The Black Keys

This week I am going to salute a lesser-known but awesome band, The Black Keys. When you hear them, you are probably going to think that this is some obscure band from the late '60s. That's why I was so confused that their first album came out in 2002. That right there is the main reason I like them: the fact that they are a current band, but they sound like they could have been a band 40 years ago.

I have always been facinated by the blues, but I also love a nice heavy guitar. The successful combination of the two has been very hard for me to find, besides the obvious masters such as Jimi Hendrix. I was very exited when I first heard this stripped-down, hard-driving, blues-inspired modern music, and also that I wasn't the only person that didn't grow up in that era that really enjoys that kind of music.

Now, something else that you might notice on their songs is a sort of thin sound. That is because of two main reasons: first that they have no bass player, it's just the drummer and the guitarist. Second is the recording methods that they use. The reason that they sound so old is because they are using the recording techniques that were used 40 years ago, which is similar to what the White Stripes did on their album "Elephant."

The two songs on the list are "Your Touch" and "Just got to be." Now, I hate to group these two songs together, but I don't have enough to say about each one on it's own. They are both a basic riff-based blues tune, as most of their songs are. I really like these songs a lot, but it bugs me that there is no bottom end to the music (no bass player). I always think about what the bass line would sound like on these songs, and it would improve the songs so much.

The next song is "Have love will travel." The guitar is extremely heavy on the chorus, and I really love it. It seems to make up for the bass line a little more than the other songs do. I really hear a sort of Cream/Hendrix thing going on in this song, but with a little more soul.

"Strange Desire" is the next song I picked. I really like how the guitar sounds in the verse on this song. That echo sort of feel on the guitar is called "reverb" and normally when there's that much of it, it doesn't sound good, but it does on this song.

The next two songs "Strange Times" and "I got mine" will probably sound a lot better to you, and that is because they are both on their newest album where they actually let a producer come in and help them out. That is why there is a bass, and why it sounds tighter. I find it easier listening to these songs because they have a full range with the bass line. "Strange Times" is more of a departure from their normal sound than "I got mine" is. I think of "I got mine" as one of their older songs with a bass line, and that makes me feel better.

"Set you Free" is not off their new album, but it seems to hold up better without the bass than all the other ones. I really love the drums on this song, even thought they are very simple. I've said this before, but I really admire it when a drummer knows how much is just enough.

In short, I really like these guys as a band, but I wish they would have added a bass player sooner than their newest album.