On way to Riptide fest, Black Keys’ Patrick Carney talks golf, Alice Cooper and the joy of Beck

“Sitting in a golf cart with Alice Cooper is the most mesmerizing thing, if you’re a fan of rock ‘n’ roll. He has the most mesmerizing rock ‘n’ roll tales you’ll ever hear.”

It was perhaps inevitable that a conversation with drummer Patrick Carney about The Black Keys’ imminent new album, a phone chat taking place in the days before the duo’s weekend appearance at Riptide Music Festival on the beach in Fort Lauderdale, would turn to Alice Cooper.

The iconic shock rocker has for years had a condo by the ocean in Fort Lauderdale, mostly to scratch his itch as an inveterate golfer (Jacaranda is a favorite). But Cooper also appears on The Black Keys’ as-yet-untitled album, voicing a demonic character on a song called “Stay in Your Grave.”

The unlikely pairing came about after Carney took up golf during the pandemic with a Nashville neighbor, John Dittmar, Cooper’s former agent. After introductions, Carney and Cooper have played golf when their paths cross.

“Every time Alice rolls through Nashville, I try to convince him to play with me,” says Carney, who admits his game is not nearly as good as Cooper’s.

“Yeah, I think he can probably bust out a 3-handicap game. He hits the subtle draw consistently, like 230 (yards). And he’s good with the irons, really good at putting,” Carney says. “I want to be single digits by the time I’m 45. I’ve got a year and a half.” (Laughs)

While working on the new album, Black Keys partner Dan Auerbach persuaded Carney to ask his golf buddy, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, to lend his voice to a section of “Stay in Your Grave.”

Cooper arrived at the studio the next day in full shock-rock regalia, eye makeup and attitude.

“We wanted his energy. The dude’s got the most incredible rock ‘n’ roll stories,” Carney says, describing one that Cooper shared about being with Jimi Hendrix in Los Angeles when he first used the wah-wah pedal, which later would define the guitar legend’s iconic sound on songs such as “Purple Haze.”

“They were at Frank Zappa’s house, hanging out. This would have been 1966? At the time, Alice Cooper was living in, like, a shed near Frank Zappa’s house in Laurel Canyon. Frank had just bought this wah-wah pedal and was explaining it to Jimi Hendrix,” Carney says, with a laugh.

Beyond Cooper’s contribution, Carney was reluctant to spill many details about the new album. To the rumor that it will be a double album, he said, tentatively: “There’s gonna be a lot of songs that come out next year. How they come out may be slightly unorthodox.”

He did acknowledge that Beck, a longtime advocate for The Black Keys, is a major influence on the album. While Beck contributed music on the record, it is his playful zen that defines the album for Carney.

“As a kid I remember hearing ‘Loser’ for the first time and, like, when that ‘Odelay’ record came out, it blew my mind,” Carney says. “At the time, I was listening to Pavement, Sonic Youth and classic rock. But the Beck thing to me was like, oh, this is like really f—ing cool, but it’s also really, really fun. There’s humor to it, but it’s not like f—ing comedy rock, you know? It’s not cynical. It was something else.”

When he was 16, Carney met Beck on the tour for “Odelay,” thanks to his musician uncle who got the teenager a backstage pass. Six years later, Carney ran into Beck at a “Saturday Night Live” party and handed him a promo copy of The Black Keys’ second album, “Thickfreakness.”

“He did that thing that no one does, which is he listened to that s–t. And a couple of weeks later, he took us on tour with him,” Carney says.

Working with multiple guest musicians on Grammy-nominated 2022 album “Dropout Boogie,” including Greg Cartwright of Reigning Sound and Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, reminded The Black Keys of the often unforeseen benefits of collaboration.

After years of talking about getting together in the studio, Carney encouraged Beck to make the trip to Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville. They had three songs recorded with Beck in the first three days. Carney says Beck contributes to about two-thirds of the album The Black Keys will release in 2024.

