Thickfreakness

The Black Keys’ debut, <i>The Big Come Up</i>, is two tons of pounding electric blues; this follow-up is heavier still. Powered by overdriven amps, reverb, thumping kick drums, and muscular riffs, the Keys offer respect to their blues heroes (particularly R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough) while still sounding like a 21st-century band. Guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney strut and stomp through <i>Thickfreakness</i> like they’re exorcising demons. Auerbach, a bona fide blues howler, sounds possessed, moaning unintelligibly as if mere words can’t convey his feelings. Track after track, the intensity of the fuzzy, distorted guitar hooks never lets up, with the savagely pummeled snare and funky hi-hat fills driving home the point. The grimy lo-fi production, brilliantly handled by Carney, matches the band’s primal power and raw delivery. Tempos sometimes waver and an occasional note is missed, yet such immediacy makes the album actually sound better. <i>Thickfreakness</i> is The Black Keys at their filthiest and most furious.