Turn Blue

The Black Keys - Turn Blue
Critic Score
Based on 36 reviews
2014 Ratings: #375 / 1042
User Score
Based on 593 ratings
2014 Rank: #410
Liked by 45 people
Sign In to rate and review

CRITIC REVIEWS

90
musicOMH

This is another step along that path of evolution destined to appear on end of year best album lists, and ... it’s quite possibly The Black Keys’ own best ever long player. 

83
Consequence of Sound

Turn Blue does a bunch of moving around itself, reveling in styles from soft psych and broiling hard rock while expanding to greater heights through multi-tracking and ghostly ooh-ooh vocals.

83
Pretty Much Amazing

El Camino was the sound of The Black Keys flexing their muscles as they reached for that sword, but Turn Blue is the sound of The Black Keys baring their soul and testing the parameters.

80
AllMusic

Songs stretch out longer here than they have on any previous Black Keys LP, but this doesn't feel indulgent due to the precision of the production; things may seem to drift but every bit of fuzz and echo is in its right place.

75
Paste

Overall, Turn Blue is a darker, less linear album—a logical curveball following that Grammy-winning LP’s eager-to-please charm.

70
American Songwriter

Turn Blue is the most masterful representation to date of the duo’s successful transformation from lost-in-the-milieu garage rockers to game-changing, widely appealing songwriters.

70
Drowned in Sound

If you were hankering for a return to their garage-rock roots, then Turn Blue is going to disappoint; however, if you’ve liked where the band have gone since Dangermouse came on board, you’ll find plenty to appreciate here.

70
Exclaim!

Comfortable, but numbing. It all sounds great, but the songs don't sink in, don't push past the surface.

60
SPIN

It's not White Blood Cells or Icky Thump, but at least they no longer sound like they're producing records in a Black Keys factory.

60
NME

There’s a lot to like about ‘Turn Blue’, but it’s a cruel irony that the heaviest hand in Dan Auerbach’s warts-and-all confessional sometimes seems to belong to his producer.

60
DIY

Much like that fancy sports car, 'Turn Blue' is big, bombastic and very well made. Just, at points, a teensy bit ostentatious.

58
Pitchfork

Throughout Turn Blue, it's difficult to tell how invested these guys actually are in the music they're making, an indifferent attitude that encourages the listener to act in tandem.

43
A.V. Club

The band continues to push into more experimental territory on this record, but often that means just adding multiple layers of production tricks rather than deploying them in an interesting and engaging manner.

SnowyFighter
81

Holy shit that cover is disorienting

The Black Keys as a whole are a band that have shrunk on me. I used to love them, and now I just find them to be very generic. I honestly might go through their discography one point though to see if I still feel that way. BUT, this is the one album that throughout my life has stayed consistently great. Turn Blue is where they in my opinion, peaked as a band and wrote some of the catchiest, most powerful, and beautiful songs in their catalog. It’s ... read more

TheCarioca
76

Weight of Love - 5/5 ❤
In Time - 4/5
Turn Blue - 5/5 ❤
Fever - 3/5
Year In Review - 5/5 ❤
Bullet In the Brain - 3/5
It’s Up to You Now - 3/5
Waiting On Words - 3/5
10 Lovers - 4/5
In Our Prime - 4/5
Gotta Get Away - 3/5

pew_lazers
80

Black Keys' Turn Blue is most definitely the oddest and sonically experimental record in their catalog, which is saying a lot since they barely change things up most of the time. It may sound derivative and a little toothless, but savour this thing while it lasts, because we may never get another Black Keys record like this in the foreseeable future, and most of the songs are actually very good slices of psychedelic rock.

I RECOMMEND: Weight of Love, Turn Blue, Fever, Year In Review, Bullet in ... read more

80

Weight of love = Masterpiece. I had the chance to see their first performance live in Montreal. INCREDIBLE.

nailpolish
78

Honestly rock isnt my fav but i did want the exposure, this album is fuckin great and im really glad a friend told me to give a listen.
The bass-heavy sound of "It's Up to You Now" low key irritates me like i just dont find it enjoyable at all. theres not too much of that noticeable so everything else is excellent. My favorites are: In Time, Turn Blue, Fever, and Year in Review.

ScratchGravy
80

I loved this album when it came out, and I still think it's great. This was such a sick switch-up from them, going for a more psychedelic sound and it works so well. Such a cool album.

Purchasing Turn Blue from Amazon helps support Album of the Year. Or consider a donation?
Become a Donor
Donor badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement

Track List

1Weight of Love
6:50
96
2In Time
4:28
84
3Turn Blue
3:42
87
4Fever
4:06
82
5Year In Review
3:48
82
6Bullet In the Brain
4:15
83
7It’s Up to You Now
3:10
74
8Waiting On Words
3:37
76
910 Lovers
3:33
87
10In Our Prime
4:38
86
11Gotta Get Away
3:02
80
Total Length: 45 minutes
Comments (2)
Sign in to comment
1mo
1y


Added on: March 21, 2014