The Black Keys Storm Madison Square Garden

Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys.

The Black Keys pulled something of a bait-and-switch at their Madison Square Garden show on Monday night: they stormed the stage as a quartet, with singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney supplemented by two backing musicians. The band soon proved that they didn't need the additional firepower, though; they cast off the extra players quickly, with a cocksure authority that became the night's theme, and showed unequivocally that they could command the arena alone.

For their first of two sold-out nights at MSG, the Keys remained faithful to their retro-rock ethos of late. The duo's shrewd hour-and-a-half set relied on minimal stage effects, an absence of marquee guests and the rudely heavy riffs of their recent seventh LP, El Camino – the same album that largely eschewed the Keys' blues roots, and not coincidentally, their most successful to date. More than any of the band's preceding material, the songs from El Camino cast a spell over the packed arena as Auerbach wound their hooks into broad, euphoric payoffs.

The Keys' slow-burn success over the past decade has hinged on their egos; longtime underdogs, they exude a kind of triumphal arrogance that was on full display at MSG. The duo opened with the sing-song chirp of "Howlin' for You" (from their Grammy-winning 2010 LP, Brothers), which was impeded by murky sound mixing. It clarified in time for El Camino's "Run Right Back," sped up into a plaintive squeal via the ferocious drumming of Carney, who hunched over his kit and took no solos in the show (no matter to the audience, who howled unabated each time the spotlight landed on him).

 When the band shed their two hired hands (bassist Gus Seyffert and keyboardist John Wood), they hit a stride of ragged, cavernous bombast that belied their numbers; Auerbach's riffs seemed the work of a full cavalry, decadent and drenching the Garden completely, especially on the faithful renditions of El Camino's "Dead and Gone" and "Gold on the Ceiling" and the drawling throwback "Girl Is On My Mind" from 2004's Rubber Factory. This pared-down interlude was the highlight of the set, and a clearly emotional one; the band also offered one nod to their 2002 debut, The Big Come Up, with the swaggering blues cadence of "I'll Be Your Man."

The manic pace was unyielding – the Keys' fervor hardly translates to inert ballads – and it culminated in "Tighten Up," with the Brothers single's roiling pace capped by Auerbach's note-perfect whistling. (Rolling Stone has already extolled his talents.) The band closed out the night with a buoyant, rapturous take on El Camino lead single "Lonely Boy," as Carney hulked over his kit with a determined grimace and Auerbach hopped on one foot in a fitting Chuck Berry allusion, goading the crowd to clap along.

After leaving the stage for a perfunctory few minutes, the pair returned underneath an obscenely large disco ball to deliver the lithe falsetto purr of Brothers' "Everlasting Light" – a song of such featherweight funk that it seemed incongruous when first released, but proved perfectly in sync with the glam inclinations of El Camino and also the Black Keys' powerful vitality at Madison Square Garden. The track wound down the evening as a succinct, poignant statement, a moment in which Auerbach and Carney seemed to assert that they always knew where they were going: straight to the biggest stages in the world.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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The Black Keys Storm Madison Square Garden

Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys.

The Black Keys pulled something of a bait-and-switch at their Madison Square Garden show on Monday night: they stormed the stage as a quartet, with singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney supplemented by two backing musicians. The band soon proved that they didn't need the additional firepower, though; they cast off the extra players quickly, with a cocksure authority that became the night's theme, and showed unequivocally that they could command the arena alone.

For their first of two sold-out nights at MSG, the Keys remained faithful to their retro-rock ethos of late. The duo's shrewd hour-and-a-half set relied on minimal stage effects, an absence of marquee guests and the rudely heavy riffs of their recent seventh LP, El Camino – the same album that largely eschewed the Keys' blues roots, and not coincidentally, their most successful to date. More than any of the band's preceding material, the songs from El Camino cast a spell over the packed arena as Auerbach wound their hooks into broad, euphoric payoffs.

The Keys' slow-burn success over the past decade has hinged on their egos; longtime underdogs, they exude a kind of triumphal arrogance that was on full display at MSG. The duo opened with the sing-song chirp of "Howlin' for You" (from their Grammy-winning 2010 LP, Brothers), which was impeded by murky sound mixing. It clarified in time for El Camino's "Run Right Back," sped up into a plaintive squeal via the ferocious drumming of Carney, who hunched over his kit and took no solos in the show (no matter to the audience, who howled unabated each time the spotlight landed on him).

 When the band shed their two hired hands (bassist Gus Seyffert and keyboardist John Wood), they hit a stride of ragged, cavernous bombast that belied their numbers; Auerbach's riffs seemed the work of a full cavalry, decadent and drenching the Garden completely, especially on the faithful renditions of El Camino's "Dead and Gone" and "Gold on the Ceiling" and the drawling throwback "Girl Is On My Mind" from 2004's Rubber Factory. This pared-down interlude was the highlight of the set, and a clearly emotional one; the band also offered one nod to their 2002 debut, The Big Come Up, with the swaggering blues cadence of "I'll Be Your Man."

