The Black Keys No Rain, No Flowers
Released Aug 8, 2025 Easy Eye Sound/Warner Records
Established consensus 11 professional reviews Updated Oct 1, 2026
Mostly positive consensus
The Black Keys's No Rain, No Flowers arrives as a sunlit, radio-ready chapter from a duo recalibrating after hardship, and critics largely find it amiable if occasionally overpolished.
How ChoruScore worksCritics' Top Tracks
The songs critics returned to most
Man On A Mission
9 critic mentions
“Some ghost-dimension lust-rock emerges as Auerbach hits the LA night looking for love and mischief on Man On A Mission” — Classic Rock Magazine
Make You Mine
9 critic mentions
“Make You Mine” follows a sumptuous groove to a floating-falsetto, Bee Gees-tinged chorus.” — Rolling Stone
A Little Too High
8 critic mentions
“They close it out with the Southern-rock sweep of the Skynyrd-steeped boogie rocker “A Little Too High” — Rolling Stone
Full critic consensus
The Black Keys's No Rain, No Flowers arrives as a sunlit, radio-ready chapter from a duo recalibrating after hardship, and critics largely find it amiable if occasionally overpolished. Across 11 professional reviews the record earned a 70.82/100 consensus score, and reviewers repeatedly point to a handful of buoyant cuts as the album's true payoffs. Tracks that critics flag most often include “Man On A Mission”, “Make You Mine” and “A Little Too High”, with frequent praise also for “All My Life” and “Down to Nothing”.
The critical consensus emphasizes commercial recalibration and a retro-leaning aesthetic - 60s psych-soul, Seventies rock and AM-pop flourishes thread through the production. Reviewers note polished, smooth production and collaboration-driven arrangements that brighten hooks and amplify pop sensibilities, so songs like “Make You Mine” and the title cut read as calibrated highlights. At their best, the record converts grief and resilience into celebratory grooves: critics praised “Man On A Mission” for its guitar grit and “Down to Nothing” for soulful lift, while “A Little Too High” and “All My Life” supply summery momentum.
Not all responses are uniformly positive. Several reviewers flagged uneven songwriting and a loss of the raw edge that once defined the band, describing parts of the album as pleasant but safe or mid-album meandering. Still, the prevailing view across professional reviews is that No Rain, No Flowers represents a mature, commercially minded Black Keys record that rewards listeners seeking catchy melodies, polished arrangements and a resilient, nostalgia-tinged mood. For readers wondering "is No Rain, No Flowers good?" the critical consensus suggests a mostly satisfying, if occasionally cautious, return worth sampling—especially for the standout tracks noted above.
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
No Rain, No Flowers
The Night Before
Babygirl
Down to Nothing
On Repeat
Make You Mine
Man On A Mission
Kiss It
All My Life
A Little Too High
Neon Moon
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What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 11 critics who reviewed this album
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Critic's Take
The Black Keys sound remarkably buoyant on No Rain, No Flowers, the record's best tracks - notably “The Night Before” and “Down to Nothing” - turn bleak subject matter into celebratory groove. Beaumont's prose celebrates how “The Night Before” transmutes hangover misery into effervescent groove-rock, while “Down to Nothing” lifts a howl from rock bottom on a luxuriant organ-bed. He singles out the psych-country drift of “A Little Too High” and the bliss-state charm of “On Repeat” as further highlights, arguing that the album's 60s psych-soul sheen gives coherence and uplift. The result is a survivor's record that feels like catching the next swell after a storm, a near-quarter century duo still mining sunlit gold from the dark times.
Key Points
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The Night Before is best for turning bleak lyrics into effervescent groove-rock that feels celebratory.
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The album's core strength is its 60s psych-soul sheen that unifies themes of hardship and resilience into an uplifting whole.
Themes
Critic's Take
The Black Keys on No Rain, No Flowers feel like a band revisiting a comfortable groove, and the best songs - “On Repeat”, “Man On A Mission” and “A Little Too High” - make that case plainly. Rho Chung writes in an affectionate, generational key, calling it "dad rock for my generation" while praising the album's danceable, upbeat moments and its culmination in a Lynyrd Skynyrd-style anthem.
Key Points
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“On Repeat” is the best song because it is highlighted in the reviewer's explicit "Listen to" recommendations and embodies the album's buoyant groove.
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The album's core strengths are rooted guitar, steady drums, and a nostalgic, optimistic tone that makes it road-trip ready and emotionally resonant.
Themes
Critic's Take
The Black Keys sound intent on hit-making on No Rain, No Flowers, and that polish pays off especially on “Make You Mine” and the title track. Doyle notes the band have "doubled down on commerciality", but that does not strip away the grit - tracks like “Man On A Mission” still carry Hendrix fuzz. The reviewer highlights collaborators who buff the songs, and ultimately presents the album as a sharpened, radio-ready record rather than a sellout.
Key Points
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Make You Mine is best because its Philly-shaped soul and poppy lift make the band "soar to new poppy heights".
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The album's core strength is polished songwriting through high-profile collaborations while retaining the band's raw edge.
