Others may stomp out the blues with sweet swagger and affectation, but the blues itself rips the song out of the Black Keys' guitarist Dan Auerbach. The band hits the blues vein with an unpretensious refresher, stripping it down and bulking it out with steaming guitar and rattling drums. And like black coffee the Black Keys will get the afternoon's scorcher started.
 
The set builds slowly til "Set You Free", showcasing Auerbach's soulful voice in a perfect Hendrix Allman backdrop. A railroad tale keeps the pace chugging along with Patrick Carney's drums, followed by a Junior Kimbrow cover. If Kimbrow used a battered six string, Auerbach stays to form with his duct-taped classic electric.
 
Last song is from the Stooges, as the blues again breaks the Black Keys and sends them on with a fine caffeine flourish.