862 The Black Keys - Brothers (2010)

 862 The Black Keys - Brothers (2010)


Studio Album - Garage Rock




About the Act:

The Black Keys are a duo from Ohio, USA, and have existed since 2001. They have released 9 studio albums.


About the Album:

This album came after a difficult time between the pair, and was their first big commercial success. It was partly recorded at the famous Muscle Shoals studio.


My History with this Album:

None


Review:

It reminds me of The White Stripes - a thought I had before I knew they were a duo. I think this is because of the prominence of the drums. Unlike Meg White of The White Stripes, Patrick Carney is an accomplished drummer. The sound is "garage", partly because it is stripped-back and fairly empty, partly because the production is deliberately raw and gives that feel of being in a garage, with appropriate reverb and use of distortion - particularly on the voice. 

It's also described as "Blue Rock" and I can hear that - it's not strongly jumping on the Blues Bandwagon, but I can hear the music elements of Blues here, and the influence of Blues recordings. It is soulful as well as stripped back. Curiously, it reminds me of Creedence Clearwater Revival in it's gritty, simplistic approach. I'm listening through at the moment, as I write, and the track "I'm Not The One" has a curious mixture of all this and the paddy sound of a mellotron. Musically, I enjoy it quite a bit, the garage approach is an enigma, because it is kind of clumsy at times, and "loose" (as opposed to "tight") but this is done to good effect, and it feels like deliberate stylistic choices rather than incompetence. I think essentially, it has presence, and I think I would like them live.

The lyrics are nice, there is thought behind them, and again I would say they have soul. There is a story behind "Next Girl" which is on Wikipedia, but the one I like most is "Sinister Kid" - it's quite curious. 

All in all I liked it, but I felt it went on a bit long, it labours the point a bit as an album (maybe I'm getting too used to short albums from the 70s). Still, nice discovery.


7.5/10


Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7lhJVTvqL3QbwGN12QLiVj

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYuZQyvnMDdICj-5RacMh9uHDi2ohAsCG

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brothers_(The_Black_Keys_album)


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