Sitting here fairly bored and perusing the interwebs for lack of something better to do. I just hit one of my favorite blogs, I Guess I'm Floating, and I'm in full agreement with Connor that this remix of The Black Keys' track, "Everlasting Light" is the cat's ass. I love this track in general. This whole spin on it blossoms this out in a whole new light. Since we pretty much have a requirement as a Cleveland blog to represent all things Keys, we share this with you. Enjoy!
You've probably got this one in your itunes already, but if you don't (or even if you do), it's a solid way to acknowledge the shuffliing off of the Captain. Not a lot of text to accompany this thing; it speaks for itself.
Citizen Dick writer, Rob, must sleep on The Black Keys' Akron doorstep, eagerly awaiting any new material that drops. "Ohio" is a track that was previously a 7" exclusive, and is now being offered at the band's website. Enter in your email address and get the free download. I feel as though I dropped the ball a bit yesterday, seeing that it was the 40th anniversary of the Kent State tragedy, an event my own grandfather was involved in as a school administrator. I've not always been on The Black Keys bandwagon even though I live in northeastern Ohio. However, I think the integrity of the band is amplified by how much they give back to their home state. They're always playing small town gigs and never quite lose sight of their roots. I'll also add that I've been wearing the grooves off of Brothers. It's hitting me from a whole host of different directions compared to 2009's Attack and Release. "Ohio" jams out in true Keys fashion. Their gearing up for the August Lollapalooza date, and you can probably be sure to sneak into some unanounced shows if you live in the Akron/Kent/Cleveland area. Be sure to head to the website to register, and enjoy the track.
If the internet was the public library I would've been fined a considerable sum of money for this overdue post. If you haven't had access to the web in the past several weeks, then this edition may prove useful, but in the future, I recommend going to your local library where they will let you use their internet. Let me first say, The Black Keys are easily my favorite and most accesible band. I also really love me some Jack White, but I'm pretty sure he boycotted northeastern Ohio. I have my theories, and if you saw Jack and Meg at the Playhouse Theater a few years back, then you might know what I'm talking about. The show was epic, the crowd was sad. Maybe it was the bottle of Citron I shared with my buddy Matty J before the show and maybe our enthusiasm made it awkward for the rest of the crowd, but it seemed to me that Cleveland was not in the house that night. It must've been Pittsburghians that bought up all the tickets, just like they buy up all the browns tickets when the steelers come to town. Selling your steelers tickets is a "lose-lose" situation in my book. If the Browns win, there's no better way to celebrate than with a bunch of terrible towel twirling hill people. If the Browns lose then some idiot steelers fan, that bought my ticket, gets to celebrate in our stadium. Boo to that. Wow, I get off topic really easily. Moving on…
As you can see I'm throwing the new Black Keys tunes up for your listening pleasure, not the newest songs by any means, but I'm easing back into this thing. My ears were very pleased when I first played "Tighten Up" and if you haven't heard it yet I promise you will perk up a bit when you press play. The Black Keys brought back Danger Mouse for production duties and he treated us with quite a tight track. Attack and Release is probably my favorite TBK album and I imagine it has something to do with how it was produced. Don't get me wrong, I love how the band went about it in the past, but I think the last album really captured what they were capable of. I fear the new album isn't going to be as heavy as I'd like it to be, but neither was Keep it Hid and I still loved it. We shall see and you can expect a full review when the time comes. I'm also adding an "oldie" to the mp3 list and If you're like a lot of people, you probably don't remember what happened to your copy of the Grey Album. Actually, I think you let your girlfriend's friend borrow it back when you had a girlfriend. Right?
