The Black Keys - Attack and Release (2008)

The Black Keys are a blues-rock duo consisting of Dan Auerbach (vocals and guitar) and Patrick Carney (drums) from Akron, Ohio.

Disc Review
THE BLACK KEYS
Attack & Release Rating: NNNNN
Tim Perlich

When Jack White hears this amazing Danger Mouse-produced recording by the Black Keys, he’ll thank his lucky stars he’s got the Raconteurs to fall back on, because Attack & Release has just rendered the White Stripes completely irrelevant.

Any concerns that the Gnarls Barkley braintrust might adversely affect the riotously raw blues-rock sound cultivated by the Akron duo of Daniel Auerbach and Patrick Carney are unfounded. The gutbucket grittiness is still there, but the Black Keys are working with a much more evolved sense of song structure, dynamics, time, tension and texture, which enables them to update classic R&B and blues in creative ways while maintaining the essential Black Keys thrust.

What’s most impressive about Attack & Release is how they’ve raised their vocal and compositional game in accord with the sonic enhancements, bringing an unexpected poignancy to their earthy funkiness. Every track is a stunner. - Tim Perlich

Albums

* The Big Come Up (2002) Alive Records
* Thickfreakness (2003) Fat Possum Records
* Rubber Factory (2004) Fat Possum Records
* Magic Potion (2006) Nonesuch Records
* Attack & Release (2008) Nonesuch Records

Attack & Release