The Black Keys’ new album, Attack and Release, is a good example of an unconventional pairing that gives way to, well, unconventional music.
Oh, don’t worry, this isn’t David Bowie-Mick Jagger “Dancing In The Street” unconventional.
No, this is dirty-blues meets hip-pop unconventional.
Weeping slide guitar meets rhythmic jazz flute unconventional. This is raw, two-man hard rock with production from (gasp!) Danger Mouse.
The man half-responsible for the pop-genius of Gnarls Barkley, Brian Burton (stage name Danger Mouse) adds broader production to these Akron, Ohio, rockers’ fifth release than what might be evident on the surface.
The Keys’ low-fi recording techniques get a shot in the arm thanks to Burton, as the producer is able to keep that dirty, hard rock sound while adding a little pop-polish to the cuts.
Band members Dan Auerbach (vocals and guitar) and Patrick Carney (drums) offer more authentic heavy-soul, but it’s the ambiance that DM provides to The Black Keys blues lounge that makes Attack and Release such an intriguing listen.
The record’s easy opener “All You Ever Wanted” doesn’t make you wait around to get a taste.
The cut slowly jangles into a beefy organ outro, as lead man Auerbach wails “I’ll be a blackbird darlin’, hangin’ on your telephone wire/Flap my wings on it, set your heart on fire.”
Auerbach’s vocals on the album are heartfelt if not memorable – nobody’s going to confuse him for Johnny Cash – but his insistence to keep the blues guitar dirty is what makes cuts like “I Got Mine” come off as a vintage Stones romp.
The album’s standout track is “Psychotic Girl,” a song that incorporates banjo twang with a few wispy keys from your grandma’s antique piano.
Carney sets a crisp groove on the set while DM plays with his newfound love of layering messy slide guitar under haunting choral arrangements.
The groove reeks of “good boy done wrong” fare, and Auerbach’s echoed sentiments aren’t exactly offering second chances.
While The Keys do authentic rock-blues very well, Attack and Release has its fun spots, too.
“Strange Times” would sound just as comfy with Cee-Lo on vocals, and the southern-soul of “Lies” brings to mind the glory days of 1970s heart-torn R&B.
“Same Old Thing” contains an upbeat “yazz flute” solo straight from Anchorman, as well as bongo drums and background vocals that could have been the Baha Men’s last shot at industry security.
The Keys throw in a little Tex-Mex flavor for good measure on “So He Won’t Break,” where a quacking electric riff rides top-down with a backbeat jam from Carney.
The somber “Things Ain’t Like They Used to Be” closes the album, with the boys convincing themselves that the good days of past are long gone.
The sound these three artists discovered while working on Attack and Release wouldn’t fit similar groups (The White Stripes, The Black Crowes), and The Keys disc is a welcomed development from a band that has been pigeonholed as “too throwback” for today’s rock music. Their reluctance to work with Danger Mouse—in what originally seemed like an odd pairing—paid off, as Burton attacked the production like a hipster who just found dad’s old vinyl collection and wants the kids to start giving props where they’re rightfully due.
As is the case with most great blues, The Keys’ recent cuts borrow from their heroes of past and add original elements to craft a sound of their own.
Attack and Release is a fine record for fans of hard rock and classic soul alike.

Questions or comments?
Contact Jack at
JCChandl3168@winona.edu