This past Halloween I was tipped off by Justin that there was going to be a Black Keys show in Akron this month. Like many, I’m a big fan, so I try to make their shows whenever possible. I even purchased some tickets to the Chicago NYE show (still haven’t found anyone to take the trip with me) prior to hearing about their local show, which falls on Black Friday (11/27 the release date of the Blakroc album). The show is at Musica in Akron, a bit of an upscale intimate club. The show honors Alfred McMoore an Akron artist that gave Dan Auerbach and Pat Carney the idea to name their band The Black Keys (you can check out that link, an article written by Pat Carney’s dad, for more info on Alfred). The concert also benefits Community Support Services. Right now I noticed that there are still $100 tickets available (be sure to use the access code ALFRED). That includes admission to the show, an autographed Blakroc CD, an event T-shirt, and an $80 donation to Community Support Services on your behalf. If you think that’s too much dough, then I recommend you stay in this weekend, and maybe next weekend too, shows like this one are hard to come by. Plus, there’s always a chance there might be some Blakroc performances. I mean, Jim Jones should be at all The Black Key’s shows, it’s one place he probably doesn’t have to worry about getting in a scuffle. Unless some stoner ganks his weed. Dude loves promoting his love of pot. Kids, if you smoke pot, you’re gonna get high, so beware. It doesn’t turn everyone into a superstar rapper.
I’m planning on staying in this weekend, or at least taking it easy. Unfortunately, I got the Browns Monday night game coming up (having season tickets was so much cooler in ’07 and weekday games are best when you have a winning team) and I’m sticking with the “real fans don’t miss kickoff” motto. Shit, kickoff could be the highlight of the game if Josh Cribbs is receiving it. Basically there are two protests going on in Cleveland, in regards to the Browns. Some, lead by local d-bag Dawg Pound Mike, are protesting our losing season by boycotting Monday night’s kickoff, the others “protest the people who plan to protest the Monday Night Football game on November 16th.” My partner in crime Matt (who I will also be seeing The Black Keys Musica show with) and I are with the latter group of protesters. I’m including some Black Keys related tunes (The Barnburners’ song is from Dan Auerbach’s pre-TBK cover band and the Keys’ song is covering James Gang, a band born in Cleveland) and one classic Browns song that anyone who was alive in the 80′s and living in Cleveland will never forget (the quality isn’t so great, but it’s definitely the thought that counts). They all start with ‘B’ for Browns, bonus!
The Barnburners – Train I Ride
Yesterday was quite a let down for most of us at Dick Headquarters. The Browns making it to overtime with the Bengals was more than we could ask for, but losing with a few seconds left was heartbreaking. One of us Dicks, a Bengals fan, was a happy camper though. Good for him, I guess. After the game I chose to drown my sorrows in lots and lots of bacon. It made me feel a little better. I recommend it to all of you carnivores whose favorite team can’t seem to manage a win. In honor of the black cloud over Cleveland today, I decided to post some random mixes of The Black Keys. The second song was mixed by Mr. Dibbs, a Cincinnati DJ. I bet he had a good Sunday.
I like it when I see baby dolls get run over in the street. I like tattoos, and when girls fight. As my colleague James once said, “I like music that makes me a worse person, but in a good way.” I like my guitars tuned down a half step, and when singers go after it vocally. Since music, after all, is a convergence of artist and listener baggage, attitude is crucial. I was weaned on 80′s hair metal, Adam Curry, Headbangers Ball, and all my dad’s old LP’s. As much as I try to be an indie rock-snob, I can’t escape my past. I suppose it’s tragic irony that I now co-run a blog site all about a wide variety of musical styles, forms, and mediums, and while I appreciate and will gladly latch onto many other genre, I’ll never ignore the importance of the blues, stack amps, and les pauls. It’s ingrained.
So this 6-song installment from citizendick’s Best Songs of 2008 is hinged upon that premise. I liked these songs because of who I am. They sang to me again and again throughout the year. When James and I found this broken doll lying on a dirty street in the south side of Cleveland a couple weeks ago, I envisioned this blog post. It’s time to crack skulls. A couple of these bands are psuedo-mainstream. Doesn’t matter. These songs are brooding and delicate. Stomping and sincere. Ghastly and protecting.
I also can’t forget to give a shout out to the three folks in Guam that checked our page on January 3rd. I’d also like to tell our one loyal reader in Peru that we see you down there. Don’t think for one second we didn’t notice…..
