Song of the Week: The Black Keys Bring the Electrified Funk With “Wild Child”
The post Song of the Week: The Black Keys Bring the Electrified Funk With “Wild Child” appeared first on Consequence.
Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist. For our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, The Black Keys remind us why they’re one of the most reliable rock bands in the world.
After last year’s love letter to Mississippi Hill Country Blues Delta Kream, The Black Keys have returned with full force. This week, the Akron, Ohio duo of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney have announced their eleventh studio album, Dropout Boogie, and shared the lead single, the thumping “Wild Child.”
Dropout Boogie will be released on May 13th, a day before the 20th anniversary of their debut album The Big Come Up, and after forays into psychedelia and 1950s blues covers, it’s clear that The Black Keys are keen on returning to their working class, blues rock roots.
“Wild Child” is a driving, funk-influenced howler, with Auerbach’s expressive, commanding vocals taking the spotlight. The song oscillates primarily between only two chords, but The Black Keys populate each moment with energy, experience, and an untouchable air of cool. It’s a track that will undoubtedly make its way to the higher end of the rock and alternative charts — not because it fits well into the current sound of radio-centric sync, but because it also harkens back to their commercially successful heyday of their 2010 masterpiece Brothers and 2011’s El Camino.
And overall, “Wild Child” represents the fact that The Black Keys still have a great deal of gas left in the tank — their chemistry together is undeniable, and it’s their uncanny ability to create an incredibly cohesive sound and vision of the band seemingly out of nothing that will continue to sustain them throughout the decade.
At the end of the day, all Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney need to do is sit down and play. For The Black Keys, that will always be enough.
— Paolo Ragusa
Editorial Coordinator
Honorable Mentions:
Rachel Chinouriri – “All I Ever Asked”
If the airiness and shimmer of SZA were to meet the grounded grit of Maggie Rogers, it would perhaps sound like Rachel Chinouriri’s latest. “All I Ever Asked” is an easygoing, bright indie-pop offering inspired by the deconstruction of a relationship that was only ever giving the bare minimum. Chinouriri’s voice is enchanting, and the song is perfect for a “soundtrack through everyday life that makes me feel like I’m the main character of this movie after all” moment. — Mary Siroky
REYNA – “you could at least say goodbye”
REYNA are sick of being ghosted, an idea all too relatable in this day and age. The rising duo channeled this frustration at the modern dating scene into a quirky bop, “you could at least say goodbye,” their first cut off an upcoming concept EP of the same name. It’s an earworm, and it’s ideal pop music for this era of romantic in-betweens. — M.S.
James Reid – “Hello 2.0” feat. JAY B and ØZI
It’s a global team-up, but, more importantly, it’s a bop: “Hello 2.0” sees Filipino-Australian singer-songwriter James Reid enlist JAY B (of GOT7 fame) and Taiwanese-American writer and rapper ØZI for an irresistibly catchy jam. It’s March, everyone, and spring feels closer than ever. This track is saying “Hello” to brighter days, windows down, rosé in the sunshine, and brighter times. — M.S.
Chloe Moriondo – “sammy”
Chloe Moriondo’s debut LP Blood Bunny mixed their emotive and dreamy sound with a small splash of violence, and the resulting album thrust them into the spotlight. Now, Moriondo is opting for a different, more specific theme for their next project: puppy love. Moriondo’s new track “sammy” is an adorable and heartwarming love letter to their dog, Sammy, and it’s set to appear on their upcoming EP puppy luv (out April 8th).
Moriondo is as sweet as ever on “sammy,” praising their dog for being “all bark and no bite,” and simply adoring the dog for being so cute and lovely. It’s refreshing to see a star with so much pressure on them make the pivot from writing heart-wrenching, yearning songs of desire and doubt to just writing songs about why their dog is great. And dogs are great — like, really, really great. — P.R.
Alison Wonderland – “New Day”
Ahead of the release of Alison Wonderland’s new album Loner (May 6th), the Australian producer has unleashed “New Day.” The song details what it’s like to emerge from the other side of a dark time and fall in love with life again, as the lyrics “it’s a new day, it’s a new day…” repeat like a mantra. Wonderland sings with forceful promise, bolstered by uplifting synth beats and repetitious harmonies.
