Out Now: The Black Keys Go Back to the Basement for ‘Dropout Boogie,’ Blues/Rock Duo’s 11th LP (Listen)

Dropout Boogie is the 11th studio album from The Black Keys, released by guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney today, May 13.

Over the years, the blues/rock duo has amassed a global audience on the strength of its tireless work ethic, soulful signature songs and earnest affinity for what came before — an appreciation for the past that brought life and energy to the Keys’ original catalog of music.

Don’t miss our @iHeartRadio Album Release Party featuring a live performance and Q&A about our new “Dropout Boogie” album! Tune in on May 13th at 7 pm PT | 10 pm ET exclusively on @YouTube via iHeart Radio. 📻 #iHeartRadio https://t.co/0CwWriwOvU pic.twitter.com/FZOA9Rb85G

— The Black Keys (@theblackkeys) May 12, 2022

A passion project in every sense of the word, Dropout Boogie is largely the result of a handful of first-takes that a news release characterizes as harkening “back to the stripped-down blues rock of their early days making music together in Akron, Ohio basements.”

They stopped by Jimmy Kimmel Live on Thursday night to play “Wild Child,” the record’s blistering opening track:

A bit about the story of Dropout Boogie, per a news release:

Dropout Boogie will be released one day before the twentieth anniversary of The Black Keys’ first album, The Big Come Up. As they have done their entire career, the duo of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney wrote all of the material in the studio, and the new album captures a number of first takes that hark back to the stripped-down blues rock of their early days making music together in Akron, Ohio basements.

“That’s always been the beauty of the thing Pat and I do. It’s instant,” Auerbach says. “We’ve never really had to work at it. Whenever we’d get together, we’d just make music, you know? We didn’t know what we were going to do, but we’d just do it and it would sound cool. It’s the natural chemistry Pat and I have. Being in a band this long is a testament to that. It was a real gift that we were given. I mean, the odds of being plopped down a block-and-a-half from each other in Akron, Ohio–it just seems crazy.”

Click here to pick up Dropout Boogie on CD from our Rock Cellar Store
Click here to pick up Dropout Boogie on LP from our Rock Cellar Store

Lending even more authenticity to the Black Keys generation-spanning repertoire, Billy F Gibbons of ZZ Top turns up on “Good Love,” a silky boogie to the utmost degree:

Throughout the album, the Black Keys tread that path they’ve navigated so expertly over the years, delivering some of their most inspired new-school-meets-old-school blues/rock to date. They’re an unstoppable force, so dive in and jam out.

The Black Keys also detailed a North American tour, with tickets on sale now. Joining them on the road will be Band of Horses (on all dates), with Ceramic Animal (July 9-30), Early James (Aug. 24-Sept. 9) and the Velveteers (Oct. 2-18) providing support on select dates.

The schedule:

July 9: Las Vegas, NV – MGM Grand Garden Arena
July 11: Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre
July 13: Denver, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
July 15: St. Louis, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre St. Louis
July 16: Indianapolis, IN – Ruoff Music Center
July 17: Chicago, IL – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre Tinley Park
July 20: Saratoga Springs, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center
July 22: Jones Beach, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
July 23: Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
July 25: Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion
July 27: Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
July 29: Boston, MA – Xfinity Center
July 30: Philadelphia, PA – Waterfront Music Pavilion (formerly BB&T Pavilion)
Aug. 24: West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
Aug. 25: Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Aug. 27: Atlanta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Aug. 28: Huntsville, AL – Orion Amphitheatre
Aug. 30: Charleston, SC – Credit One Stadium
Sept. 1: Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
Sept. 3: Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
Sept. 6: Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage
Sept. 7: Detroit, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
Sept. 9: Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
Oct. 2: Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
Oct. 3: Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
Oct. 5: Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
Oct. 8: Los Angeles, CA – The Forum
Oct. 10: Phoenix, AZ – Ak-Chin Pavilion
Oct. 13: Rogers, AR – Walmart AMP
Oct. 15: Houston, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Oct. 17: Austin, TX – Moody Center ATX
Oct. 18: Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion