Official Lollapalooza 2012 Line-up Video

The highly anticipated 2012 Lollapalooza lineup was announced today.

Performers include Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Black Keys, Jack White, a reunited Black Sabbath, Florence & The Machine, At The Drive In, Frank Ocean, and many many more.

Festival date is August 3-5 at Chicago's Grant Park.

-Turnbull

New Black Keys' Video: "Gold On The Ceiling"

When it comes to their music or otherwise, The Black Keys can be a divisive band around these parts. Evidence of this being shown by Paq's previous post on the group.

I, however, am diggin' the quality of their new video for 2nd single "Gold On The Ceiling," taken from their latest LP El Camino.

I can't tell you the last music video that I've actually liked.  I almost feel like the music video is a dead artform.  In fact, despite being a fan of their studio albums and live shows, I've never really enjoyed The Keys' previous videos either. To me, they have this certain awkward clumsiness to them that I'm just not feelin'.

But this latest clip focuses mostly on the band in live performance; a good portion of it is footage taken from their record release show at Webster Hall in NYC earlier this year.

It's so interesting to see a band hit a point in their career when it dawns on them that "hey, we're gettin' pretty big now, aren't we?" and I think this video captures that feeling.

-Turnbull

Carney Of The Black Keys Talks Too Much

(Photo via buzzbox.com)

Ohhhh MAN! Turnbull and Ram are gonna be pissed at me for writing this! Patrick Carney of the Black Keys talks waaaaayyyy too much...and all the shit that comes out of his mouth is negative. This is disappointing since they have been riding on a high over the last few years, which if your keeping score, is positive. I held back when he quoted off about not making their new album El Camino available on streaming services, which surely resulted in illegal downloads. But beefing with Nickleback for no apparent reason?

Turnbull's Top 10 Albums of 2011

Tens of thousands of albums have been released this past year, so P&B are taking on the arduous task of breaking down our very own Top 10 Albums of 2011 List. This is the first of a 2-part series (Turnbull's first, with Paqman's to follow). We'll break down the albums, EPs, and mixtapes, etc, that made for quintessential listening throughout the year. If you don't see something on here that you feel should've made the lists, feel free to leave a comment or send us an email about it!

10) Theophilus London - Lovers Holiday

Amongst a couple of mixtapes, and a major label debut that I found somewhat disappointing, this 5-track EP captured the true essence of this debonnair Brooklyn MC/singer-songwriter, who sights Prince, Mike J, and The Smiths as his key influences.  London is a fashion savvy street rebel who struck gold with this short yet solid set of tracks.

P&B Approved Cuts: Strangelove, Wine & Chocolates

9) Bon Iver (s/t)

Truth be known, I didn't know what to make of this album when I first heard it, but it certainly has grown on me over time.  This record serves less as an album, and more as a collection of lush 'soundscapes' that conjure up the same feelings of isolation shown on Bon Iver's critically acclaimed debut album For Emma, Forever Ago.

P&B Approved Cuts: Perth, Holocene, Towers

Carney of Black Keys Says Blakroc 2 is a "No-Go"

image via thatessencerare.wordpress.com

In a recent interview, Patrick Carney of The Black Keys stated that despite the trailer that surfaced back in September, a second Blakroc album showcasing the band's collaborations with various hip hop stars, will not see the light of day.

Here's a excerpt from the interview, in which Carney speaks somewhat candidly about the project's status and the band's relationship with executive producer Damon Dash:

From Pitchfork:

We decided to scrap the whole record because it wasn't as fun or as interesting as the first one. It felt gimmicky. But [executive producer] Damon Dash just had a trailer made and put it out. He's an interesting guy. There are really good things about him, and some things that aren't so good-- like releasing a trailer for a record that's not going to come out, thinking it will pressure us to release it. I think the Damon of today is a lot different than the Damon of ten years ago. He really does have an ear for hip-hop, and it's unfortunate that he's not able to exercise that more.

So it looks like at present time, Blakroc 2 won't be coming out, which is unfortunate because not only did I enjoy the first installment, but the trailer for the second release  (which I've now learned was actually made, like, two years ago!) got me excited to hear a fresh new set of collabos.

The first Blakroc wasn't the best album ever created, but myself and a lot of my peeps really dug it.  It breathed new life into the concept of a rap/rock album, and was best appreciated via the "webisodes" that were released in conjunction with the record:  the behind the scenes perspective gave the viewer a better understanding of the collaborative spirit of the recording sessions.

But never say "never" folks ..... Perhaps Blakroc 2 will surface.

Someday.

-Turnbull

Album Review: The Black Keys' "El Camino" Drives the Path to Ongoing Success

image via undertheradarmag.com

The Black Keys

El Camino

Nonesuch Records/Warner Music

Rating: 8.5/10

For me and many others, the name El Camino is synonymous with the Chevrolet model of half car, half truck from back in the day.  While growing up, our neighbour's daughter, Wendy, used to drive a suped-up black one with a red racing stripe down the side.  The thing was a beast...... Our entire block would shake whenever she turned the engine over!

However the actual term, roughly translated from Spanish, means the road or path.

Fittingly, The Black Keys - singer/guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney - have travelled an interesting path to arrive at this particular point of their now ten-year career.  And the picture of an old beat up van on their new album's cover is similar to the one the duo travelled in during their early touring days, so their newest release is symbolic of a "this is how far we've come to get here" type vibe.

Black Keys "El Camino" Drops December 6

photo via blogs.tennessean.com

The Black Keys have officially announced details on the release of their 7th studio album.

El Camino will drop on December 6th, with lead track "Lonely Boy" available via digital download on October 26th.

The album is co-produced by The Black Keys and Danger Mouse.

Track Listing:
1.  Lonely Boy
2.  Dead And Gone
3.  Gold on the Ceiling
4.  Little Black Submarines
5.  Money Maker
6.  Run Right Back
7.  Sister
8.  Hell Of A Season
9.  Stop Stop
10. Nova Baby
11. Mind Eraser

As part of the album's promotion, the band has released this video:



-Turnbull

Black Keys Announce Plans for Blakroc 2 Release

photo via blog.urmusic.ca

Having already completed their seventh album and follow-up to 2010's Brothers, which will be released later this year, the Black Keys have announced that another Blakroc project is forthcoming, entitled Blakroc 2.

Details on an actual release date have not been announced.

Damon Dash is once again overseeing the project, and the list of reported guest MCs includes Talib Kweli, U-God, Jim Jones, Jay Electronica, Curren$y, Sean Price, The Cool Kids, OC, and Wiz Khalifa.

What do you think of the announced collaborations?  Be sure to leave us your comments/thoughts.

Take the jump to check out the teaser video: