The big come up

Sunday, August 2, I was a W.E.T. (Work Exchange Team) volunteer at the 2nd annual All Points West Music Festival.  I was fortunate enough to attend the festival for free in exchange for working a few hours at the information booth, VIP Lounge and various other tents.  As my last shift ended, I trucked through the mud on a mission. My body was reacting towards the lower Manhattan wind, which viciously blew the defined-artsy balloons hanging above the festival grounds, making them quiver with excitement.  Last year I remember saying to my friend before Radiohead began, "The wind is an element!" (and though this is common knowledge, when you visualize the New York City skyline, really feel the air whip in and around you, and hear the music pulse deep within your ear drums, it really is difficult to think of anything more than basic elements which appear so magical and new).  The muddy crowd packed like sardines around the Bullet Stage shook  with fevered anticipation, and I waited but 10 minutes to see a favorite band of mine that I have been yearning to see live for quite some time: The Black Keys.  

After going to Bonnaroo for the last two years, All Points West in summer 2008 and a few other festivals here and there, I feel pretty lucky to have seen so many bands I love.  The Black Keys were missing from this list, and boy did they bring it on Sunday.  Playing before headliners MGMT and Coldplay, The Black Keys were the perfect bluesy-rock tuneage for what was a very grimy day.  Grinding out tracks from their latest album, Attack & Release, crowd-pleaser, "Thickfreakness", and the enchanting melodies from Magic Potion, the duet from Akron, OH was (to quote their song title) "All You Ever Wanted".  Vocalist/guitarist, Dan Auerbach, stripped his vocals down to a raw emotion, toying with the east coast wanderlust and pouring his heart deep into the mud in which we stood.  All the while drummer, Patrick Carney, pounced on his drum set like a panther, pounding rhythms that could scare the Hoboken mobsters right out of the Malibu diner and down to Wildwood.  This duet is a match made in musical heaven, and I hope you take a listen.  

Listen to:

"Remember When (Side A)"

"I Got Mine"

"Oceans & Streams"

"I'll Be Your Man"

Thank you, Dan and Patrick, for the perfect post-work, post-rain rockin' experience.