The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach / Photo by Eric Syl Gruneisen

This show was raw. I don't mean delicate and tasty "sushi raw," I mean "day old hamburger that's been sitting by the grill all night," raw. The kind of raw your momma didn't want you going anywhere near. It's mean, retching from the gut rock'n'roll, and it's delivered with passion. After a brief, spitfire set of vintage punk rock courtesy of Jay Reatard last night (April 9) at Denver's Ogden Theatre, the duo of Dan Auerbach on guitar and vocals and Patrick Carney on drums emerged and showed their Denver faithful that they know just how to shove music down your throat… and make you like it.

As soon as they took the stage to thunderous cheers from the sweaty and packed house, it was clear that these boys meant business. Under strobes, swirling lights and the shadow of a giant inflatable tire representing their roots in Akron, OH reading "Heavy Sole," these two proceeded to wail through 75 minutes of blues soaked rock that rarely let up.

Auerbach and Carney pulled out all the stops and flung sweat from their hair as they raged through crowd pleasers "Set You Free," "Strange Times," and "Stack Shot Billy." After ironically notifying the crowd that they had been "training at high altitude" for the gig, they slowed things up for the balladry of "You're The One" and caught their breath enough to dive headlong into the rest of the show.

After Attack & Release gem "I Got Mine," the duo took a brief break as nearly every member of the audience pumped their fist and begged for more. When they returned, Auerbach took a seat at the organ that he had neglected all night and quickly proved it deserved its place on the stage as he alternately conjured what seemed to be guitar riffs from the keys and stood with his head back and eyes closed, coaxing from the instrument the deepest tones it would allow. It seemed a fitting closure to a raucous show until the guitar slinger strapped on the six-string again and the pair blew through "Till I Get My Way," tossing the crowd back into the meat grinder once again.

The Black Keys / Photo by Eric Syl Gruneisen

The Black Keys / Photo by Eric Syl Gruneisen

The Black Keys / Photo by Eric Syl Gruneisen