake listen to Bruce Springsteen.”

You can download “Dustland” now via digital outlets. It’s also accompanied by a video featuring footage of both The Killers and Springsteen, which is streaming now on YouTube.

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