Richard Swift – Target Audience Magazine

A stellar performance by St. Vincent was the perfect segue for the Black Keys Dec. 11 at Philips Arena.

St. Vincent

The Ohio-born, Nashville-based band played music from the new album, “Turn Blue,” which sees the Keys tapping into a Southern groove, exploratory guitar solos and intricately plotted, rubbery bass tones. Less toe-tappingly insistent than their previous releases, the record seemed to pull back from the band’s chart-busting guitar rock formula.

Dan Auerbach’s and Patrick Carney delivered songs from throughout their discography, stretching back to “Leavin’ Trunk,” from the 2002 debut album, “The Big Come Up.”

“Turn Blue” is the album that the band needed to make. It shows that Auerbach and Carney are more interested in following their creative muse than chasing the paper trail.

Although the music has changed — grown deeper, less predictable — the stage show really hasn’t over the years, except the band now utilizes two backing musicians, keyboardist John Wood and bassist/vocalist Richard Swift.