The Black Keys w/ Arctic Monkeys
Live at Bankers Life Fieldhouse
3/16/12   Indianapolis, Indiana

Bankers Life Fieldhouse? That’s awful. I think I speak for the Indianapolis community when I say that name rolls off the tongue as smooth as cat litter. Like when Deer Creek became Verizon Wireless (and now recently Klipsch Music Center); the local community internal acceptance will take time. Though once suggesting that The Black Keys performing inside Conseco, err, I mean Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Ugh…this will be rough) was once just as unimaginable.

The Black Keys once seemed custom-fit for the grunge of packed smoke-hazed venues with their rock and roll rendition of sour mash blues. As the duo evolved their sound by adding bass and keyboards on recent albums, their fan base has evolved as well. For better or for worse, the Hipster is an endangered species at these shows.

By the time we took our seats, I witnessed the turnaround personally. Behind us, were thirteen year old boys much more concerned with pending scores of March Madness games in-progress. In front of us, the beers were flowing and spilled at a rapid rate. Uninterested (white) guys had their hats tilted to the side while the women are in their slutty dance club uniform and best described as “Woo Girls”. As great but approachable as The Black Keys’ last albums were, this unfortunately is expected collateral damage on a transition to Top 40 radio.

If there were any concerns on whether this music translates well to arena rock, those were silenced when The Arctic Monkeys clobbered us with “Brianstorm”. The epileptic seizure inducing strobes made sure to get our attention in case the wall of dissonance with sharp fuzz of guitars failed. “This House is a Circus” was a fit description as seats and the floor started to fill up. The English lads The Arctic Monkeys are a musically tight unit. Too brash and cocky for my taste but their talent almost justifies it. No member misses a note even with numerous songs featuring off beats to charge the rhythm. Lead singer Alex Turner croons as he would on record with extra reverb to spare. Although their overall set list was uneven with ballad songs like “Pretty Visitors” and “Hellcat Spangled Shalala” tangled with more crowd pleasers “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor” and “R U Mine?” If you have had prior experience with The Arctic Monkeys, this is business as usual but if you hadn’t, moderately intrigued would suffice.

Half the wait in-between sets was tearing down The Arctic Monkeys’ elaborate light/strobe show. The Black Keys stage presence was much more fundamental and modest as a reflection on their barebones musical approach. Guitarist/Singer Dan Auerbach pauses briefly for applause before wailing the immediate electric moan of “Howlin’ For You”. The ample audience serenaded The Fieldhouse and The Black Keys with the accompanying “Dadadada” bridge. Drummer Patrick Carney was furiously graceful with each song. His rhythmic timing was impeccable but he seemed he would pound through his snare after each break. Both sounded rich echoing off the Fieldhouse. Their normally intimate sound was pitched as well as expected for such a venue.

Previously, I questioned whether this brand of music was suited for an arena setting. The Black Keys must have been equally concerned as a majority of this set was material from the last three popular albums, especially Brothers and the new El Camino. As hearing the great songs of “Next Girl”, “Gold On The Ceiling” and “Tighten Up” was the easy and popular route; I still missed the early gritty bar blues of early albums like The Big Come Up and Thickfreakness. The middle of the set was dedicated to spoiled/erratic retro fans such as myself with songs “I’ll Be Your Man”, “Your Touch” and “Girl Is On My Mind” being played in succession. With such an inexperienced crowd, I was one of the few around me who truly appreciated them.

Despite the bus riding pop culture crowd, Auerbach and Carney are far from sell outs. The Black Keys’ are simply avoiding their music from becoming stagnate to a slow brew of what you hear today. Yes, they catered to the new fans by top loading new material and even ending their set with “Lonely Boy”; but in the end – the song(s) are still great. As long as that statement holds true, us moody regulars will still be sticking around these Akron natives.

Change doesn’t need to be so stressful if you stop fighting and just submit. Surrounded by my misplaced neighbors watching The Black Keys, I was reminded of this fact. All within the confines of Bankers Life Fieldhouse! Wow, the more I say it the worse it sounds. Fuck it! You’re still Conseco to me. One thing at a time…change comes in baby steps…