They released their first album, The Big Come Up, in 2002, followed by Thickfreakness in 2003, and Rubber Factory in 2004. October 2005 saw the release of the DVD Live, recorded live at The Metro Theatre in Sydney, Australia March 18, 2005. In 2006 they released Magic Potion, as well as the lesser-known Chulahoma and a single version of Your Touch.
One of their trademarks is their preference for simple, lo-fi recording techniques. They refuse to use big-name studios, and do most recording, producing, and mixing themselves. Most of Thickfreakness was recorded in about 14 hours in Carney's basement, using only an early 80's Tascam 388 8-track recorder. Often, their recordings still have background noises (such as an owl hooting).
The Black Keys have achieved increasing critical acclaim and recognition since their debut album, which itself received praise from Rolling Stone magazine. Time magazine named them one of the "10 Best Acts of 2003" (behind OutKast and The White Stripes). They have supported a number of bands: they toured with Sleater-Kinney in 2003, had a short stint opening for Beck, have recently opened for Radiohead on the American leg of their brief 2006 tour, and performed at Lollapalooza in 2005 and 2007. In addition to this, they were also well-liked by influential British radio DJ John Peel and appeared on both Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Late Show with David Letterman. Famous followers of the band include Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant, Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead, and Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammet. Matt Helders, drummer for the Arctic Monkeys, can be seen in a Black Keys T-Shirt in an interview on MTV's RAW.
Their song "When the Lights Go Out" was featured in the 2007 film Black Snake Moan, and also on the soundtrack for that movie. The Black Keys were included in the soundtrack of the 2003 movie School of Rock with their song, "Set You Free". "Lies" was featured in the conclusion of the February 4, 2009 episode of Lie to Me. One of their songs, "Girl Is on My Mind", was used in a 2006 Sony Ericsson advertisement, starring the tennis players Ana Ivanović and Daniela Hantuchová, gaining the band more commercial recognition. It was also used in a 2006 Victoria's Secret commercial featuring Heidi Klum and could be heard in the movies Rest Stop and Cashback. Their song "10 am Automatic" was used in the video game MLB '06: The Show, The O.C., The Go-Getter, and was also used in a 2007 American Express commercial starring Shaun White. "Your Touch" was featured in a 2007 Lee's jeans commercial, and can be heard both in an episode of NBC's Friday Night Lights and in an episode of "Eastbound and Down". Their cover "Grown So Ugly" can be heard in the background of the going away party in the 2007 film Cloverfield. "Strange Times" is used in Grand Theft Auto IV on the in-game radio station Radio Broker. "Strange Times" can also be heard during a preview for ABC's The Mole, and the trailer for season three of the Showtime series Dexter, as well as a promo for Gossip Girl. Their song "Just Got To Be" is used on the soundtrack for the video game NHL 08, and "Hard Row" is featured in the premiere episode of the FX show Sons of Anarchy. Sons of Anarchy has gone on to use "Keep Me" in both Episodes 6 and 7, as well as "Busted" in episode 7. The song "Lies" is featured in the advertising campaign for the third season of HBO's Big Love. "The Breaks" can be heard in Guy Ritchie' film RocknRolla. "Your Touch" can also be heard in the HBO series "Entourage" in the episode "Manic Monday", during the opening scenes. The song "Psychotic Girl" is featured the episode "Messin' with the Kid" in season 6 of One Tree Hill. "I'll Be Your Man" is the opening theme song for the HBO show Hungand was also featured in an episode of the FX Network show Rescue Me. "Your Touch" can also be heard in the film Zombieland and in an episode of "Eastbound and Down" on HBO. The song "I Got Mine" has been used in HBO's sports reality series 24/7 Pacquiao-Hatton" [13] as well as background music for the 2009 American League Championship Series. The song "Next Girl" is featured in the in game radio of Saints Row the Third.
Their fourth record that Danger Mouse produced Attack & Release was out April 1st 2008. The duo's fifth album is the first one recorded in a proper studio.
The Band's fifth album, "Brothers" was released in spring 2010 and has seen increasing amounts of exposure to the "Dancing T-Rex" video for the song "Tighten Up" that went viral...until the band asked it to be removed because they felt it made light of their music. A proper video was released later in 2010, featuring Dan Auerbach and Pat Carney at a playground and was pushed on the band's official YouTube channel, as well as through the iTunes and Zune marketplaces. The track "Tighten Up" was also used as the background music for a Subaru Legacy commercial and on the FIFA 2011 Soundtrack.
The Black Keys' seventh studio album, "El Camino," was released on the 6th of December 2011. Co-produced by Danger Mouse, the album was released to critical acclaim, receiving positive reviews from The Rolling Stones, NME and more. Melissa Maerz of Entertainment Weekly commented on "El Camino", saying that "El Camino trades the soulful stylings of Brothers for harder-driving, faster-riffing rock & roll". At the 55th Annual Grammy Awards, El Camino won the award for Best Rock Album, while "Lonely Boy" received multiple honors, taking 'Best Rock Performance' and 'Best Rock Song'. The album has sold 1.4 million copies in the United States to date.
