Customer Reviews
Breath of fresh air! - By: S. Nash, 02 May 2008 
I love the Black Keys, seen them live a couple of times & own first 3 albums. But for me the magic was starting to wear a little thin! A little one tracked for my liking so much so Ive not even heard the last album. This is great & a real breath of fresh air from 'em. The groove on Remember When (Side B) is totallly kicking & Psychotic Girl is being spun & spun. Not so sure about the "over produced" comments, yes its more than we are used but its a welcome change from the straight drums & geeeeetar! No longer a one trick pony & a great record. What next a collaboration with Jay-Z at Glasto? 5 Stars.
Blues Rock with a progressive tinge....... - By: TCH, 29 Apr 2008 
This album has been universallly praised by the critics & has somewhat divided the fans, my opinion lies somewhere inbetween the two. Apparently so legend goes this album is the result of some songs the Keys wrote for Ike Turner to be included on an album produced by Dangermouse. However when Turner died Dangermouse & the Keys decided to collaborate directly & record the songs intended for Turner themselves. This may be why songs of the songs on the album aren't quite from the top drawer compared to the Keys previous illustrious standards, notably the opener "All You Ever Wanted" which is just a bit dull & the diptych of "Remember When (sides A & B)" at the album's heart which just isn't that great a song to merit two versions (or even one!). However there ARE some great tracks here, notably "Same Old Thing" (a knowing wink being offered here judging from the title), "Lies" & "Things Ain't Like They Used To Be" amongst others. They've definitely broadened their sound to incorporate other influences, notably 60's soul & psychedelia, but without diluting their core essence. How much this is down to Dangermouse I don't know but it must be said that DM's production IS fantastic, tasteful without overwhelming the Keys natural sound & sometimes mindblowing as in the Roland Rashaan Kirk styled flute on the intro to "Same Old Thing", I'd definitely like to hear more of that sort of thing in the future..... I'm hoping that DM & the Keys will hook up again in the future since they seem a natural, if not obvious, match & with a more consistent batch of songs matching the best on this set then a genuine classic could emerge. So nearly but not quite a home-run but still a very fine album from without doubt the best contemporary band out there at the moment.
Free are gone - but the ghost lives on. - By: Mr. N. Peach, 23 Apr 2008 Who could believe that heavy R+B could sound so fresh? The lads have done good. A great blues feel alllied to sound songs & perfect singing & playing. A tad too bluesy for todays taste perhaps but that was what they said about the White Stripes & they did alllright. The comparison has to be made as out of Industrial Heartland USA a invigorating hard R+B is being formed. Free here are your inheritors.
not the same - but different - By: D. Clark, 21 Apr 2008 I can't believe the reviews of this album from some existing black keys fans. Ok the production on this album is a step away from previous albums but is that a bad thing or is it not the band just growing & taking their music on to a new level? I agree that the attraction of their earlier albums is the rawness of the production but this doesn't exactly represent the band selling out & going for No 1 in the charts!!
If I can quote from history, I remember Led Zeppelin III being greeted with reviews of shock horror because it had acoustic tracks but what this album represented was zep moving on to a new level & from their they produced two of the alll time best rock albums in IV & Physical Graffiti. Point being, The BKs could go on forever producing the same stuff but would not get much further forward & a band as good as this deserves to be exposed to as wide an audience as possible.
I think the album is good but maybe not as good as earlier outings & agree with W R Donnelly & Mark Davies that this is one of the few band's creating exciting & original music & this just represents them experimenting with new & different sounds. Who knows where the next album might take them.
I'm giving it 5 stars to try & take the ratings up but it's probably truly a 4 star album - for first timers try Magic Potion or the excellent Chulahoma.
Not more of the same....thank god !!!! - By: Mark Davies, 19 Apr 2008 I'm amazed on how people want bands to stand still & churn out the same music album after album, song after song, riff after riff...zzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Lets be honest, Magic Potion was just boring compared to the high standards set by previous albums Thickfreakness & Rubber Factory. Dare I say this, but they needed to (gulp)...move on, & maybe, just maybe (gulp again) be creative. Imagine my surprise & sheer overwhelming delight upon hearing Attack & Release!!
The Black Keys sound alive once more, the catchy riffs back with `Strange Times', `Remember When Side B', but also tracks like `Remember When Side A' `Same Old Thing' `Psychotic Girl' & particularly `Things Ain't like They Used To Be', which just add a whole new dimension to their sound. Overproduced definitely not, well produced definitely yes, & for me, I hope bands like the Black Keys, Kings of Leon, & others have the ballls to keep on pushing their boundaries, mixing it up a bit, trying new sounds & keep creating exciting & original music. Surely that's what it's alll about?
