Indie powerhouse-duo The Black Keys have returned with a new album, the highly anticipated El Camino. Having gained America’s attention after performing on various late night shows like Conan O’Brien and Saturday Night Live over the past few years, The Black Keys proved to be hell-bent on continuing to amaze. El Camino is a non-stop, 11-song rollercoaster ride through the 50’s, with its raunchy rock-and-roll riffs and powerfully bluesy vocals.

El Camino starts off strong with the previously released single, “Lonely Boy,” a high-energy tune that sucks listeners right into a stream of dynamic music and refuses to let go until the album takes a short acoustic break three songs later with the hauntingly melodic “Little Black Submarines.”

In fact, “Little Black Submarines” just might be the most attention-grabbing track on El Camino. Reminiscent of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” the song starts off slow and somber, reminding us more than once with characteristically moody vocals that “a broken heart is blind.” About halfway through the song, the Black Keys end their break, and the album picks back up full-throttle as the low-key track belts out an amazing guitar solo out of the blue.

As unexpected as the transition is, it works perfectly. The entire album, really, works and meshes in a way all its own. Each track is markedly unique, but the whole album seems to flow on a single wavelength in a way that’s not only extremely easy to listen to, but also highly addictive. This also makes this the perfect album to put on repeat during a study session, because the songs transition in a way that isn’t distracting at all; you almost don’t realize the song has changed unless you’re really paying close attention.

Trademark tambourines and choral vocal backups never let listeners forget that not only are The Black Keys back, they are better than ever. The Black Keys - as always - draws listeners in with intoxicatingly catchy riffs, choruses that seem to be made to sing to, and entertaining lyrics describing love-hate relationships the way only The Black Keys can – El Camino is no exception.

All that same old song and dance aside, something feels fresh about this album. Although the songs in El Camino follow The Black Keys’s distinct and long-established old-school rock-and-roll sound, the Black Keys have hit a sweet spot and the change is undeniable. There’s something refreshing in having 11 new Black Keys songs to devour that makes this album the one to have on repeat.