This is a review of the Black Keys' new album Brothers

The time has finally come. One of my most anticipated albums of 2010 has arrived and The Black Keys' Brothers was well worth the wait. It's been two years since their last album, the Danger Mouse-produced Attack and Release. The boys have been busy in the meantime, each being attached to a release of their own (Dan Auerbach's first solo album, the excellent Keep It Hid and Pat Carney's percussionist supergroup Drummer's debut Feel Good Together). They also continued their goal to make the music world a little smaller, working with a slew of rap and hip hop artists on the ambitious crossover album Blakroc and getting started on a rumored collaberation with ZZ Top. There's no question they're making an early run at artist of the decade for the teens.

While these side efforts are a nice gap filler, they aren't a substitute for the blues-soaked real thing. The album starts out in a splendid way with the uber-catchy Everlasting Light. Dan flexes his falsetto muscle here, something we haven't heard much in the past, and pulls it off nicely. It's a groove that sticks and is sure to be my summer 2010 anthem. The first single, Tighten Up, is a reference (in name only as far as I can tell) to the Archie Bell and The Drells song. It starts off with a tambourine and bass beat with a catchy whistled melody before breaking out the killer guitar hook. About 2/3 of the way through there's an extremely satisfying tempo change with a determined, driving beat and transformed guitar effect. The bass line is surprising, previously these guys were pretty strictly a vocals/guitar/bass two man group. I'm not complianing though, Tighten Up is my early pick for 2010 single of the year and I can't get enough. The song stands up just fine on its own, but for a good laugh, check out the associated video or the equally entertaining official video. The next track Howlin' For You finds them channeling their inner Gary Glitter for a total stadium rocker. If I were a pro baseball player, I always said I Wanna Be Your Dog would be my signature song, but I think this one might replace it. There's even a baseball reference about midway through. Mark my words, this will invade minor league stadiums across the country very soon. She's Long Gone is classic Black Keys raw garage blues at its finest. Black Mud is a great instrumental track where Dan shows off his guitar skills with a slinky keyboard accompaniment. Too Afraid to Love You relies on a haunting harpsichord melody and serves as a break in the midst of the big guitars. Sinister Kid, The Go Getter and Unknown Brother are among my other early favorite songs. When I saw the tracklist was 15 songs long I was admittedly a little concerned they may have tried to overextend themselves, that we would inevitably get some lots of killer material mixed with a bit of filler material. So far, my assumption was wrong and this one is solid top to bottom. In fact, the song Ohio, which they released on a split single with a new song by Devo, would have been a very apt 16th track.

Their sound on this one is admittedly less raw than their early releases (a quality one could argue makes their style most endearing), but the shedding of the roughened edges comes with a maturity of sound that's been evolving since Rubber Factory. Attack and Release was a superb album and I acknowledge that Danger Mouse is some kind of musical genius (see the Grey Album). However, on A&R, much like on so many of DM's other work, the extra production may not be necessary. In some cases I don't feel like the bloops and bleeps add much (though Psychotic Girl remains one of my favorite BK songs and wouldn't be the same without Danger Mouse). On this one, I think they've taken what they've learned from the ultra-produced A&R and coupled it with their core garage blues sound to create what will surely be the album that sees them finally and deservedly explode on the national scene.

If they do indeed blow up, it won't be by mistake. The new ads are everywhere and these guys are getting tons of exposure, from radio play to TV commercials to movies soundtracks including MacGruber and the new Twilight movie. My first impression of the new advertising campaign for the new album was that it was a little gimmicky. These guys have always been low key and cool. The new PR theme, from the album cover art to the website to the ads, seemed uncharacteristic. However, I only recently realized that the new album cover is actually an homage to a certain Howlin' Wolf release, which makes it much less gimmicky and much more awesome. These guys know their roots and take every opportunity to acknowledge their influences (see the Junior Kimbrough cover EP entitled Chulahoma).

I have the great fortune to be able to see the Black Keys perform again this fall as they return to the Crystal Ballroom in Portland. This was the site of the show they released as a live DVD two years ago. They've come a long way since I first saw them play in a little shack called Mojo's in Columbia, MO five years ago. If they happen to stop by your neck of the woods, don't hesitate.