"Usually when we play in New York, people act kinda [makes hand gesture implying aloofness], you know what I mean?" quipped Black Keys guitarist/vocalist Dan Auerbach. "But you all seem to know what's goin' on. Y'all must be from out of state or something."
As a veteran of countless NYC shows where the "semi-circle of shame" at the front of the stage remains frustratingly unoccupied by show-goers (other than my goofy ass), truer words were never spoken. But tonight's Black Keys show was such a humdinger that only someone who's stone dead would be able to resist hopping up and down like a retard with his head cut off.
9 days into living in Brooklyn, I'm getting used to taking subways places instead of the LIRR/cab nonsense I've dealt with these last several years. Got to the venue at 7:30, ate a spicy chicken shish kebab, and headed inside shortly thereafter. Terminal 5's notoriously, um, "thorough" security checkpoint struck again, however, as this time in the process of checking my left breast pocket for God knows what, the security dude accidentally (um, I think) flipped my left boobie, causing a cohort to giggle. Of course, I chimed in with a "hey, that ain't free, buddy" and a "how's about dinner and a movie next time?" to the amusement of none.
Openers Buffalo Killers took the stage around eightish. I'm not really much for straight-up country-fried blues and these guys weren't about to change my mind. Between the guitarist's rudimentary noodling and the drummer slavishly pounding out sixteenth notes on his toms in every fucking song, I was unimpressed. But the bassist kind of looked like a Warren Haynes/Jim James love child, which was somewhat amusing, and at least half appropriate considering that at times these guys kind of managed to approximate a less-jammy Gov't Mule.
Considering that the Black Keys also play bluesy shit, it's incredible to consider how totally different their presentation was in comparison to that of the opener. Guitarist Dan Auerbach is truly a skilled frontman, treating the crowd to a mesmerizing display of energetic showmanship. At times pogoing up and down, at times racing up on the drum riser and at times dazzling with his awesome left-handed legato, Auerbach's stage moves were pure Hendrix. And drummer Patrick Carney's seemingly telepathic understanding of dynamics -- specifically, knowing exactly what approach to bring to a given song -- hammers home that this ain't a two-piece in the White Stripes mold, but one in which both members' abilities have ample room to shine.
Musically, the vibe was kept largely kept up to the level of a scorching barn-burner throughout, with even the slower numbers usually having headbangable cymbal-led segments. As I learned the first time I saw the band (in November '06 at Nokia Theater in Times Square), the peace in the (musical) valleys is fleeting, crammed between boisterous rave-ups at every turn. Although the Black Keys' recent album, Attack and Release, isn't as raw as it should be, it was refreshing to hear things as garagey as ever in the live setting, unmolested by the meddling of some hack. And as the band brought the house down with a ballsy, set-closing version of "I Got Mine," it made me eager for an upturn in the Black Keys' post-Danger Mouse universe.
Post show note: a big thanks to the guys selling nitrous balloons post show. I haven't hit that shit in nearly four years, although I wisely limited myself to one balloon before amscray-ing towards the Columbus Circle subway. Said inhalants are fun but incredibly addictive; to paraphrase Dee Dee Ramone, "what a party, you can't get your head out of that bag."