“I started pulling inspiration from that feeling of first hearing ‘Odelay,’ which for me is just a joyful experience. This is really fun music. This isn’t the kind of show you want to go to and cross your arms at. That’s how I would describe the whole vibe of the record,” Carney says.

RIPTIDE RETURNS

The all-ages Riptide Music Festival returns to Fort Lauderdale Beach Park this weekend with an eclectic jumble of acts from across the spectrum of popular music. In addition to The Black Keys on Saturday, the Sunday headliner is Jelly Roll, the red-hot, rap-country crossover who won the Best New Artist award among five nominations at the CMAs on Nov. 8. He’s best-known for No. 1 country singles “Save Me” (a duet with Lainey Wilson) and “Need a Favor.”

The Riptide 2023 lineup also includes producer-to-the-stars (Taylor Swift) Jack Antonoff and his rock band Bleachers, as well as Young the Giant, Dirty Heads, Sublime with Rome, Silversun Pickups, AWOLNATION, Barns Courtney and lovelytheband, among others. There also are locals to look out for, including West Palm Beach band Girlfriend Material and Fort Lauderdale-based singer-songwriter Alex Di Leo.

Newcomers may think of Riptide as a new addition to the local music calendar, but it’s actually been around since 2016. For the past two years, it went by Audacy Beach Festival, before returning to its original name this year.

The Riptide/Audacy festivals have featured an admirably diverse list of performers, among them Lil Nas X, Steve Aoki, Swedish House Mafia, The Killers, The 1975, The Struts, Panic! At The Disco, Weezer, Soul Asylum, The Revivalists, Alice Merton, Boyz II Men, The B-52’s, A Flock of Seagulls, KC and the Sunshine Band, Exposé, and Earth, Wind and Fire.

Here’s how to attend Riptide Music Festival 2023 this weekend:

WHEN/WHERE

Riptide Music Festival takes place from noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Fort Lauderdale Beach Park, 1100 Seabreeze Blvd.

TICKETS

Single-day tickets cost $79+ on Saturday and $49+ on Sunday. Single-day VIP tickets cost $199+ each day. For both days, general admission passes cost $109+ and VIP passes go for $259+. Visit RiptideMusicFestival.com.

PERFORMANCES

Saturday, Dec. 2:The Black Keys, Bleachers, Young the Giant, Silversun Pickups, Lovejoy, Cannons, MisterWives, Beach Weather, Little Image, The Beaches and Jack Kays.

Sunday, Dec. 3:Jelly Roll, Dirty Heads, Sublime with Rome, AWOLNATION, Barns Courtney, lovelytheband, Weathers, The Moss, Girlfriend Material, Alex Di Leo and KC Chopz.

GETTING THERE

There is no dedicated parking for the festival, and even ride-share service can be a hassle as traffic builds on the barrier island. The Water Taxi will have extra boats running Riptide-specific service between Stop 1 (located near the Riverside Hotel on Las Olas Boulevard) directly to the festival site. Boats will be available every 30 minutes from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Round-trip Water Taxi tickets to the festival cost $20 per person, per day.

BRING THIS

These items are acceptable and/or encouraged at Riptide: Credit card, debit card or app payment device (Riptide is “cashless” this year), blanket, beach towel, low-profile beach chair, inflatable couch, nonprofessional camera, GoPro, sealed or empty water bottle (up to 2 liters), clear bag no larger than 12-by-6-by-12 inches (no plastic grocery bags), small clutch bag no larger than 4.5-by-6.5 inches (doesn’t have to be clear), Camelbak-style bag (empty, no pockets), prescription medicine (labeled with matching ID), sealed sunscreen.

DON’T BRING THAT

You won’t be able to get in with outside alcohol or food, glass containers, projectiles (frisbees, footballs, etc.), camcorder or professional camera, coolers or picnic baskets, umbrellas, tents, fireworks, weapons, baby strollers or wagons, animals (unless pre-approved service animal). For the full list, visit RiptideMusicFestival.com.

Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Instagram @BenCrandell and Twitter @BenCrandell.