Super Awesome: The Black Keys, "Attack & Release"

as i'd mentioned in a previous post, i'm addicted to stealing music. meh, it's a flaw. what can i say? so last night, i stumbled upon an early leak of the new Black Keys album, Attack & Release. (not to be confused with Simian Mobile Disco's, Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release. really, quite different albums...)

anyhow, so, unable to resist the urge to snatch it up, i downloaded it and listened to it on my way to work this morning. i'm on my second listen right now.

i gotta admit, i hadn't really listened to Black Keys much before (always a little late to the party, i tell ya...). funny story actually. embarrassingly enough, i got confused as to what band i'm going to see on saturday (it's the Black Lips), and thought it was the Black Keys (coming in April, but i'll be back east when they're in town...)...anyhow, chaos ensues, marked by massive confusion on my part (fairly typical, i'd say) and i finish downloading this album only after realizing i'm seeing the Black Lips on saturday, not the Black Keys. (i have too many "Black" bands in my ipod and it's enormously confusing for a simple minded gal as myself)

so, a few things about this album:
1. It's really excellent. The sound is southern-rockish (at least to me), sort of haunting, sort of old-school (for lack of a better term). I wish I knew more about musical production and stuff because "Remember When (Side A)" has me sort of entranced at the moment. There's a weird echo-y sound going through the background and it's so beautiful. It's almost country in a way.

2. Interestingly enough, after "Remember When (Side A)" comes "Remember When (Side B)" which is the exact opposite in terms of sound and energy. It's rock'n'roll. That's all I can really say.

3. Perhaps most importantly (to me), is the fact that this album was produced by Danger Mouse. And like, I've sort of noticed a recurring theme with Danger Mouse. Everything he does is super. Seriously. The Grey Album, which isn't great in terms of the sound and listen-ability so much, but the fact that it was really one of the first (in my world, anyways) mainstream mash-ups that really got recognized. The juxtaposition of classic Beatles with a rapper who will probably end up being considered quite relevant as time progresses, Jay-Z, is interesting and kind of cleared the way for some other versions of this. Most recent, that I've heard is a Jay-Z/Led Zepplin mash-up by Dj Doc Rok, called American Zepplin. (not great, but i gave it a listen for kitsch's sake). So back to Danger Mouse. So there was The Grey Album, and then he did Gnarls Barkley with Cee-Lo. And I don't really care if it's not cool, I really liked that album a lot, and still give it a listen every now and again. Another album is in the works, I believe, so it'll be interesting to see if the energy and sound remain constant, or if Gnarls Barkley was a one-time fluke thing. Then there's the Gorillaz, Demon Days, which I really loved. And the creativity behind that is just ridiculous, you must admit. The whole concept is so fun. And new. And then he did work with Damon Albarn's project, The Good, The Bad, and The Queen. Another excellent work, in my opinion. (Side note: seeing them live was sort of surreal...I mean, it's Damon Albarn. and (sigh) Paul Simonon. and Tony Allen. and Simon Tong. truly a great show. Albarn and Simonon are rock stars in the purest sense of the word. Showmen...performers...totally swoon-worthy.) And something else I just found out was that he also did work on The Rapture's album as well. Again, I don't care how un-cool it may be to like The Rapture, I do. Even if they did fucking suck a big fat dick when they opened for Daft Punk this summer in Brooklyn. (Seriously guys? Like, you're musicians. Who cares if one of your keyboards isn't working the way it should. The show must go on.) And lets not forget about his work with MF Doom. God, I fucking love that album.

I guess what I'm slowly coming to realize is that everything Danger Mouse touches is gold in my book, no matter the "genre," and no matter who he actually works with. And really. Like, the man loves costumes. What's not to love?

with Cee-Lo as Pedro and Napoleon Dynamite.

with MF Doom as Freddie and Jason.

and by himself as the Tin Man (my personal fave.)

And this Black Keys album is really no different. It's rock 'n' roll with definite roots in southern rock and old style country. The whole album is easy to listen to. And the haunting sadness sorta thing has got me hooked. Especially the last track on the album, "Things Ain't Like They Used To Be." It's so fucking good...the slow twangy guitar, the lyrics. Everything is perfect. I'm obsessed with it right now.

Get this album.