Dan Auerbach
Keep It Hid
Nonesuch
By Kevin Hakansson
Dan Auerbach isn't exactly a household name. As guitarist/vocalist for the Akron, Ohio based The Black Keys, Auerbach has managed to stay fairly anonymous, considering he's the frontman for a critically acclaimed, Nonesuch Records backed rock group. Still, save for the hardcore Black Keys fans among us, it's unlikely that the name Dan Auerbach would be familiar to your average music fan. With the release of his solo debut Keep It Hid, Auerbach certainly gets his name out there.
For said hardcore Black Keys fans, Keep It Hid won't exactly come as anything new. Frankly, the sound that Auerbach plays on his solo debut isn't all that different from that of his day job. Fuzzy vocals, vintage keyboard, sparse percussion; the bluesy sound that put the Black Keys on the map does the same for Auerbach. Take "I Want Some More," for instance: Auerbach's soulful, distorted lyrics are barely intelligible beneath the haze, while a fuzz bass and bouncy Wurlitzer highlight the mishmash of backing instruments.
Keep It Hid was recorded at Auerbach's own Akron Analog recording studio, and the name of his studio proves appropriate. As he says on his Nonesuch Records artist page, "I’ve got tape machines that I use, and my console is custom-made, 1950s tube style." As such, the vintage-ness of the recordings here is at times jawdropping, from Auerbach's delay-drenched guitar on "Heartbroken, In Disrepair," to his distant sounding vocals on "Whispered Words," to the amazing live drum tone on "The Prowl."
While the Black Keys' most recent record Attack & Release was produced by Danger Mouse, Auerbach takes the reins of his solo debut. However, he does have some help from additional musicians. Fellow studio geek Bob Cesare laid down some drum tracks, cousin James Quine strummed some guitars, and Mark Neill, who helped Auerbach design Akron Analog, engineers. Perhaps the most notable outside contribution comes from Auerbach protégé Jessica Lea Mayfield. The 18-year old country songstress, who also sung on Release, sings with Auerbach on the sparse, gorgeous, "When The Night Comes." Speaking of gorgeous, there's "Goin' Home," with Auerbach's light guitar plucking and sweet lyrics closing the record.
All in all, Auerbach's solo debut came together pretty nicely. Not that it comes as any surprise, but if nothing else, it illustrates that the Black Keys obviously thrive on his songwriting, as Keep It Hid is so stylistically similar. It almost sounds like a less polished version of a Black Keys recording. It's doubtful that Auerbach would take that backhanded compliment as a slight: based on what we know about his recording studio, it's that he accomplished exactly what he set out to do.
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