The Black Keys third album in three years, “Peaches!” is like a jam session, with each song recorded mostly live in the studio with few overdubs. It’s a return to the garage-rock glory of their first few albums in the early 2000’s.
Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney are avid record collectors and are joined by collaborators Kenny Brown and Jimbo Mathus rocking through versions of obscure blues and R & B songs. Beginning with a Willie Griffin soul song and ending with an improvised Jr Kimborough hill country blues recreation, the band leans into the rawness with an intentionally filthy approach.
Auerbach cautions that it’s not a cover record as much as it is a retelling of the songs. When his father was diagnosed with cancer in early 2025, he used the sessions as a catharsis to let off some steam.
The fact that The Black Keys have survived through the past twenty plus years as a rock and roll band is due to their ability to keep it real and basic. They’ve had albums with higher production values but they always come back to relying on the chemistry of the band and the groove. Always the groove.