The accompanying playful video, directed by Pete Dons and produced by Satien Mehta, backs her optimistic message with spaghetti-western-inspired imagery that fuses psychedelic special effects and whimsical animation. The suggestion is that yes, on this new day, anything really is possible. — Aurora Amidon
Sigrid – “It Gets Dark”
The lead single from Sigrid’s upcoming second album How to Let Go (out May 6th), “It Gets Dark” finds her grappling with being away from her native Norway for two years due to the pandemic. It’s an illuminating, cinematic pop banger, and it will certainly receive some electrifying live performances, when the time comes. Atop hooky guitars, Sigrid sings with a newfound confidence after deep reflection, accepting that she needs to overcome the bad times in order for the good to shine through: “It gets dark, so I can see the stars.” — Rachael Crouch
RVHEEM – “For You”
Liverpool-based R&B artist RVHEEM is embracing vulnerability on his tender new track “For You,” a smooth, minimalist ballad. The sparse production balances his rich vocals, making the track feel earnest and believable. For the singer-songwriter, it’s a chance to lean into connection; for new listeners, it’s a perfect introduction to his sound. — M.S.
Oceanator – “Stuck”
“I feel heavier than I used to,” sings Oceanator’s Elise Okusami on “Stuck,” a song she wrote the day she took home her new baritone guitar. Between relentless wall-of-sound blasts, she mulls over all the anguish and emotional upheavals she’s endured throughout her life, compounding into a burden so hefty it seems inescapable.
With “Stuck,” Okusami deliberately carves out a space to let those emotions loose, as if she’s finally opening the gates of a dam after years of restraint. By the song’s outro, it revs up from an ambling chug to a near-sprint punctuated by a double-kick bass drum. You can almost hear Okusami running towards freedom, more lightweight than ever. — Abby Jones
Kate Bollinger – “Who Am I But Someone”
If the vibes have felt slightly off lately, allow Kate Bollinger’s groovy new single to bring you back to center. Propelled by a crisp beat, a jazzy bassline, and Bollinger’s controlled, understated vocals, “Who Am I But Someone” is a DeMarconian meditation on identity and self-reflection. Fans of Whitney and Faye Webster — the latter whom Bollinger recently supported on a tour — will dig this mellow, mildly psychedelic track. — Spencer Dukoff
Rex Orange County, Tyler, The Creator – “OPEN A WINDOW”
Rex Orange County (born Alexander O’Connor) sounds brighter, looser, and peppier than ever on “OPEN A WINDOW,” a highlight from his new album Who Cares? (out today, March 11th). Featuring Tyler, The Creator — the two also collaborated on the latter’s 2017 record Flower Boy — “OPEN A WINDOW” wastes no time in ushering in a groovy bassline with contrasting strings.
O’Connor’s voice glides beautifully around the track’s jazzy keys, with Tyler’s verse fitting like a perfectly crafted puzzle piece. Rex feels trapped and needs to get out of his current situation: “Can I open a window?/ Can someone open the door?/ There’s so many reasons/ I can barely take it anymore.” Tyler empathizes, his flow and colorful wordplay effortlessly weaving in and out, but he offers a different approach to the situation – “Nah, really, if somethin’ feelin’ dirty to me/ At the roots like a tree, see, I just up and I leaf.” Too soon to call this a song of the summer? — R.C.
Good Looks – “Bummer Year”
“No matter who you vote for, conservative or liberal/ Through piles of god damn money, your voice don’t make a sound,” Good Looks’ Tyler Jordan sings on “Bummer Year.” Ain’t that the damn (harsh) truth. After two harder-rocking singles, the Austin four-piece slow down and look inward on this semi-political song, which grapples with friendships that grow more complicated as the people you once knew grow up and change. It’s a beautiful bummer, but a bummer nonetheless. — S.D.
Bay Ledges – “Float”
Los Angeles musician Bay Ledges (born Zach Hurd) has finally announced his debut album Ritual after releasing a string of excellent, hook-filled singles over the last few years. The latest single, “Float,” demonstrates exactly what Bay Ledges does best: combining a dreamy, comforting glow alongside trip-hop drums and rolling guitar lines. Similar to songs like “Safe” and the irresistible “Up,” Bay Ledges imbues “Float” with a pure, radiant sense of love. His dizzying production choices call to mind the big-room snap of Goth Babe, but the euphoric, guitar-rooted songwriting cements him as a versatile and unique indie talent. With luck, it’ll have you floating. — P.R.
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Song of the Week: The Black Keys Bring the Electrified Funk With “Wild Child”
Paolo Ragusa and Consequence Staff
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