The two-man duo Black Keys (singer/guitarist Dan Averbach and drummer Patrick Carney) play raw rock ‘n’ roll blues. They have an organic mood that rises in intensity to suddenly mellow out.

Their first album came out in 2002. The Big Come Up, featured their hits “Leavin’ Trunk,” “Yearnin'” and “Heavy Soul”.

The lead singer rocks with a punk blues style unheard for one his age. The band picks up funk, soul and rock influences from Jimmy Hendrix and James Brown.

The band is known for their wily hit song “Your Touch” from the album, Magic Potion.
Lyrics like, “I want it, you got it so much I’m crazy for your touch,” portray a man in distress waiting for his gal to get back so he can feel her, and needs her and cannot wait.

Just as well known, “the flame” has a very different message. “Out of all the things you’ve ever done this time I can’t go back. When a heart gets broke this many times, it’s easy to lose track.” This time around the music mellows out and Averbach sings about how the man was hurt by his long time lover and cannot go back to her after too many times being hurt.
The albums were produced by Grammy nominated producer, Dangermouse, also known as Brian Burton, who has worked with both Gnarls Barkley and Gorillaz.

Their latest album, Attack and Release features 11 new tracks including, “Strange Times” and ballads like “Sadie, dry your tears I will be the one to pull you through the mere before you come, before you come undone Strange Times Are Here.” At first the lyrics do not make sense but when you hit the repeat button, the song jumps on you with the guitar/bass and drumbeat and you soon understand the amazingly fresh meaning of the song. It may sound like something Led Zeppelin might write, yet it’s nothing but the band doing their thing.

They released the album on April 1, with record label, Nonesuch. The album has debuted on sales charts with #32 in the U.K and # 12 in Australia.

The band continues to sell out their tour dates across the U.S and Canada. The Black Keys will be playing at Lollapalooza on August 1st. There are no recent Black Keys shows in San Diego.