Product Description

Their fifth LP, 'Attack And Release' sees US garage rock duo The Black Keys unleashing another blast of rootsy, bluesy and gutsy songs on eager fans. In a departure from usual form, the duo drafted in Danger Mouse to produce the record, lending the sound a comparably polished quality not present onprevious outings. Indeed, 'Attack And Release' is the firstBlack Keys album to be recorded in a professional studio. Furthermore, 'Things Ain't What They Used To Be' features a duet with country singer Jessica Lea Mayfield. Includes the single 'Strange Times'.

Track Listing

1. All You Ever Wanted
2. I Got Mine
3. Strange Times
4. Psychotic Girl
5. Lies
6. Remember When (Side A)
7. Remember When (Side B)
8. Same Old Thing
9. So He Won't Break
10. Oceans And Streams
11. Things Aren't Like They Used To Be

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1043 in Music
• Released on: 2008-03-31
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Of all the two-piece rock bands (Dresden Dolls, The White Stripes, The Kills, John & Jehn) out there making a royal racket, The Black Keys are by far the least affected by the last three decades of popular music, and evolution. Even more so than Jack & Meg. Which makes you check the album credits twice and then seek a second opinion--produced by celebrated uber-producer, superstar DJ and one half of Gnarls Barkley, the ubiquitous and really quite modern Danger Mouse?! No, your eyes do not deceive you, but thankfully neither do your ears. He may have brought a discipline and expensive sheen to Attack & Release, the riffing is buffed up real good, but this is essentially the same band that continues to live less of a life and more a Jimi Hendrix Experience. If there is a change it's that for the first time their foot is teased off the accelerator, with "Lies", "Remember When (Side A)" and "Oceans & Streams" loosening their shoulders and playing a more chilled brand of dusty sunset southern blues, adding in keys and new layers of texture (is that really a flute on "Same Old Thing"?!). There's still plenty of chance, on the massive Zeppelin-esque "Strange Times" and "Remember When (Side B)" for instance, to leave a boot mark though. More release than attack this time around, but the key still fits. --James Berry

Customer Reviews

Brilliant
I was very skeptical with the release of this album. I had heard that it would be rather different from there previous records. Never the less, i was still very excited, being the massive TBK fan i am.

And of course i was extremely impressed with the different, but inspiring songs. Even though i do prefer some of the older albums, Attack & Release did not fail to impress.

Another Cracker from the Keys
Fantastic new album from the Wonderful Black Keys. If you've never heard them before I can highly recommend them if you like Blues, Classic Rock but with a modern twist, similar but better (yes better) than the White Stripes. I agree with some of the other reviewers that it's more polished than previous outing but I don't mind this. Check out their back catalouge now!

The Black Keys - Attack & Release
This really isn't an album i thought i'd ever get into. I had heard of these guys but the whole 2 piece band thing made me think of the White Stripes; who i really don't like. So that was an obstacle i'd have to overcome to keep a clear mind when listening to this album. Also im a bit of a metalhead; favourite bands being Slayer, Slipknot, Tool etc but i do love my southern blues....which i guess is why i love this album. The sheer fact that if you didnt know there were 2 guys in this band you'd never be able to guess. There's just so much going at at once, which is where i think the White Stripes fail, to me it's very obvious there is 2 people there. You've got guitar, drums, vocals and a bit of flute thrown in. You can really hear alot of influences here too. Bands such as Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix Experience and Jethro Tull are all heard in amongst these 11 songs, which are coincidentally three of my favourite bands.

My personal favourites on this album have to be "I Got Mine", "Lies" and "Same Old Thing"; but i think every song has its merits. The slow build up of the opener "All You Ever Wanted" puts you in a false sense of security and the intro to "I Got Mine" blows you out of the water. A song myself i enjoy to play on the drums, not quite anything as hard as Slayer to play but enjoyable all the same!! Every track seems to flow and connect with the next and i fail to see a weak point in the album. Although from reading previous reviews i would seem to be bang wrong as i've seen a few 1, 2 star reviews but then again i havn't heard any of their other albums so maybe im not worth listening to. But i guess i'll leave that up to you. I do kind of feel i'm giving this album some injustice by giving 4 and not 5 stars but i feel i'd have to check out more of their past material to compare, so i feel asif 4 is fair for now.

To conclude, if you enjoy a bit of the old blues and/or some old school rock and roll from the 60's and 70's i urge you to check this album out. This is coming from someone who enjoys listening to Deicide and Nile, if i like it then you must have a pretty good chance!!