The Black Keys - Attack & Release Review
Posted by James Palm on 04.10.2008
The Black Keys' signature sound has remained largely untouched for 4 albums. Enter master producer Danger Mouse. The results may surprise you.
Perhaps the most underappreciated band of the last decade has been the Black Keys. Timing can be blamed - their debut album did surface the year after the breakthrough album from another two piece blues rock duo; the White Stripes. Whereas Jack and Meg have built their reputation on experimentation on recent albums, Dan and Patrick’s proven formula has remained largely untouched. Enter master producer Danger Mouse, idolized for his mash-up of the Beatles and Jay-Z entitled The Grey Album, amongst other memorable collaborations, and is silently conquering the world with Cee-Lo Brown as one half of Gnarls Barkley. Suddenly the Akron boys have begun exploring all new territories.
We begin with “All I Ever Wanted” and “I Got Mine”, tracks you come to expect from the Keys, at first. Then you turn the volume up, and the psychedelic groove emerges. It sounds so familiar, and yet so different. I can picture “… Mine” being the opener for the live show. Then strange things continue to happen on Track 3, funnily enough entitled “Strange Times”. Are those instruments other than guitar and drums that I hear? I had to double check the track listing to make sure I was still listening to the same album. “...Times” is a hip shaking hybrid of the Keys blues rock with Danger Mouse’s harmonic production that could almost be a secret unearthed Death From Above 1979 B-side. And if there’s one album that needs to be recorded, it’s a second DFA album. However, an immediate shift back into Keys-heavy tunes with “Psychotic Girl” – drummer Carney’s uncle Ralph on the banjo gives this track a homey feel - and “Lies” begins a pattern of brainstorming, perfectly demonstrated by an homage to the glory days of vinyl.
“Remember When” is split into “…Side A” and “…Side B”, in the battle between ‘Attack’ and ‘Release’. The Black Keys attack us with, for the first time in albums, a significant change in their sound. On “…Side A”, the Keys hit the opposite end of the spectrum and surprisingly try out shoe-gaze. This is not the say that the Keys have completely abandoned the sound they have made their own over 4 previous albums. Dan Auerbach downs a whiskey between sides, and yells his heart bare. The ‘Release’ comes with “…Side B”, a reminder that the band remains the same under all the fancy production. But the collaboration between two masters of their own fields – producer and artist – can never commit either way.
They ‘Attack’ our expectations and attempt to break new ground, which after 4 albums in 7 years sounds like a good idea. Maybe the Black Keys really have been the best rock band in the world all this time; all they needed was a producer like Danger Mouse, a veritable Mike Patton of hip-hop. Mouse’s Midas touch is all over “So He Won’t Break”. We glide between 60’s pop to acid jazz and back again, but like many tracks on this album it asks a question. Who came first; the Keys or the Mouse? Did the Black Keys seek out Danger Mouse to tweak their new sound, or has Danger Mouse asserted himself over the Keys material? Either way, the new direction is encouraging for a band in danger of becoming stagnant.
Despite the various new elements, the Keys haven’t gotten self-indulgent and produced a bloated epic. They keep to their characteristically tight album length, which means you’re never bored or disappointed. If anything, you’re eager for more, and that’s exactly the reaction a band wants from their audience. “Strange Times” has become a quick favourite, and I’m certain it will be hitting all dance floors near you very soon. The longest track on the album is conveniently the last. “Things Ain’t Like They Used To Be” will be the moment you hold your lighter above your head, swaying to the music. The Black Keys now have the power to make you dance, but they still got the blues.
When I learnt that Danger Mouse was producing a Black Keys album, to say I was intrigued would be an understatement. Now he has extended his unbeaten record with what could have been an early contender for album of the year, had it fully embraced the new sound. Attack & Release is a fantastic album and has opened up a world of possibilities for Album No. 6, which has the potential to become iconic. Only time will tell if this collaboration has been a once-in-a-blue-moon success or a permanent shift in the sonic landscape of Ohio’s proudest.
The Hit - Strange Times The Encore - Rememer When (Side B) The Wah? - Same Old Thing
The 411: The Black Keys have been given a welcome shot in the arm by the addition of producer Danger Mouse. Diehard fans are sure to be conflicted over the new direction, but the expansion of the band's tonal capacities is justified, and in parts, majestic. Killer tracks do clash with indecisive production, but overall the experience is rewarding.
