The Top 20 Albums of 2011 - #7 - The Black Keys: El Camino

The Top 20 Albums of 2011

#7 The Black Keys: El Camino

Words by Dirk Calloway

Preface: this series has seen me review the Top 20 Albums of 2011, slowly getting through one per day. If you'd like to catch up on any of the series' past entries, click here.

At the start of 2011, The Black Keys cited exhaustion as their reason they bailed on their planned tour of New Zealand. A believable excuse, but an excuse nonetheless, and many Kiwis have yet to forgive them. The group haven't toured in apology either, so they were in my black books throughout much of the year. Their cancellation stung at a time when the country was reeling from earthquakes, mining disasters and the cockblocked tours of Queens of the Stone Age and Mos Def. Safe to say that the announcement of El Camino's release did little to make us feel better. Except, then... this single was released...


Lonely Boy went some way to redeeming The Black Keys. It's infectious, completely danceable (obviously, considering the video), and - as the album opener - perfectly sets the mood for the rest of the record. If nothing else, it's well timed. The song says "we've broadened our sound further". The video says "we watch YouTube too, we hate pandering to the MTV crowd, and we're a lo-fi rock band. Deal with it, take a swig from this bottle, now let's groove." Perfect.


Let's consider 'The Black Keys Sound' for a second. El Camino sees the return of Danger Mouse as their producer. He's the one who helped them cross over to the mainstream with their record Attack and Release a few years ago. It sounds to me like Mr Mouse has stewed on the sound of that record for a few years ago, and was keen for Round #2. From the opening notes it's clear all involved have something to prove: this is our simultaneous victory lap and our mission statement. 


The only thing I can fault El Camino on is that I like the band's previous record, Brothers, better. The songs on El Camino are middleweights with great training and outstanding presentation. The songs on Brothers are heavyweights who can knock you out with one punch. Make no mistake though, El Camino is a benchmark in tone and mixing for modern rock. It's better than the efforts of Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys and dozens of rock bands in 2011. There's just one other rock group that made a better record... you'll have to read the next few entries in the series to find what that is...


Check back tomorrow for another review. The next one will shake you. Click this link if you want to catch up on any of the reviews you've missed.