Black Keys freshen up
...with a little help from Beck and Noel Gallagher
THE BLACK KEYS: Ohio Players (Nonesuch)
Verdict: Freewheeling fun ★★★★✩
VAMPIRE WEEKEND: Only God Was Above Us (Columbia) Verdict: Tales of New York ★★★★✩
WHEN The Black Keys decided to freshen up their sound for their 12th album, they asked a few highprofile friends to lend a hand. The Ohio duo made their name playing bluesy rock and roll, but singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney wanted to reflect their wider musical interests as well.
Since forming 23 years ago in Akron, they have supplemented their band activities by hosting ‘record hangs’, where they visit nightclubs as DJs and spin old soul, Latin and rockabilly singles on vinyl. It’s that eclectic spirit that informs new release Ohio Players — and among those fuelling the party mood are Britpop icon Noel Gallagher and genrehopping Californian Beck.
The move pays off handsomely. Their last four LPs were Top Five hits in the UK, and their adrenaline-packed 2011 single Lonely Boy regularly crops up as a soundtrack to sporting events on TV, but Auerbach and Carney have surpassed themselves here: Ohio Players, named after an iconic Dayton funk band who were big in the 1970s, is the sound of a great night out.
Gallagher and Beck bring their A-games rather than adding token cameos. Of the album’s 14 tracks, seven are co-written by Beck. He also contributes as a backing vocalist and musician. Noel co-writes and sings on a further three songs, adding guitar on two.
The Black Keys nicknamed Gallagher ‘the Chord Lord’ due to his habit of cycling through different permutations until he found the right one, and the former Oasis man lives up to his billing. There are two classic singalongs in On The Game, a big, Beatles-like ballad, and Only Love Matters. The third Noel track, You’ll Pay, is a stomping northern soul number.
Beck shows off his pick ’n’ mix instincts with highpitched backing on Don’t Let Me Go, and lead vocals, guitar and organ on psychedelic soul track Paper Crown.
Auerbach and Carney could have been overshadowed, but they rise to it. Auerbach’s rolling bass is key on Paper Crown, and he sings I Forgot To Be Your Lover, a 1960s soul cover originally by William Bell, with anguished passion. Carney plays with swing, adding synths, handclaps and tambourine on Read Em And Weep.
There’s also enough to keep old fans happy. Blues number Live Till I Die has a familiar feel. But, thanks in part to its guests, this fun, freewheeling return mixes the variety of a DJ set with the energy of a great live band.
■ FIVE years in the making, and painstakingly finessed by singer Ezra Koenig, Vampire Weekend’s latest record is a studied affair. Named for a 1988 headline about an Aloha Airlines flight that suffered a decompression, Only God Was Above Us adds gritty edges and sonic twists without sacrificing the group’s melodic instincts.
Formed in 2005 at Columbia University, the New York band broke through with preppy songs about bus routes and grammar rules. But with Koenig turning 40 next week, these new songs are more worldly. He lives in LA now, but The Big Apple is clearly still an inspiration.
The curveballs arrive early. Ice Cream Piano combines punky guitars and swirling strings. Connect is a manic jazz number. The Surfer, all slow, shuffling rhythms, feels like a fever-dream.
Anxieties surface on Gen-X Cops, with its angular guitars and ominous lyrics about sharp axes and dark skies.
But the highlight is Mary Boone. Named after an 80s Manhattan art dealer, it’s a mix of lush orchestrations, an operatic choir and a sample from Soul II Soul’s 1989 classic Back To Life (However Do You Want Me).
Both albums are out today. The Black Keys’ tour starts on April 27 at Co-op Live, Manchester; Vampire Weekend’s on December 1 at O2 Apollo Manchester (both ticketmaster.co.uk).