I couldn’t get Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney or vocalist-guitarist Dan Auerbach to talk to me this month. One of their publicists and various management spokespeople informed me they’re in a studio working on a new Black Keys album, an early summer release (there will be a July date in Cleveland).
They have been busy, beyond-Keys busy. Their non-Keys product is what I wanted to talk about. But because getting these Akron-based alt-rock stars to talk about their side projects was impossible, this piece will lack the personality of the principals. Too bad, for them and for us.
My inability to converse with them suggests their publicity machine can’t, or won’t, keep up with them, unless that’s part of a grand design like the Black Keys online store, with merch from all of their current projects. Perhaps it’s about mystique, about making yourself so exclusive that you have special value. I actually reached Carney on his cell phone in early January, and he agreed to talk to me a few days later. But when I called his cell at the scheduled time, Carney was unavailable, and he didn’t call me back.
Anyhow.
What's keeping them busy are three Keys-related releases since last spring: Keep It Hid, Auerbach’s solo album, on Nonesuch; Feel Good Together, by Drummer, a Carney inspiration, on Audio Eagle; and BlakRoc, on BR.
Auerbach tell us in his official publicity that he prefers to record on tube equipment at his studio, Akron Analog. His deeply bluesy CD sounds very “live” and is packed with licks that evoke everyone from Bo Diddley to ZZ Top to Captain Beefheart. While Auerbach handles vocals, guitars and several other instruments, this is a band record sonically richer than, if not as explosive as, Keys albums. The Cramps meet Santo & Johnny on "The Prowl" and "Street Walkin,'" swamp-rock goes deep on “Heartbroken, in Disrepair.” I hear the ghosts of bluegrass in the striking “Goin’ Home,” a great track suggesting Auerbach not only knows his Ralph Stanley, he also knows his Koerner, Ray and Glover.
Drummer is a decidedly different affair. It’s a side project for Carney, who plays bass. There are two guitarists, keyboards and vocalist Jon Finley. All are from Ohio bands including Party of Helicopters, Houseguest and Ghostman & Sandman. Four are drummers; this is a band on holiday. It’s also a very good group, a delight of jumpy elegance. The vocals are buried and mysterious, the guitars soar, the keyboards throb, the drumming (as might be expected) burns, and the textures come in and out of focus. I hear progressive rock. I hear shoegazing. I hear drive. I hope Drummer tours; this shouldn’t be a one-off studio indulgence.
Even more unwieldy as a tour prospect is BlakRoc, the Keys’ foray into hip-hop. It’s their collaboration with a gang of rappers and MCs including Mos Def, the sultry Nicole Wray (“Why Can’t I Forget Him?” may not appeal to liberationists, but it sure sounds sweet), Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA (on the hectoring, catchy “Tellin’ Me Things”) and “Coochie,” a funny Ludacris update of a track by the Clan’s late, lamented Ol’ Dirty Bastard. The Keys are in the background here, though they’re credited with much of the composition. Executive-produced by Jay-Z associate Damon Dash (his protégé Noe is a ringer for Jay-Z on the timely “Hard Times” and “Done Did It”), BlakRoc is a deep, satisfying crossover.
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