Tri-State Rock - Latest Updates

On Thursday night, Arctic Monkeys opened for The Black Keys’ second sold out show at the world famous Madison Square Garden.  Unfortunately, the term “sold out” is no indication of an audience’s influx during the start of an opener’s set.  Arctic Monkeys were greeted by a sparse crowd whose demeanor was, well, tepid at best.  This came as no surprise to the indie rock quartet from the UK.  In interviews, when asked about the band’s role in The Black Keys’ arena tour, frontman Alex Turner often referred to Arctic Monkeys as the “warm-up act”, an ambiguous expression rumored to have been of either humility or resentment.  You decide.

As fans trickled into MSG, Arctic Monkeys delivered energizing tracks from albums Favourite Worst Nightmare (“Brianstorm”, “This House Is A Circus”) & Suck It and See (“Library Pictures”, “Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair”).  After a lively performance of “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor” (from Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, 2006), Turner pointed to the growing crowd, saying, “Hey, it’s fillin’ up now.  Look at that.”

Following the release of their seventh studio album, El Camino, The Black Keys embarked on a whirlwind tour with Arctic Monkeys, playing to swarms of fans, including two sold out shows at New York City’s prestigious Madison Square Garden.    Flashback to Thursday night – Grammy winners Dan Auerbach & Patrick Carney entered the stage.  A roaring sea of fans ignited.   The Black Keys filled MSG with their explosive sound, & it was clear: the audience’s hunger for a night of blues rock revelry would be swiftly satiated.

The Black Keys opened with cult favorite “Howlin’ for You” (from Brothers, 2010) to fans’ palpable excitement.   A riveting energy radiated throughout MSG as Auerbach & Carney pummeled through an ambitious setlist with the grace of polished rock gods.  They played an exhilarating assortment of new & old tracks, at times accompanied by bassist Gus Seyffert & keyboardist John Wood.  The crowd violently applauded monster tracks from The Black Keys’ most recent albums, Brothers (“Next Girl”, “Tighten Up”) & El Camino (“Run Right Back”, “Dead And Gone”, “Gold On The Ceiling”, “Money Maker”, “Nova Baby”, “Lonely Boy”).  Auerbach’s passionate guitar riffing  & soulful, bluesy vocals combined with Carney’s fierce percussion to command absolute attention from the sold out audience – an audience whose condition was nothing but obediently & frantically entranced.  The crowd was very involved, singing along to the dynamic movements of “Little Black Submarine” (from El Camino, 2011) & the heartfelt sentiment  of “I’ll Be Your Man” (from The Big Come Up, 2002), among other songs.  Taken aback by the crowd’s insanely loud applause to “Tighten Up”, Auerbach remarked, “I feel like we’ve got the whole city in here tonight.”