There is arguably no genre better suited to a live show than the good ol’ institution of rock’n’roll. Stars have been filling out stadiums for decades, and it’s no secret as to how— the electric guitar is meant to be heard at the highest volume possible, with drones of fans singing along. Anyone preaching that ‘rock is dead’ have clearly not seen Ohio’s The Black Keys in recent years, as the duo continue to capture that magic whenever they take to the stage: their recent show at London’s historic Alexandra Palace was just about everything you could ask for, and then a bucketload more.

Alex Spencer

Muswell Hill was already looking fairly full by the late afternoon when up-and-coming opening act Alex Spencer took to the stage— even if the audience would only grow increasingly numerous across the night, Spencer certainly had eyes on him at Alexandra Palace. The Manchester-based singer is only 18 years old (as he was sure to let you know) yet took to the stage with some self-assured confidence: this was no local pub gig, after all, and the four-piece were seizing the opportunity to show off their brand of indie rock. Spencer himself was clearly the standout of the bunch, taking every opportunity to bound his way across the stage and swish his hair around— he was a charming performer, undoubtedly, even if the rest of the band were a little more static on stage than their bouncy tunes were calling for.

The band’s setlist wasn’t the most original in the world, admittedly: indie rock is hardly a genre in short supply, and Alex Spencer is yet another writer taking a hefty dose of inspiration from the likes of Sam Fender. Even still, cuts like ‘Do What I Wanna’ had an infectious groove to them that kicked the event off on the right note. Spencer’s acoustic offerings may not have packed the hard rock punch that the show’s headliners pride themselves on, and may not have garnered quite the same audience response either, but neither point is much criticism— the frontman would urge the crowd to “enjoy!” every track, and songs like ‘Nightmares’ and ‘Clouded Thinking’ didn’t make that all-too difficult.

Miles Kane

Before he even took to the stage, Miles Kane made quite an impression on the back of his stage get-up alone: everything, from the drum skins to the amps, was swathed in leopard print, hinting at the extreme bravado Kane would be bringing to Alexandra Palace. The supporting act was an incredibly confident one, full of all the crowd-engagement and flamboyance of a headliner— the crowd were getting into it as well, with ‘Come Closer’ earning a respectable amount of singing along by the set’s end. In many ways, Kane proved himself as a star, even if the best moments of the show came when the rest of the band provided heaps of vocal harmonies and instrumental flourishes.

The show proved itself to be all-over-the-place musically, pulling from everywhere from sunny indie rock to punchy britpop— it was a set that lived or died by the quality of its sing-along hooks, which could be something of a mixed bag. As you might expect, the rock-oriented crowd responded best to Kane’s most energetic material: the funky bass grooves on cuts like ‘Inhaler’ and ‘Coup De Grace’ were a particularly noteworthy addition deserving of some dancing. At other times though, the show seemed to lose some of its lustre— more mellow single ‘Love Is Cruel’ killed some of the show’s momentum, while the repetitive chorus of ‘Don’t Forget Who You Are’ seemed to last an eternity. Even still, Kane’s excellent stage presence always seemed to pull through by the end, putting the audience in that essential rock'n'roll mood.

The Black Keys

As first impressions go, The Black Keys didn’t make that much of a splash in their opening suite of tracks— the duo bashed their way through ‘Thickfreakness,’ ‘The Breaks’ and ‘I’ll Be Your Man’ without a band behind them, leaving only Patrick Carney’s drums and Dan Auerbach’s guitar to fill out the sound. It was a sweet nod to the act’s roots, absolutely, but did serve to deprive the show of the balls-to-the-wall opening it really deserved. All was forgiven in time, though, as the backing band would soon join the fray— from that point on, The Black Keys were absolutely untouchable.

Though Auerbach has always dialled in some excellent guitar tones in the studio, the duo’s sound was levelled up to the extreme at Alexandra Palace— if their place in rock’n’roll legend wasn’t already solidified, the sheer force behind their sound should’ve done it. All eyes were on Auerbach throughout the show, who seemed absolutely in his element: whether he was sauntering across the stage, jumping off the drum kit or ripping his way through another thunderous blues-rock solo, the guitarist oozed charisma and stardom. Carney wasn’t so enthralling, in fairness, mostly keeping himself in the pocket throughout the show— not unlike seeing a band like Clutch, the enjoyment of a Black Keys show rests solely on the back of their frontman, who displayed more than enough showmanship and vocal prowess to make it work. Bringing another barrage of guitars, bass, keys and additional percussion into the fold on the part of the backing band, the sound of The Black Keys at Alexandra Palace was nothing short of magic. 

The group could probably have played ‘The Wheels On The Bus’ and turned it into a rip-roaring rock’n’roll anthem with a sound this electrifying— too bad that Auerbach and Carney have an expansive back-catalogue then, packed full of crowd-pleasing hits and fantastic bluesy jams. To no-one’s surprise, it was the duo’s biggest hits that had the crowd in a frenzy: ‘Gold on the Ceiling,’ ‘Howlin’ for You,’ ‘Little Black Submarines’ and ‘Lonely Boy’ all had us singing along so loud, you could hardly hear the band! There was no dull moment between these standouts though: even new singles ‘No Rain, No Flowers’ and ‘Man on a Mission’ were jumping off the speakers, and had every head in the place bobbing. You simply couldn’t ask for a better rock show than this: The Black Keys brought all the fun, all the power, all the chaos you could ever want, and just so happened to dial in a perfect sound in the meantime.