FEATURE
Dan Auerbach (right) wields his ancient three-pickup Supro (note the six on/off switches)
while he and drummer Patrick Carney lay down tracks for the new Black Keys LP, Brothers.
Describing his approach to produc- ing Neil Young and Crazy Horse, the legendary David Briggs once
declared “The more you think, the more you
stink!” It’s a priceless observation that might
as well be painted on the door of every
rehearsal space or studio where rock and roll
is made. And it’s a beautiful reminder that,
while there’s plenty of room for the cerebral
in great music, rock is fundamentally a thing
better felt than pondered.
Since they began brewing their funky, wicked
stew of blues, garage punk, and soul in Akron,
Ohio, in 2001, the Black Keys—guitarist Dan
Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney—have
been steadfast in their commitment to feel,
instinct, and the magic of a killer tune. They
also work tirelessly. Through 2008, they toured
behind six LP releases—including gigs opening for Radiohead, Beck, and Pearl Jam—and
crisscrossed America and Europe on their own.
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The last two years have been more prolific
still, even by the Keys’ own lofty standards.
Auerbach released an impressive solo slab
of swampy, gorgeous rock and soul balladry
called Keep It Hid and built a studio in his
Akron home, where he continues to produce
up-and-coming bands like Radio Moscow
and the Buffalo Killers. He and Carney also
decamped for two weeks to New York to
help produce and serve as a backing band
on Blakroc, a deeply funky collaboration
between the Keys, producer Damon Dash,
and hip-hop heavies such as Mos Def, RZA,
Q-Tip, and Raekwon that may be the most
realized, organic, and promising synthesis of
rock and hip-hop ever attempted.
This past May also saw the release of Brothers,
the Keys’ seventh and most colorful and varied
release. Reflecting the experiences of Keep It
Hid and Blakroc, it features less of the savage
garage riffery that defined their last half-dozen
releases. But it’s bursting with hooks, delicious
riffs, economical rhythm work, and some of the
gnarliest, most stinging fuzz leads this side of
“Satisfaction.” Brothers was mixed by famed
engineer Tchad Blake (Elvis Costello, Tom
Waits, Los Lobos, Bonnie Raitt, Latin Playboys,
Phish, Tracy Chapman) and it marks Auerbach’s
maturation into one of the most versatile guitar-
playing songsmiths in the business. He weaves
his expressive, rough-and-tender voice around
licks and lines that evoke everyone from Steve
Cropper, Jimmy Page, and Cream-era Clapton
to Ethiopian jazz great Mulatu Astatke, Ernest
Ranglin, and Curtis Mayfield in songs that are
fresh, infectious, funky, and timeless.
On the day of the new album’s release,
Auerbach very generously took time to talk
to Premier Guitar about oddball gear, production, influences, why simplicity and economy rule, and why the song is always king—no
matter how hot the player.
