LIVE: THE BLACK KEYS – Nashville, TN, USA – August 7, 2026

Venue: The Pinnacle

City: Nashville, TN

Date: August 7, 2026

Review and Photographs by: Jacob Smith (https://www.jhs-photo.com)

Having attended the first evening of this two-night show at The Pinnacle, I didn’t know what to expect. The first evening was high energy and included a couple of guest musicians by the names of Marcus King and Sturgill Simpson. So I was anticipating something magical the second evening of the two shows. Upon getting onto stage, The Black Keys jumped straight into a slower, more methodical set than the previous evening, but very planned and more enjoying the slower pace. The very first song of the evening was a 3-song jam session of “Thickfreakness” “The Breaks” and “I’ll Be Your Man.” That was when I knew that this was going to be a very chill evening compared to the night prior. This wasn’t the first time I’ve been fortunate to catch The Black Keys perform, but this was the biggest room I have been to with them. Everything was electric, and tons of people drove upwards of 6 hours away to catch their brilliance and musicianship on stage. Every song, the crowd was in an uproar of excitement and anticipation to see what was next in store for the evening. By the time they played “Lo/Hi” which was only about halfway through the set, the crowd was fully in tune with the stage and dancing and having a great time.

For two songs, the opener Eddie 9V came out for the evening and joined in on performing “Just Couldn’t Tie Me Down” and a brilliant cover of Willie Griffin’s song “Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire”. Getting near the end of the evening, the band fully went into a slower, more methodical pace, and jamming went straight into a very unexpected cover of The Stooges’ masterpiece “I Wanna Be Your Dog” before ending the main set with “She’s Long Gone.” After a short break, the band got back onto the stage to end the evening with “Little Black Submarines” and the finale of “Lonely Boy.” After watching both nights, one as an attendee and one on assignment. I can say you never know what to expect from The Black Keys, and every single show was perfect. Talking to a few patrons outside afterwards while waiting on my Uber to arrive, all expectations from the evening were met, and everyone could not wait for the next opportunity to see them play. I highly recommend anyone who has ever had an interest in possibly catching them live to do it. You will not be disappointed.

Setlist: Thickfreakness / The Breaks / I’ll Be Your Man – Heavy Soul – Fever – Have Love Will Travel – Gold on the Ceiling – She Does It Right – Everlasting Light – Next Girl – Lo/Hi – You Got to Lose – Weight of Love – Howlin’ for You – Just Couldn’t Tie Me Down – Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire – I Got Mine – Tighten Up – Wild Child – I Wanna Be Your Dog – She’s Long Gone – Little Black Submarines – Lonely Boy

[Show as slideshow]

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Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries