Dan Auerbach Sings "Off-Key"...

Looks like one of the "Keys" has decided to open some new doors...

Nonesuch Records has announced that singer/songwriter/guitarist Dan Auerbach, best known as half of The Black Keys, will release his solo debut, Keep It Hid, on February 10, 2009. Dan will begin a national tour with performances in New York City, Boston, and Washington, DC, with opening acts Those Darlins and Hacienda, the latter also lending support as Auerbach’s backing band.

While working on and touring in support of The Black Keys’ most recent album, Attack & Release, Dan also was writing songs that would become Keep It Hid. "This record is a mixture of things I like to listen to, psychedelia, soul music, country harmonies," he says.

Keep It Hid was produced and engineered by Auerbach at his studio, Akron Analog, and features him playing a variety of instruments, including drums, guitar, percussion, and keyboards. Many of Dan's friends and family play on the album, including his uncle James Quine, who contributes vocal harmony and electric guitar on the track “Street Walkin.” Other musicians include fellow Ohioans Jessica Lea Mayfield, who sings on the track “When the Night Comes,” and Bob Cesare, who plays drums on “Whispered Words,” a song originally written by Auerbach’s father. Of the recording process Auerbach states, “I wanted a live, organic sound. Nothing was too plotted or planned, just a lot of spontaneity.” The record was mixed by Auerbach’s good friend Mark Neill at Neill’s Soil of the South studio.

2/28 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
3/01 Boston, MA @ Paradise Club
3/02 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
3/03 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
3/05 Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
3/06 Chicago, IL @ Metro
3/07 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
3/10 Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
3/11 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
3/13 San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo's 365 Club
3/14 Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre