The Black Keys - Brothers

Yeah, the cover art is fucking stupid. Don't let that fool you, though: this is a good Black Keys album. If you've never quite been into The Black Keys, you probably won't like this, but you might, because they've really fucked a bit around with their sound here, creating something else altogether. Indie-soul-funk-blues-rock, if you will. Take a listen to their single, Tighten Up, for an example of the sound on this album.

On their last effort, Attack & Release, they brought the experimentation, with the aid of Danger Mouse, who you may have noticed gets mentioned a bit in my reviews. And while that album was good, it all didn't seem to . . . gel. This time, it seems to have worked out. Given that they pretty much perfected their minimalist singular drums-and-guitar on 2004s stellar effort, Rubber Soul, a change was due to come. And they seem to have finally pulled it off with this release. Danger Mouse only produces one track here, the aforementioned Tighten Up, so the experimentation is largely coming from The Black Keys themselves, Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney. Which seems to have worked out.

Basically, it's good. Best thing they've done in a while, honestly. They're going in a good direction.

Get it.

-K