In practice and in principle the Black Keys consists of just two people, the guitarist-singer Dan Auerbach and the drummer Patrick Carney. But on "Attack & Release," their fifth album, they welcome an interloper: Brian Burton, the producer better known as Danger Mouse (or in some circles, as the nonsinging half of Gnarls Barkley). Happily, the results are not just evident but potent. While the sound of this blues-rock duo has been fleshed out, none of its grit has been glossed.

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Some of the album's tracks — including a turbocharged lead single, "Strange Times" — bear the ghostly keyboard filigree and ominous drones that have become Danger Mouse trademarks. Others, like "Psychotic Girl," incorporate a dry twitter of banjo. And guests make useful contributions, including guitarist Marc Ribot and bluegrass singer Jessica Lea Mayfield.

Of course the meat of the album is in Auerbach's searing vocal and guitar work, and to a lesser extent in Carney's solid drumming. The heavy riffs and boiled-down lyrics flatter both members of the band, and the shifting canvas of the production acts as a shield against monotony.

—Nate Chinen, New York Times