Evolution is key to the success of any band. Today's music fan expects their favorite bands to grow musically from album to album, and there might not be a better example of constant growth in today's music landscape than The Black Keys. The Akron based duo consisting of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney started to gain a cult following with their debut album, 2002's The Big Come Up (which includes an awesome cover of The Beatles' "She Said She Said", a risky undertaking for any band, particularly on a debut album), and that following only grew with their subsequent releases, particularly 2008's Attack and Release. Cult quickly became mainstream with 2010's Brothers, which included the Grammy-winning "Tighten Up". Fresh off the success of Brothers, the band released El Camino at the end of 2011 and that launched them into the stratosphere. The album won the Grammy for Best Rock Album, with frontman Auerbach also picking up the coveted Producer of the Year Grammy, and The Black Keys became the kings of millennial rock. With the release of each album, the band's sound became more refined, and they went from being a two piece outfit to adding a bass player and a keyboardist (unofficially). With their latest album Turn Blue, the band proves one thing: evolution in music does not necessarily mean moving into the future, it can also mean looking to the past.
(Hit the jump for our thoughts on Turn Blue)
