Black Keys Frontman Has 'Fighting' New Project

The Black Keys have plenty of hits under their belt, but frontman Dan Auerbach is hoping for a different kind of knockout with an upcoming new solo project.

Under the name the Arcs, Auerbach will release two boxing-related songs on May 2 to coincide with the highly anticipated Floyd Mayweather/Manny Pacquiao fight. But the singer/guitarist isn’t just trying to ride the fight’s hype – Auerbach is a boxer himself, and regularly spars to warm-up before shows.

The two songs are called “Stay in My Corner” and “Tomato Can” and will be released exclusively on vinyl at independent record stores. A full album from the Arcs is scheduled to come out this summer, although it sounds like Black Keys fans shouldn’t expect their typical brand of blues-rock.

Auerbach told Rolling Stone: “I just wanted to do my thing and get extra weird. A lot of the songs bleed one into the other, a lot like the Grateful Dead…it's basically everything I love about music all wrapped up into one record.”

Back in 2009, Auerbach released another solo album, under his own name, called Keep it Hid. Despite the new direction, it’s still business as usual for the Black Keys, who are touring through the summer.

This weekend, you can get knocked out with some awesome streaming concerts on Yahoo Live. Tonight at 5:00 p.m. PT, the BoDeans are playing from Maryland; tomorrow it’s the Kaiser Chiefs who hit the stage at 9:50 p.m. PT; and wrapping it up is Todd Rundgren performing Sunday at 4:30 p.m. PT. Catch any or all of the shows here.