The Black Keys, O2 Apollo Manchester, 7th February 2012 4/10

El Camino was a late entry in my top albums of 2011 and I’d been assured by several friends that The Black Keys are an amazing live band. In the light of this, my score of 4/10 may raise eyebrows, but this is a personal blog, and it reflects how I felt last night. The skill of the performers and the quality of their music was obscured by other factors, particularly the venue. I’ll say from the outset that I still rate The Keys extremely highly, love their albums, and still recommend that you see them live.

What can make live music such a special experience? One important factor is a sense of engagement, which means that your emotions are affected by the performers and the audience. At the smallest venues, there can be direct interaction, such as Zola Jesus leaping off the stage onto my shoulders, or Wild Flag last week making eye contact with me, in response to the huge smile their music put on my face. At a gig like M83’s, you can observe others dancing or moving their bodies in sympathy with the music, and take pleasure at their happiness. There’s also Adele's model of interaction, where she uses humour and her down to earth personality to chat to a crowd of 3000 people in the same tone as to her friends in the pub. The method of connection most common in classical music concerts, is where the music itself takes you on an intellectual journey of the imagination. PJ Harvey’s amazing show at this very venue had a similar effect on my last year.

Sadly, none of this applied last night. I was seated at the back of a mid sized venue, and far from being able to make eye contact with the performers, for much of the show I was only able to see  Patrick Carney, as Dan Auerbach was obscured by an audience member in front. There was a constant stream of standing up and shuffling into seats from people in various stages in the cycle of taking on liquid in the bar and discharging it in the rest rooms. Being in the seated area, there was little sign of dancing. Dan and Patrick said few words between numbers, and perhaps most importantly, the sound was mediocre from my position. Listening to El Camino on the drive home, I realised that a key part of their musical appeal is the bass kick that Carney produces, which could be felt via the subwoofer in my car, but not in the venue. Given that I could see little, was being distracted by audience members who just wanted to get drunk, and that the sound wasn’t great, I would have gained more pleasure and saved money by listening at home (plus my appreciation could have been enhanced by a tipple as there would have been no need to drive).

In the light of all this, the support act Band of Skulls stood little chance. I’ve heard that they too can be stellar live, and at least I had a better view of them than the Black Keys in the not yet full theatre, but musically it was depressing. I’m afraid I’ve found their upcoming album Sweet Sour one of the most uninspiring recent releases. I like the 2009 Baby Darling Doll Face Honey and can only hope this is a mere sophomore slump. There were a few slithers of light in the rare quieter numbers such as Navigate, but it was largely meaningless bombast, marred by Matt Hayward’s (literally) off pitch wailing. Lyrics such as You're Not Pretty But You Got It Going On might give you an idea of the intellectual vacuum at the heart of this album. It is shallow stuff musically too, which might have made some visceral sense in a small basement, but just made me yearn for Portugal. The Man who supported The Black Keys on the continental Europe leg of this tour.

It would be grossly unfair to categorise The Black Keys in the same manner though. Their rise has been remarkable: in a decade they came from an Ohio backwater to sell a million copies of the 2010 Brothers album. El Camino sold 200,000 in the first week alone and their tours has been instant sell outs (which accounts for why I found myself in a terrible seat in my least favourite Manchester venue last night). They were accompanied by two additional musicians for much of the show although the middle part of the set, when they duetted, was even more effective musically. Carney’s drumming is of course incredibly tight, and Auerbach’s bluesy vocals were beyond criticism. The light show was extremely competent too, but it’s the directness of their music which make me hope that I’ll be able to appreciate them more fully at Coachella in April. The highlights were the surprising poppy Gold on the Ceiling, and Lonely Boy at the end of the set. Both are from their latest album, but there was plenty of time in the 90 minute set for them to explore their earlier material too.

I’m sorry if you’ve found this review frustrating, but live music is all about a particular moment in time. Memorable experiences can make your perception of time temporarily stand still or even enter another dimension. Conditions are often most conducive to this in smaller venues, but I had an extended period of magic in a large stadium last summer watching Arcade Fire, and as part of a crowd in the tens of thousands watching The National at Reading Festival. Perhaps the Black Keys’ rapid (and deserved) rise to fame hasn’t allowed them time to think fully consider how they present their show in larger venues, or perhaps it just wasn't my night, but I'm in desperate need of a positive experience to restore my faith in live music.