Record of the Month
The Black Keys
Anticipation as it is, there’s scant need for much more than a fun-sized intro to Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney’s latest blues rock two’s up. Y’know, one in which I would have erstwhile showcased some textbook thesaurus onanism before contriving to spew out a bevy of trite puns. Still…
El Camino references that most inimitable of all crucks – i.e. a vehicle which just doesn’t know whether it wants to be a car or a truck (ta, Urban Dictionary). It’s also the follow up to last year’s ‘Brothers’ – an LP of such fraternal levity that I almost sold both of mine to a man from Helston for a copy. Sibling-trafficking aside, that record – along with ‘Attack & Release’ before it – hinted at a move away from their position as garage blues rock mack daddies to a duo happy to eschew their ostensibly purist roots. For what ‘El Camino’ lacks in rawness (and of recordings less redolent of having been recorded in a dustbin) it replaces with lean refinement.
Indeed, seeing as the LP only clocks in at circa 38 minutes, ‘uptempo’ might well be its strapline. Uptempo yet unhurried. As current single ‘Lonely Boy’ immediately shows, there’s even more concentration on catchy hooks and singalongability (correct – not a word) this time around. Likewise, track 2 – the impressive ‘Dead and Gone’ – is rife with soulful Motown yearnings adorning the guitar tremolo.
Auerbach’s vocals sound as good as ever and his ability to flit between styles is effortless. Exhibit A (aka ‘Little Black Submarines’) is reminiscent of quiet-loud ‘There’s No Home for You Here’ by the White Stripes, while the spirit of the Supremes is recalled via our vocalist-cum-medium on ‘Stop Stop’. No doubt the assortment of styles throughout is amply assisted by Dangermouse’s enviable production presence. Such allusions are grandiose and pop-tastic; the T. Rex glam rock strut of ‘Gold on the Ceiling’ glitters like a bespangled 6” platform heel, while ‘Money Maker’ is a playful nod to the Cramps.
The second half contains such an array of favourites that I’d argue they went and saved the best till last. ‘Sister’ is fabulous; its angelic falsetto and twinkling disco timbre rub shoulders irascibly with the grubby guitar-FX and melancholic musing. That elusive rawness does threaten to creep back on ‘Hell of a Season’. Auerbach eventually loses it and cracks into a riotous guitar solo against Carney’s surge of primal drumming. And, prior to the gospel-themed ‘Mind Eraser’, the anthemic ‘Nova Baby’ is imbued with passion: “I’m falling hard, for every yard / Of the dream you sold me.”
To quote James Murphy entirely out of context, “You Wanted a Hit,” here – have 12. In short, it’s a streamlined album shorn of all excess. Agreed, it is more pop-friendly than their previous records but I fervently don’t believe that’s a bad thing – it only goes to show they’ve got more in their trunk. El Camino may not know whether it’s a car or truck, but cruck me it’s good.
Words: Ben Nicholas
El Camino is out now on Nonesuch. Dan and Patrick play London’s Alexandra Palace on 9th, 10th and 11th February.
