The Black Keys Came To Play!
By Debbie Brautman | Photos: Chis Schmitt
Peaches! is their brand-new album, released May 1, and Delta Kream was their 10th album released in 2021. Hence, The Black Keys named their tour The Peaches ‘n Kream World tour ’26, and it began at The Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida on April 24, 2026. This raw blues- rock duo of guitarist/vocalist Dan Quine Auerbach and drummer Patrick James Carney, supplemented by some very talented musicians, were hypnotic and modernly retro. Jack White accused them of ripping off his music, but they have their own sound. Are The Black Keys blues-rock or rock-blues? They rocked it in a heavy bluesy way, but they sure rocked. In Akron, Ohio in 2001, they started out as young men doing indie, garage, and blues influenced rock. They have progressed far from those lo-fi early recordings made in DIY spaces and carved their own niche. By 2026, they have clearly arrived, and are here to play, beginning their long world tour. We were lucky to see this first and special, memorable performance.
To begin the show, Co-Founders Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney came out alone and did a shortened medley of their early songs “Thickfreakness,” “The Breaks,” and “I’ll Be Your Man.” Dan sported a very thick and longish mountain man beard, dark sunglasses, ripped baggy faded jeans, and green striped short sleeved shirt opened with a black tank underneath for a casual comfy look. Patrick wore a simple red T-shirt with one stripe on each arm. Bass player Eric Deaton, who apprenticed directly under blues Mississippi legends Junior Kimbrough and R.L. Burnside, came out to join the duo playing “Busted” from their 2002 debut album The Big Come Up. “Busted” adopted a guitar lick from R.L Burnside’s song “Skinny Woman.” After, Dan said, “Oh yeah, we’re gonna get our friend Little Barrie to help out on guitar,” and Little Barrie (Cadogan) came out for their 2006 song “Your Touch.” He was outstanding on guitar. It is hard to excel on guitar with Dan Auerbach playing, but he did. Little Barrie played with Morrissey, Primal Scream, Paul Weller and Edwyn Collins, so he is no slouch. He even played guitar on the intro to the TV series Better Call Saul. “Heavy Soul” from 2002 was played and it was heavy and soulful. Then Dan said he was going to get the rest of the crew out. He added, “Then we can make some bigger noise.” “I Got Mine” featured the full band by adding Brother Ray (Jacildo) on keyboards/vocals, Chris (St. Hilaire) on percussion/vocals and Andrew Gabbard on guitar/vocals. He announced them by first name. Chris St.Hilaire looked like a young Frank Zappa and is a musician, songwriter and producer. The full stellar band really complemented Dan and Patrick. The sound quality at the Hard Rock Live was top notch, as usual. It never fails. It is such a great place to see and hear concerts.
Dan thanks the crowd and tells them they have been amazing. With a guitar intro that sounds like Bowie’s “The Jean Jeanie,” they break into their hit song, “Gold On The Ceiling,” from their Grammy Award winning 2011 El Camino album. It was a definite highlight and the audience enthusiastically leapt to their feet. It was a youngish crowd full of die-hard Black Keys fans, as evidenced by many different Black Keys tour t-shirts. There was a nice guitar interplay between Dan and Little Barrie. Songs like this have made this band so successful. “Tighten Up” had the audience singing along. They all seemed to know the words. “How’re you all feeling? C’mon C’mon, let’s get rolling,” Dan yelled. No slacking here. They launched into their cover of Richard Berry’s “Have Love Will Travel,” which they had covered on their 2003 album, Thickfreakness. They made it their own, with the Black Keys swagger. If you are wondering why they named themselves The Black Keys, it was inspired by a local Akron artist with schizophrenia who would refer to people “off center “or “not quite right” as a black key. When choosing a band name, Patick thought it fit their musical style. 2010’s “Everlasting Light” featured a psychedelic visual backdrop of a large mirror ball creating thousands of lit up floating disco balls to go with their 70’s influenced soul of the song. The concert background visuals and lighting for the entire show were superb and really added to their performance. “You Got To Lose,” Dan announced, “is off our new record.” Loads of psychedelic neon green patterned visuals accompanied that song. “Next Girl” is slow and heavy and is more 60’s sounding. It includes the clever lyrics, “Oh, my next girl, will be nothing like my ex-girl.” “Man On A Mission” was throbbing, funky and infectious. You just gotta love it. Dan’s voice was soothing and as smooth as silk. He carries the weight of the band on his shoulders with his perfect vocals and seemingly effortless guitar, but Patrick steadies the ship and keeps the beat and groove steady. The band is in sync, and it all really works well. On “Lo/Hi” the packed front pit area was a sea of people swaying together to the music, as if they were one. More swirling psychedelic colorful visuals. “Who’s Been Fooling You” is from their new album and is a bluesy jam song.
“Weight Of Love” from 2014 was soft, melodic and beautiful. It has some tender backing vocals from the band. Most of their songs are about love, wanting love, lost love and the burdens of love. On this one, he pleads, “Don’t give yourself away to the weight of love.” Dan divorced in 2013, which certainly inspired this song. Influences of Pink Floyd are also evident. “Howlin’ For You” was upbeat and gets everyone back on their feet dancing the night away. It’s another crowd pleaser. “Fever” is from their 2014 album Turn Blue and was the lead single. It blends their garage blues sound with psychedelic grooves and a Motown influence. “Wild Child” is another hypnotic blues rocker, where his sexy wild child has got him coming outta exile and he pleads for her to stay cause he needs her wild child ways. “Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire” is another new song, and fits right in with the natural feel of their latest album, with minimal overdubs. “She Does It Right” was a blasting cover of Dr Feelgood’s song from 1974. “She’s Long Gone” has yet another girl that has gone. “She’s long gone, Like Moses through the corn.” They thanked their fans again for coming out.
Their encore started off with the brilliant “Little Black Submarines” which was another great highlight. That went right into a cover of Detroit folk-rock musician Ted Lucas’ 1975 song, “It Is So Nice To Get Stoned.” No one was going to leave until they played their big hit, “Lonely Boy,” which won two Grammy Awards. It’s a great danceable song and perfect for concerts. The place went crazy and after the big dance party, everyone was totally satisfied. Two hours of rock and roll bliss.
Miles Kane is on Dan Auerbach’s record label Easy Eye Sound, and he opened the show. He is from Liverpool, England and mentioned that this was his first solo show in America. He formed the band The Last Shadow Puppets with Alex Turner from The Arctic Monkeys, and had success with that side project, but he wanted to be a solo artist and had help from Dan and Patrick. They co-wrote and produced his sixth album, 2025’s Sunlight In The Shadows, which has a Black Keys raw sound and feel. Dan said, “I’m so happy to have our brother Miles out with us.” Miles was backed by some of The Black Keys’ musicians and his show was fast paced, high-energy, and powerful. Songs were short and fast with heavy chunky bass, reminiscent of T Rex. His set was well received, and he collected many new fans.