The Black Keys' eighth studio album, Turn Blue, was released on May 12, 2014 to generally favorable reviews.
Too Afraid to Love You
The Black Keys Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My gears they grind
More each day
And I feel like
They're gonna grind away
Whoa
And the city blocks
They drive me wild
They're never ending
Mile after mile
I just don't know what to do
I'm too afraid to love you
'Cause heaven on earth
Is in her embrace
A gentle touch
And a smiling face
I'm just one wishing
That I was a pair
With someone, oh somewhere
I just don't know what to do
I'm too afraid to love you
All those sleepless nights
And all those wasted days
I wish loneliness would leave me
But I think it's here to stay
What more can I do
'Cause I'm ringin' myself dry
And I can't afford to lose
One more teardrop from my eye
Whoa
I'm too afraid
I'm too afraid
I just don't know what to do
With myself
Thinkin' all the time
Don't know what to do
Don't know what to do
Drivin' me outta my mind
The Black Keys' song "Too Afraid to Love You" is an introspective cry of help from a man who is afraid of taking a chance on love. The lyrics of the song convey a sense of the singer's insecurity and fear of being vulnerable to love, which leads him to experiencing feelings of loneliness and despair. He reflects on the city, the gears that grind him each day, and the never-ending miles, which all make him more fearful of falling in love. He considers himself just one person wishing that he was a part of a duo, as he sings, "I'm just one wishing that I was a pair, with someone, oh somewhere."
The singer's fear does not stem from a lack of affection or admiration for the person he loves; on the contrary, he believes that "heaven on earth" is in her embrace, and he yearns for her gentle touch and smiling face. However, his fear of being vulnerable to the person he loves is a barrier that keeps holding him back from experiencing love. The singer is distressed with the sleepless nights and wasted days; he is fed up with being lonely and wishes it would leave him. But he concludes his lamentation by accepting the vicious circle of despair and leaves the song open-ended, as he repeats his fear of love and begs for an answer to his dilemma, "I just don't know what to do."
Line by Line Meaning
My gears they grind
My mind is constantly working and stressing me out
More each day
It's getting worse over time
And I feel like
I have a sense of impending doom
They're gonna grind away
I fear that my mind will break down completely
And the city blocks
The urban landscape that surrounds me
They drive me wild
It's overwhelming and chaotic
They're never ending
It just goes on forever
Mile after mile
And it feels like there's no way out
I'm too afraid to love you
I have feelings for you, but I'm scared of what might happen
'Cause heaven on earth
Being with you is the best feeling I've ever experienced
Is in her embrace
Your touch and affection is everything to me
A gentle touch
Your love is patient and kind
And a smiling face
Your happiness is contagious and brightens my day
I'm just one wishing
I'm a lonely person hoping to find someone to love
That I was a pair
I wish I had a partner in life
With someone, oh somewhere
I hope to find love with someone, somewhere
All those sleepless nights
I can't stop thinking about you at night
And all those wasted days
I've spent too much time on my own
I wish loneliness would leave me
I hope to find companionship and love soon
But I think it's here to stay
I fear that I will never find true love
What more can I do
I've exhausted all possible ways to find love
'Cause I'm ringin' myself dry
I've put in so much effort to find love, to no avail
And I can't afford to lose
I can't bear to lose any more time, hope or energy
One more teardrop from my eye
I'm emotionally drained and have no more tears left to cry
I'm too afraid
I'm scared of being hurt or rejected
I just don't know what to do
I'm lost and don't know how to find love
With myself
I'm alone and uncertain
Thinkin' all the time
My thoughts are consumed by the desire for love
Don't know what to do
I'm lost and hopeless
Drivin' me outta my mind
It's overwhelming and driving me insane
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Daniel Auerbach, Patrick Carney
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@SamsButterscotch
I wish this song'd never end.
@dsrosem
All I know is i'm a 53 year old grandma raised on the 70's hard rock .Zeppelin,Deep Purple ,Sabbath.And when I heard this today on the radio I liked it. Rock on.............
@LodeDSVD
thank you The Black Keys for being there, when my ex-girl wasn't
@TakajoMiyazaki
This song helped me so much with my depression... The whole Brothers album helped me with my depression... As soon as my friend showed me one of their songs, I instantly fell in love with them. I'd always think that no one would be able to churn out something this good these days, but my goodness, I was wrong..
@MrP1kollo
My gears they grind More each day And I feel like They're gonna grind away And the city blocks They drive me wild They're never ending Mile after mile I just don't know what to do I'm too afraid to love you It's heaven on earth In her embrace Her gentle touch And her smiling face I'm just one wishing That I was a pair With someone Oh somewhere All those sleepless nights And all those wasted days I wish loneliness would leave me But I think he's here to stay What more can I
@coolsprus101
I love how the whole dynamic changed once the bass kicked in.
@survivor1077
a masterpiece....no words
@machinakos
Black keys do it oldschool like nobody else does it in our days at this level. Thats why they are top band.
@SweetSweetInterpol
A stunning remarkable band. The lack of credit they get for what they do is just more evidence of the absolute state of modern music.
@Prometheus336
...And I can't afford to lose one more teardrop from my eye... geez what a line!!