Send "The Black Keys" Ringtones to your Cell
Ohio rock duo, The Black Keys, reinvented themselves in their new album, El Camino, which no longer sounds effortlessly vintage-cool but rather retro. They have a nine-year-long career and six albums released so far and yet the band seems to continue evolving. They aren’t exactly the same as they used to be, at least not musically, because lyrically they’re the same guys they’ve always been. The new album, released on December 6, 2011 is the standing proof of their transformation. El Camino is no longer a time capsule, yet it still resounds of the old classic rock we all love. Working once again with producer Dangermouse, who supervised the pair’s 2008 effort Attack and Release, El Camino shows a different side of the band, something different that what brought them Grammy Awrs for the 2010 album Brothers. The truth is that an educated ear can hear more of a semblance of T. Rex and The Sweet imbued within the riffs, as members Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney said, “the sound of this record was influenced by the likes of The Clash and The Cramps. However, upon listening to such tracks as “Gold on the Ceiling”".
The Black Keys Reinvent Themselves In El Camino
The first track on the album deals with matters of the heart but not in a sweet romantic way. As we all know, the Black Keys are far from being nice, so, in “Lonely Boy” they treat the subject of an ex-girlfriend with malicious gossips and arrogance. About “Dead and Gone”, Billboard wrote that it “goes with a three-tiered plan of attack: a simple yet effective drum beat, then a riff that recalls the Police, and finally, plenty of “whoa-ohs” and “na-nas” from frontman Dan Auerbach and his army of taunting back-up singers”. “Gold on the Ceiling” is set to be used in trailers for summer 2012 blockbusters, from Megan Fox flicks to buddy comedies, as the song it’s fun and fuzzy.
Furthermore, in “Little Black Submarines” Auerbach imitates Dylan for a minute, while in “Money Maker” the driving chorus sings about prostitution in a dramatic, movie-like manner. “Run Right Back” seduces everyone with its slide guitar and a syncopated beat, distinguishing itself as the finest track of this entire album. It’s pure rock and so it rocks! “Sister” reveals the members’ sympathetic side, proving that they are still human beings that don’t hold back on male scorn and female sympathy. “Hell of a Season” is filed with hard-hitting drum beats and guitar-noodlin’ solo moments meant to prove that girls are still complicated even nowadays.
According to Billboard magazine, “Stop Stop” “sounds like an outtake from “The Lady Killer,” or at the very least, Gnarls Barkley”. “Nova Baby” is all about universal truths, while the last track, “Mind Eraser”, resounds of their last massive success, “Brothers.”
It seems that for the Black Keys boys, life is all about love, lust, desire, greed, heartbreak and helplessness and people resound to that, so they sing about all that stripping themselves and their music of every trace of irony. All in all, each track is glitzier, catchier, boogier and tastier than everything these guys have made so far. the reviews they got were only positive and the fans’ acclaim is invaluable.
The Black Keys - El Camino Track Listing
1. “Lonely Boy” - 3:13
2. “Dead and Gone” - 3:41
3. “Gold on the Ceiling” - 3:44
4. “Little Black Submarines” - 4:11
5. “Money Maker” - 2:57
6. “Run Right Back” - 3:17
7. “Sister” - 3:25
8. “Hell of a Season” - 3:45
9. “Stop Stop” - 3:30
10. “Nova Baby” - 3:27
11. “Mind Eraser” - 3:15
Album Information
Released December 6, 2011
Recorded 2011 at Dan Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville, Tennessee
Genre Garage rock, blues rock
Length 37:42
Label Nonesuch
Producer Danger Mouse, The Black Keys
