''Thickfreakness'' is the second studio album by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

duo

The Black Keys The Black Keys are an American rock duo formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their ...

, released in 2003. It is their debut release for the Fat Possum record label, although in the UK and Europe it was co-released by Epitaph Records.

Background

The band's debut album ''

The Big Come Up ''The Big Come Up'' is the debut studio album by the American rock duo The Black Keys, released on May 14, 2002 on Alive Records. Background and recording The album was created in Akron, Ohio, also known as the Rubber City. As band members Da ...

'' had been tremendously successful for an

independent rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produce ...

band and ''Thickfreakness'' further increased their profile. It continues The Black Keys' tradition of raw, heavy blues-influenced garage rock. Songs such as " Set You Free" won the pair some mainstream success as being featured in the soundtrack of the 2003 film '' School of Rock''. Heavy comparisons to another American blues-influenced garage rock duo,

The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums wit ...

, were often made by the music media.

Recording

Most of the album was recorded in December 2002 during a single 14-hour session in Patrick Carney's basement using an early 1980s Tascam 388 8-track recorder. This approach was necessary because the group spent its small

advance payment An advance payment, or simply an advance, is the part of a contractually due sum that is paid or received in advance for goods or services, while the balance included in the invoice will only follow the delivery. Advance payments are recorded as a ...

from

Fat Possum Records Fat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Water Valley and Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording previously unknown Mississippi blues artists (typically from Oxford or Holly Sprin ...

on rent. The liner notes claim this is Carney's "patented recording technique called 'medium fidelity'". The result is a more vintage sound. The song "Midnight in Her Eyes" is one of the few Black Keys songs that used a bass guitar; Dan Auerbach dubbed a bassline by playing a Guild SG-style bass through a guitar amp into the song. Part of "Set You Free" was recorded by Jeff Saltzman. The album included two covers: "

Have Love, Will Travel "Have Love, Will Travel" is a 1959 song written and recorded by Richard Berry. While the song may have been recorded before the end of 1959, the correct release date appears to be January, 1960. The title is based on a popular television/radi ...

" by Richard Berry and "Everywhere I Go" by north

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

bluesman

Junior Kimbrough David "Junior" Kimbrough (July 28, 1930 – January 17, 1998) was an American blues musician. His best-known works are "Keep Your Hands off Her" and "All Night Long". Early life Kimbrough was born in Hudsonville, Mississippi, and lived in the no ...

Artwork

The cover art was made by Carney's brother Michael, who was responsible for the whole graphical process after the layout of ''

'' ended up done by Patrick Boissel of

Alive Records Alive Naturalsound Records (also known as Alive Records) is an independent record label formed in 1993 in Los Angeles, California by Patrick Boissel, specializing in garage rock, punk rock, punk, psychedelic rock, psychedelic, and blues rock. It ...

. As the Carneys drove around Akron trying to think of an idea, they ended up in a Super K-Mart and eventually found a concept upon finding a can of

pomade Pomade (; French ''pommade'') or pomatum is a greasy, waxy, or water-based substance that is used to style hair. Pomade generally gives the user's hair a shiny and slick appearance. It lasts longer than most hair-care products, and often re ...

. Then they moved all of the lamps in his house into one room to light up the picture, where Patrick handled the pomade.

Reception

''Thickfreakness'' was The Black Keys' first breakthrough album, as it established them as an indie-rock blues band. Their recognition from ''Thickfreakness'' led them on a rigorous tour schedule including opening for singer/songwriter Beck (on his '' Sea Change'' summer tour) in the summer of 2003. According to ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', "''Thickfreakness'' is an album that's meant to be felt as much as heard, rigged with plunging riffs, Auerbach's charcoal-smoke singing voice, and rhythmic pockets as deep as quicksand". It was during this time that Auerbach began writing material for their next album. When the two returned from touring, Auerbach's landlord had sold his house where the duo wrote ''Thickfreakness'' in the basement.

Track listing

Personnel

* Dan Auerbach - guitar,

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

, bass * Patrick Carney - drums, percussion,

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

References

{{Authority control The Black Keys albums 2003 albums Fat Possum Records albums Albums produced by Patrick Carney Albums recorded in a home studio