The manic pace was unyielding – the Keys' fervor hardly translates to inert ballads – and it culminated in "Tighten Up," with the Brothers single's roiling pace capped by Auerbach's note-perfect whistling. (Rolling Stone has already extolled his talents.) The band closed out the night with a buoyant, rapturous take on El Camino lead single "Lonely Boy," as Carney hulked over his kit with a determined grimace and Auerbach hopped on one foot in a fitting Chuck Berry allusion, goading the crowd to clap along.

After leaving the stage for a perfunctory few minutes, the pair returned underneath an obscenely large disco ball to deliver the lithe falsetto purr of Brothers' "Everlasting Light" – a song of such featherweight funk that it seemed incongruous when first released, but proved perfectly in sync with the glam inclinations of El Camino and also the Black Keys' powerful vitality at Madison Square Garden. The track wound down the evening as a succinct, poignant statement, a moment in which Auerbach and Carney seemed to assert that they always knew where they were going: straight to the biggest stages in the world.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Van Halen Tour Hits Madison Square Garden

Van Halen perform during 'A Different Kind of Truth' tour at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Just eight weeks after playing the minuscule Greenwich Village club the Cafe Wha?, Van Halen returned last night to their natural habitat: Madison Square Garden. The arena is roughly 80 times larger than that basement club – and they filled it with confetti cannons, ludicrously oversized flags, one of the biggest video screens since U2's Popmart and an actual dance floor in the front of the stage where David Lee Roth was able to perform his signature dance moves, baton twirls and high leg kicks.  Had he attempted any of those at the Cafe Wha? last month, he probably would have given concussions to half of the front row. 

Van Halen has been off the road since their reunion tour with Roth ended four years ago, and the band's hardcore fans were clearly pumped up for the show. Scores of drunken, middle-aged fans were belting out the lyrics to "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" and "Everybody Wants Some!!" in the entranceway to the Garden before even getting their tickets scanned. The show began shortly before 9:00 p.m. with Alex Van Halen bashing out a quick drum beat before his brother ran out and played the familiar intro to "You Really Got Me." Seconds later David Lee Roth emerged, twirling a giant silver baton. He was wearing a Neil Diamond-style sequined jacket, a manic ear-to-ear grin and looked not unlike The Joker posing as some sort of demented parade marshal. 

Diamond Dave was also sporting a wireless microphone on his head, which made it easier for him to bust out all of his dance moves.  The sight of Roth in a Madonna-mic took some getting used to, but his voice sounded stronger than it has in years. The singer spent his two post-Van Halen decades playing smaller and smaller venues, and it's clear he's still relishing his return to the big time. It was also immediately apparent that Eddie was in top form. The drunken, samurai-haired disaster of the 2004 Van Hagar reunion tour has been replaced by the sober Eddie of the old days. Thank god. The video screen was enormous, but largely a complete waste. Most everything but Eddie's guitar solo was shown in black and white, and they kept putting up recent still photographs of the band during key moments. (I guess any old photographs are taboo because they'd show a certain fired bass player.) Like so many things in the Van Halen world, it was baffling. 

The setlist teetered between familiar hits ("Runnin' With The Devil," "Hot For Teacher"), fan favorites ("Romeo Delight," "Women In Love") songs from their new LP ("Tattoo," "China Town") and genuine deep cuts ("Girl Gone Bad," "Hear About It Later.") They made sure to never go too long without busting out a giant radio hit, and the fact that tracks from 1984 outnumbered cuts from the new album is telling. Roth even flubbed the lyrics to "China Town." "I forgot the fucking words," he said midway through. "Go to the chorus." Lead-off single "Tattoo," however, sounded shockingly great.  

Wolfgang Van Halen – now 20 years old and slimmed down since his debut as the new bassist five years ago – seemed significantly more confident than he did last time out. His background vocals sounded suspiciously flawless though, possibly lending credence to the fan theory that the group uses piped-in background vocals. It's very hard to say for certain – though the background vocals during "Woman In Love" and "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" sounded like Wolfie and Eddie were channeling Michael Anthony. 

Halfway through the show Roth shed his Madonna-mic in favor of a traditional hand-held one. He also played an acoustic guitar for his spotlight moment in "Ice Cream Man" – which was preceded by one of his trademark non-sequitur rants. "Thank god for dogs or we'd never get that new smell off our jeans," he said as the screens showed video of a dog chasing a flock of sheep. "I'm probably the only rock star who owns livestock for non-recreative purposes…Who likes ice cream?" Shortly afterwards Eddie took center stage for his guitar solo, which eventually went into "Eruption." It was absolutely jaw-dropping, and proof that even after all the crazy, dark, lost years, he's still one of the best guitarists in the game.

During the solo, Roth, Alex and Wolfgang stood behind the drum riser and had what looked like a pleasant conversation. Roth and Alex were laughing, and even putting their arms around each other. We'll never know how the band functions offstage, but it was nice to see some band camaraderie when they were at least out of the spotlight onstage. The night ended with a one-two punch of "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" and the inevitable "Jump." There was no encore, and the band all raised their hands together before everyone with the last name Van Halen walked offstage in unison. Roth stayed behind just a few more moments, soaking up every bit of the thunderous applause.

Now, this was definitely not Van Halen at their peak. It was hard not to miss Michael Anthony, and it's difficult to shake the feeling that Dave and Ed despise each other, but have realized they can't have much of a career unless they work together. At times it felt like they were going through the motions, and the fact that they just did four of the 13 new tracks (and barely did anything to promote the new album these past few weeks) shows that this is a band well aware that their best days are behind them. Still, this is the only Van Halen we have, and this is the best show they've put together in quite some time. 

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Van Halen Tour Hits Madison Square Garden

Van Halen perform during 'A Different Kind of Truth' tour at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Just eight weeks after playing the minuscule Greenwich Village club the Cafe Wha?, Van Halen returned last night to their natural habitat: Madison Square Garden. The arena is roughly 80 times larger than that basement club – and they filled it with confetti cannons, ludicrously oversized flags, one of the biggest video screens since U2's Popmart and an actual dance floor in the front of the stage where David Lee Roth was able to perform his signature dance moves, baton twirls and high leg kicks.  Had he attempted any of those at the Cafe Wha? last month, he probably would have given concussions to half of the front row. 

Van Halen has been off the road since their reunion tour with Roth ended four years ago, and the band's hardcore fans were clearly pumped up for the show. Scores of drunken, middle-aged fans were belting out the lyrics to "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" and "Everybody Wants Some!!" in the entranceway to the Garden before even getting their tickets scanned. The show began shortly before 9:00 p.m. with Alex Van Halen bashing out a quick drum beat before his brother ran out and played the familiar intro to "You Really Got Me." Seconds later David Lee Roth emerged, twirling a giant silver baton. He was wearing a Neil Diamond-style sequined jacket, a manic ear-to-ear grin and looked not unlike The Joker posing as some sort of demented parade marshal. 

Diamond Dave was also sporting a wireless microphone on his head, which made it easier for him to bust out all of his dance moves.  The sight of Roth in a Madonna-mic took some getting used to, but his voice sounded stronger than it has in years. The singer spent his two post-Van Halen decades playing smaller and smaller venues, and it's clear he's still relishing his return to the big time. It was also immediately apparent that Eddie was in top form. The drunken, samurai-haired disaster of the 2004 Van Hagar reunion tour has been replaced by the sober Eddie of the old days. Thank god. The video screen was enormous, but largely a complete waste. Most everything but Eddie's guitar solo was shown in black and white, and they kept putting up recent still photographs of the band during key moments. (I guess any old photographs are taboo because they'd show a certain fired bass player.) Like so many things in the Van Halen world, it was baffling. 

The setlist teetered between familiar hits ("Runnin' With The Devil," "Hot For Teacher"), fan favorites ("Romeo Delight," "Women In Love") songs from their new LP ("Tattoo," "China Town") and genuine deep cuts ("Girl Gone Bad," "Hear About It Later.") They made sure to never go too long without busting out a giant radio hit, and the fact that tracks from 1984 outnumbered cuts from the new album is telling. Roth even flubbed the lyrics to "China Town." "I forgot the fucking words," he said midway through. "Go to the chorus." Lead-off single "Tattoo," however, sounded shockingly great.  

Wolfgang Van Halen – now 20 years old and slimmed down since his debut as the new bassist five years ago – seemed significantly more confident than he did last time out. His background vocals sounded suspiciously flawless though, possibly lending credence to the fan theory that the group uses piped-in background vocals. It's very hard to say for certain – though the background vocals during "Woman In Love" and "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" sounded like Wolfie and Eddie were channeling Michael Anthony. 

Halfway through the show Roth shed his Madonna-mic in favor of a traditional hand-held one. He also played an acoustic guitar for his spotlight moment in "Ice Cream Man" – which was preceded by one of his trademark non-sequitur rants. "Thank god for dogs or we'd never get that new smell off our jeans," he said as the screens showed video of a dog chasing a flock of sheep. "I'm probably the only rock star who owns livestock for non-recreative purposes…Who likes ice cream?" Shortly afterwards Eddie took center stage for his guitar solo, which eventually went into "Eruption." It was absolutely jaw-dropping, and proof that even after all the crazy, dark, lost years, he's still one of the best guitarists in the game.

During the solo, Roth, Alex and Wolfgang stood behind the drum riser and had what looked like a pleasant conversation. Roth and Alex were laughing, and even putting their arms around each other. We'll never know how the band functions offstage, but it was nice to see some band camaraderie when they were at least out of the spotlight onstage. The night ended with a one-two punch of "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" and the inevitable "Jump." There was no encore, and the band all raised their hands together before everyone with the last name Van Halen walked offstage in unison. Roth stayed behind just a few more moments, soaking up every bit of the thunderous applause.

Now, this was definitely not Van Halen at their peak. It was hard not to miss Michael Anthony, and it's difficult to shake the feeling that Dave and Ed despise each other, but have realized they can't have much of a career unless they work together. At times it felt like they were going through the motions, and the fact that they just did four of the 13 new tracks (and barely did anything to promote the new album these past few weeks) shows that this is a band well aware that their best days are behind them. Still, this is the only Van Halen we have, and this is the best show they've put together in quite some time. 

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon MP3 Download Center

Read more »