More About The Black Keys Brothers

You got Brothers, the new album from The Black Keys, on Tuesday. Congratulations to these three stations for being the first to download the album (your BlakRoc vinyl will be in the mail soon):

CJSR
WMBR
KCRW

In 2009 guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney each released side project albums and they came together with 11 hip-hop artists for the amazing BlakRoc. On Brothers the duo was on its own for the most part, spending ten days at the legendary Muscle Shoals studio in Alabama and coming up with an intensely focused, deeply soulful set that includes a cover of Jerry Butler‘s “Never Gonna Give You Up.” The performances are inventive and impassioned: Auerbach extends his vocal range to falsetto on lead-off track ” Everlasting Light” and “The Only One“; “Howlin’ for You” opens with a Gary Glitter -style drum riff and the chorus practically invites singing along. The tunes offer a surprising amount of lyrical candor and more than a little dark humor; the grooves alternate between ballsy swagger and bluesy rumination.

Carney admits, ‘Dan and I grew up a lot as individuals and musicians prior to making this album. Our relationship was tested in many ways but at the end of the day, we’re brothers, and I think these songs reflect that.’