Dan Auerbach Gets Abducted by Aliens in First Single/Video from his Forthcoming Solo Album

If “Shine on Me” is any indication, Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys has some stellar hooks in store on his forthcoming solo album Waiting on a Song. The music video for “Shine on Me,” the first single from Waiting on a Song, follows Auerbach from suburban ennui to intergalactic rock star status, complete with a three-eyed Johnny Carson. The song sounds kind of like post-Beatles Paul McCartney (though we can hope that Waiting on a Song compares more favorably to The Black Keys’ work than McCartney’s solo career compared to The Beatles’). Also noteworthy in the single is a guitar solo from Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits.

Auerbach sent a note to NPR, revealing that:

[I] could hear Mark Knopfler in my mind. I’d never met him before, but I decided to call him anyway to see if he would add a guitar part to it. I gave him no instructions — just told him to do whatever he felt. He sent it back two days later with that rhythm guitar part on it and it was perfect! And that guitar sound couldn’t be mistaken for anyone else. I’m so grateful for his contribution.