Brothers

I think the most astounding this is album his how many songs got airplay. It's not quite my vibe, but I cannot deny the mastery.

Really, don't get me wrong. I like this album. I remember when it came out I adored the delicious American blues rock, delivered energetically and contagiously.

Especially a song like Howlin' For You got me nodding my head to the music and this album came out at a time when the raw and energetic seemed to be disappearing from rock and indie music - where quite a few bands turned to Synthpop around that time. This was, for that moment, a breath of fresh air, even if the music of course lends heavily from the blues from halfway of the 20th century combined with the T*Rex sounds of the 70's.

But now listening back, unfortunately, there are no truly memorable tracks besides the one previously named and there is not enough variation within the song material to keep the album captivating for the full length. After about 10 songs it slowly falls down. Was it a case of style over substance?

In 2010 this was my 4* album. Now it's a 3*

I listened to this on Friday and now, on Monday, I can't say I remember a single thing about this album. I think I liked it?

Biased Review as this is a all time top 5 favourite album for me, from one of my favourite bands. Such a great album and great vibe to it. This album really got me back into rock music after a few years of being into chart and dance music

Tääkin levy alkaa hyvin! Ylipäätään tykkäsin kyllä tästä rockin "mausta" keskimääräistä enemmän, laatua!

One of The Black Keys' best albums for sure. This album is just wall to wall killer rock. I love it.

I like how this album brings the bass fuzz on Next Girl and is very comfortable in it's sonic atmosphere. Howlin For You is an excellent showcase of the power of this sound. I like Too Afraid To Love You, though it leans in heavy on a 60s nostalgia vibe. I love the story about the band getting plastered and asking their manager for a harpsichord. recorded at Muscle Shoals. I go back and forth on whether this is a 4 or a 5. I will be generous this morning.

Man this is a total 3.5 for me. I like it but perhaps not as much as their first few albums. They are a very sonically consistent band which is sort of a blessing and a curse. I do like their general sound, but on the other hand no individual tracks really stick out to me more than the others. I'm going to be generous and round up to 4 because I absolutely love the simplicity and directness of the album cover - at once both bold and humble - which would also work as a pretty apt description of their sound.