The upcoming release from Beaten Awake, Thunder$troke (Fat Possum/Audio Eagle), is an album that shows plenty of similar traits to label mates The Black Keys and Heartless Bastards while mainly going in their own direction from those bands. The trio from Ohio, led by singer John Finley, take turns on the electric keys, and as a result, the keys take on different personalities throughout their excellent sophomore disc.
As with many of the albums you read about here and that I like enough to go back to time and time again, this disc shows a good bit of variety while still maintaining a cohesive feel that unites the material over the course of the entire album. Many tracks seem to be grittier, more muscular versions of Hot Fuss-era The Killers, while other tracks carry a certain Friday Night Lights-era Explosions In the Sky vibe, specifically the album closing and comically titled, ”I Shot the Mayor, Not the Deputy Mayor”. It stands to reason, considering the label they are on and their relationship with Patrick from The Black Keys, that there is some really solid electric-garage blues type funk on this record also.
LISTEN: Beaten Awake – “Coming Home”
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