El Camino

Rolling Stone (p.69) - Ranked #12 in Rolling Stone's '50 Best Albums Of 2011' -- "[With] the same tight focus, raw textures and relentless hooks that made BROTHERS great..." Spin (p.73) - "Auerbach and Carney cited the Clash and the Cramps as inspirations, and you can hear their spirit in the speedy blitz of CAMINO's 'Dead and Gone' and 'Money Maker'..." Spin (p.21) - Ranked #36 in Spin's 'The Top 40 Albums Of 2011' -- "Glam-blooze guitar, poppy melodies, and hockey-rink keyboards fit the Keys like vintage denim." Entertainment Weekly (p.72) - "[With the] edge-of-sanity epic 'Little Black Submarines,' a crate-digger thriller that starts as a quiet acoustic hymn, then explodes." -- Grade: A- Uncut (p.76) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "The Black Keys punch as hard as ever, but they're just as likely to slink towards the dancefloor now....EL CAMINO feels like the dawn of greatness." Paste (magazine) - "[A]nother solid rock `n' roll record that features all the qualities early fans of the band loved from the start...and just enough pop sensibility to reel in those ears who don't typically stray too far from the Top 40." Paste (magazine) - "[A] collection of pure, unadulterated rock songs....It's one solid track after another..."

全米3位を記録した『Brothers』から1年半ぶりとなる通算7枚目の新作。ソウル色の強かった前作に比べ、彼ら本来の持ち味であるガレージーなブルース・ロックを基調にしつつ、これまでになかったツェッペリン風のアコースティク・ナンバーなども収録されている。デンジャー・マウスの全面参加が功を奏したか、グッとポップになったのも印象的で、男気一辺倒から良い意味で抜け出した感が。
bounce (C)赤瀧洋二