搬運(yùn)自：微信公眾號【評論搬一堆】（在原文基礎(chǔ)上添加了英語原文與排版調(diào)整）

翻譯：Lucia C

校對：Tyler Smith

排版：Peter D

When?the Black Keys?look back, they won’t have regrets about striking while the iron was hot. After the mammoth success of their sixth album?Brothers, which polished the band’s raw blues-rock enough for the radio, the duo raced out two more albums, including 2011’s even slicker?El Camino. They headlined arenas and festivals, touring ceaselessly while licensing their music to seemingly any brand interested—which, for a time, felt like all of them. They were ubiquitous, and their sound became so permanently embedded in the airwaves that casual listeners may not have noticed they’ve been gone.

他們的第六張專輯《Brothers（兄弟）》將樂隊(duì)原汁原味的布魯斯搖滾打磨成了能被電臺播放的效果，并取得了巨大成功，這引得他們迅速發(fā)行了兩張新專輯，包括2011年更加熟練的專輯《El Camino》。他們成為了不少體育場演唱會和音樂節(jié)的首席表演者，一邊不停地巡演，一邊將他們的音樂授權(quán)給幾乎每個感興趣的品牌----那時(shí)，似乎每個品牌都對他們的音樂很感興趣。他們遍布各處，并且音樂在電臺里長久地存留著，以至于一些隨性的聽眾甚至沒有注意到他們不見了。

The duo’s new “Let’s Rock”?follows their last effort?Turn Blue?by five years, the longest gap of their career. As the band tells it, they burned out, though during their time off Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney both continued making music at their typically relentless clip, just not with each other. Carney produced records for Michelle Branch,?Tobias Jesso Jr., Wild Belle, and others, while Auerbach helmed records by?the Pretenders?and?Cage the Elephant?and dropped?a leisurely solo album.

這個雙人樂隊(duì)的新?！禠et’s Rock》出于他們的上一張作品《Turn Blue（變藍(lán)）》發(fā)行的五年之后，這可以說是他們音樂生涯的最大空檔。據(jù)樂隊(duì)所說，他們想歇一歇了，不過在這段時(shí)間Dan Auerbach和Patrick Carney都繼續(xù)做著音樂，保持著他們慣常的高產(chǎn)速度，只不過沒有和對方一起而已。Carney為Michelle Branch、 Tobias Jesso Jr.、Wild Belle等音樂人制作了唱片，而Auerbach負(fù)責(zé)了The Pretenders和Cage the Elephants的唱片，并發(fā)行了一張較為隨意的個人專輯。

For some bands, that time apart might have yielded an epiphany that reshaped their approach. But the Black Keys have never much valued change. They’re focused, workmanlike, and committed to what works. As a result, “Let’s Rock”?plays exactly like the record they might have rushed out right after?Turn Blue.

對于一些樂隊(duì)來說，這么長的一段休整期也許會帶來靈感，引他們對音樂作出改變。然而the Black Keys從來都不喜歡改變。他們如工匠般專注、投入于適合他們的音樂。因此，就算他們在《Turn Blue》發(fā)行后立馬發(fā)行了一張新專輯，《Let’s Rock》和它也不會有太大差別。

This time, they are working without?Danger Mouse, the producer whose modern/retro fusion helped prime the band for their crossover. His fingerprints in particular were all over the psychedelic hodgepodge of?Turn Blue?and its kitchen-sink strings and keyboards. “Let’s Rock,”?in turn, opts for a streamlined approach: just Auerbach, Carney, a pair of backing vocalists (Ashley Wilcoxson and Leisa Hans) and as many overdubs as it takes to get the job done.

事實(shí)上，Danger Mouse的粉飾并沒有為樂隊(duì)的音樂增色或減分太多。但沒有了他，樂曲有了更多的空間給吉他樂段，《Let’s Rock》對此也并不吝嗇。“Shine a Little Light”開頭便涌入了有力的吉他聲，像是那種有個男人坐在椅子上的老音響廣告，整個客廳都被音浪震動。有關(guān)追求刺激和慘痛跌落的“Lo/Hi”甚至更加吸引人，帶有純粹的瀟灑氣勢。

In truth, Danger Mouse’s window dressings neither added nor detracted all that much from the band’s sound. His absence leaves more room for riffs, and?“Let’s Rock”?doesn’t skimp on them. “Shine a Little Light” kicks off with a torrent of brawling guitars, the embodiment of?those old speaker ads?with the guy in a chair blowing away his living room. “Lo/Hi,” about reckless thrills and brutal comedowns, is even more undeniable, pure leather-jacketed swagger.

這次，他們不再與制作人Danger Mouse合作，當(dāng)時(shí)就是他的現(xiàn)代/復(fù)古風(fēng)格融合幫助樂隊(duì)主流化。他的制作在《Turn Blue》的迷幻風(fēng)大雜燴、現(xiàn)實(shí)主義的撥弦與鍵盤中都有體現(xiàn)。然而，《Let’s Rock》卻有著改進(jìn)了的風(fēng)格：只有Auerbach、Carney、一對和聲（Ashley Wilcoxson和Leisa Hans），以及足夠多的加錄（overdubs）。

Most of?“Let’s Rock”?hits its mark, but sometimes the band cribs so overtly from their influences that it feels like cheating off of a test. The guitars on “Walk Across the Water” ape the suave glide of?T. Rex’s “Jeepster," while “Sit Around and Miss You” lifts its lick so shamelessly from Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle With You” that it’s hard to hear it without picturing?Michael Madsen slicing off a dude’s ear. Elsewhere the influences are subtler—shades of?Steely Dan?in the amplified soft-rock of “Breaking Down,” a hint of the?Isley Brothers?in the nimble lick of “Tell Me Lies.”

《Let’s Rock》中大部分的音樂都很優(yōu)秀，然而有時(shí)樂隊(duì)會模仿影響了他們的音樂人，太過公然，像是考試作弊一樣?！癢alk Across the Water”中的吉他模仿了T. Rex的“Jeepster”中柔和的滑弦，而“Sit Around and Miss You”的節(jié)奏則恬不知恥地抄襲了Stealers Wheel的“Stuck in the Middle With You”，以至于聽的時(shí)候難以不想到Michael Madsen削下一只耳朵的畫面（譯者注：這首歌來自電影《落水狗》中的此情節(jié)）。在其它曲子中，這種風(fēng)格影響就不那么明顯了----“Breaking Down”的輕柔搖滾樂中有幾絲Steely Dan的風(fēng)格，“Tell Me Lies”輕快的節(jié)奏中有一點(diǎn)the Isley Brothers的感覺。

If none of those reference points are especially hip, that seems to be by design.?“Let’s Rock”?feels like a deliberate retreat from the limelight, where the Black Keys were always an odd fit anyway. Ambitious? No. Effective? Swish. Just as the album art for?Brothers, with its matter-of-fact text, downplayed expectations,?“Let’s Rock”?is upfront about its meat-and-potatoes aspirations. This is an album by the Black Keys called “Let’s Rock.” It does.

如果這些風(fēng)格看起來不那么時(shí)髦，那似乎正是樂隊(duì)的本意。《Let’s Rock》感覺像是有意地從閃光燈下撤出----反正the Black Keys也從未真正地融入主流。有野心的？不是。有效果的？非常。就像《Brothers》的專輯封面，寫著事實(shí)性的文字，有著讓人意外的簡單?！禠et’s Rock》坦誠而樸實(shí)的目的表現(xiàn)得非常明顯。這是Black Keys樂隊(duì)一張名為《Let’s Rock（一起搖滾吧）》的專輯。它也的確做到了。