Themes
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Critic's Take
In a voice that mixes wry observation with affectionate critique, The Black Keys deliver on No Rain, No Flowers with a handful of undeniable high points. The review highlights “Babygirl” as vintage r'n'b and puts “Man On A Mission” and “A Little Too High” as stomping, guitar-led standouts, while praising “Make You Mine” for its Bee Gees-style falsetto chorus. The critic frames the record as glossy and eclectic, arguing that though it sometimes feels like a compilation, songs such as “Make You Mine” and “Babygirl” prove the duo still write hummable, radio-ready hooks. Overall the best tracks on No Rain, No Flowers are presented as those that marry vintage influences with popcraft, and the reviewer names specific songs to justify that claim.
Key Points
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The best song is 'Make You Mine' because its Bee Gees-style falsetto chorus and growing brilliance make it impossible to dislike.
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The album's core strengths are catchy, retro-inflected melodies and confident genre-hopping that produce several hummable tracks.
Themes
Critic's Take
The Black Keys sound cozier and glossier on No Rain, No Flowers, and the best songs - notably “No Rain, No Flowers” and “Make You Mine” - show why. The title track’s disco-infused harmonies and uplifting melody make it an immediate highlight, while “Make You Mine” stands out as the record’s centerpiece with melancholic piano and orchestral sweep. Pop-forward cuts like “The Night Before” and “Babygirl” provide trademark rhythms with brighter sensibilities, and sunnier moments such as “Kiss It” and “On Repeat” keep the flow steady. Overall, the record’s richer production and assisted songwriting deliver the album’s strongest moments despite occasional mid-album meandering.
Key Points
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“Make You Mine” is best for its orchestral treatment, melancholic piano, and role as the album’s centerpiece.
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The album’s core strength is rich, polished production and assisted songwriting that yield focused, mature moments.
Themes
Critic's Take
The Black Keys stay in familiar territory on No Rain, No Flowers, and the review zeroes in on why the best songs - notably “Down To Nothing” and “Man On A Mission” - lift the record. The review reads as measured admiration: high-quality, smooth and soulful, yet yearning for more grit and raucous charm.
Key Points
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The best song is 'Man On A Mission' because it is called thrilling and the reviewer says it 'slaps harder than anything else' with dirty riffs and swaggering choruses.
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The album's core strengths are polished, soulful blues-rock production and well-crafted second-half highlights, tempered by a forgettable opener and lack of grit.
Themes
Critic's Take
In a voice that cherishes retro grooves, The Black Keys make No Rain, No Flowers feel like a well-oiled radio machine, and the best tracks - “No Rain, No Flowers” and “Babygirl” - show it. Jon Dolan’s take is fond and precise, noting how euphoric bubble-funk in “Babygirl” and the smooth-rolling title track carry the album. It’s an album of calibrated pleasures, where arena-ready sheen meets a little emotional ballast.
Key Points
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The title track is best for its smooth-rolling, emotionally anchored lyrics and central placement.
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The album’s core strengths are polished retro production, strong collaborations, and a knack for radio-ready hooks.
Themes
Critic's Take
The Black Keys sound weary but unbowed on No Rain, No Flowers, an album that wears its aftermath-of-drama themes plainly. Joe Goggins’ tone is measured and slightly wry, noting how the band turned a fraught year into a productive one, so the best tracks read as steady continuations rather than seismic reinventions.
Key Points
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The best moments come from the band’s steady, workmanlike persistence rather than reinvention.
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The album’s strengths are resilience after hardship and continued prolific output.
Themes
Critic's Take
In this review Roisin O'Connor finds The Black Keys sounding muted on No Rain, No Flowers, singling out the best tracks as “All My Life” and “A Little Too High” for their fizzing Seventies rock and dazzling funk. She contrasts those high points with tired moments like “On Repeat” and “Babygirl”, which loop or plonk without inspiration. The piece reads like a disappointed fan - praise reserved for a few standout grooves amid a largely uninspired set. Overall, the best songs on No Rain, No Flowers are the ones that reclaim the band’s older spark, especially “All My Life”.
Key Points
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“All My Life” is best for reclaiming the band’s squelchy soul and dazzling funk.
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The album’s strength is occasional retro-flavored grooves, but overall it feels muted and uneven.
Themes
Critic's Take
After a year of setbacks the duo retreats into a carefully pleasant sound on No Rain, No Flowers, and it is clear why listeners will seek out the best songs on No Rain, No Flowers. The reviewer's eye lingers on “The Night Before” for its overcaffeinated momentum and “Man on a Mission” for a grinding guitar riff that anchors the record. With collaborators steering toward adult-alternative pop, tracks like “Make You Mine” and “On Repeat” wear their AM-radio echoes proudly, which explains why those songs emerge among the best tracks on No Rain, No Flowers. The verdict is that the album is amiable and precisely executed, even if its comfort sometimes reads as a creative shortfall rather than a triumph.
Key Points
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The Night Before stands out for its overcaffeinated momentum, making it the album's most immediate highlight.
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The album's core strength is its cleanly executed shift to amiable, AM-radio-inflected pop through polished collaborations.