# The Black Keys: Brothers (your thoughts)



## Darnstrat (Jan 9, 2010)

I've been a fan of the Black Keys for some time now. Their raw, straight-ahead sound makes for interesting music that goes for the throat - there's no silk there.

The new album "Brothers" is still in that vein, but was recorded mostly at the legendary Muscle Shoals studio. Tchad Blake did the mixes for them and Mark Neill engineered and co-produced.

Given that Muscle Shoals and Dan Auerbach's studio have some of the best vintage and classic recording equipment around, the sound is distorted (deliberately - both during recording and during the mixing using the 'Decapitator' plug-in on Pro Tools), I'm curious as to what you all think about the album and the sound of it. Very little compression on the takes, but tons on the mixes.

It could have been one of the most pristine recordings ever, but the Black Keys have always gone for the wonky, distorted, almost lo-fi sound on their records.

So, what do you think? Hi-fi or lo-fi?


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## immortalgropher (Feb 16, 2010)

Depends on the song. In general I'm all for hi fi.


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## maikol (Nov 7, 2008)

Tchad Blake is really the master when it comes down to distorted lo-fi sound.

I listened a bit to some tunes on the Black keys website; Loads of distortion (not only plugs I think), but very musical. Really serves the music well. 

Nice drum sounds, I think!

However, I find the low end, while being there and very nicely dealt with, has something not physical in it that I don't like.

It's something I also heard on Suzanne Vega's album that Tchad Blake did mix, but that I don't hear on old Soul Coughing records for example.

Am I the only one to feel that something has changed in the great Blake's sound?


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