It’s been two and a half years since The Black Keys released “El Camino,” and they’re back with a vengeance. A week before the May 13 release date for “Turn Blue,” The Black Keys streamed the LP in full-length via iTunes. The 11-track album is infused with guitar solos, funky bass lines, and Dan Auerbach’s high-pitched vocals.

The Ohio rock duo can do no wrong. Their album “Turn Blue” is a testament that rock is alive and well. The album is heavy on the fundamental instruments—Auerbach’s guitar and Patrick Carney’s drums—with a dash of co-producer Danger Mouse’s synth touch and the McCrary sisters’ backup vocals. Themes of the album include love, reflection, and time.

Last August, singer and guitarist Auerbach finalized his divorce from Stephanie Gonis, with whom he has a six-year-old daughter. “I’ve never relied on music to get me through anything like I did on this one,” said Auerbach in an interview with The Guardian. “This past year, I realized how fortunate I was to have this thing I can do: making music, and lyrically, saying things that are personal. I do know that, subconsciously, sadness can have a huge effect on an album.”

“Turn Blue” opens with “Weight of Love,” the longest song The Black Keys has produced, clocking in at almost seven minutes. The track simmers with guitar chords, a xylophone, and mid-tempo drums before a distorted guitar crashes in. For two whole minutes, the song is delightfully instrumental until Auerbach breaks in. “I used to think, darling, you’d never did nothing / but you were always up to something / always out and running,” sings Auerbach in the first verse. “You be on my mind / don’t give yourself away to the weight of love.” The rest of the song blooms into a Led Zeppelin-style guitar solo layered atop dual guitars and the clashing of cymbals to produce both a beautiful ending to the song and beginning to the album.

Dan Auerbach’s voice reaches sky heights in this album, as evident in “Bullet in the Brain” and “Waiting on Words.” The former song is reminiscent of Pink Floyd’s “The Great Gig in the Sky” with its intro and Auerbach’s airy vocals gradually climaxing into full-blown galactic synth notes and pounding drums during the chorus, which includes the same ascending space sound found in the Pink Floyd number. However, “Bullet in the Brain” differs from the classic rock song in many ways, including the upbeat tempo and head banging drum set throughout the verses.

In “Waiting on Words,” simple guitar chords struck with guitar twangs and lyrics blend both love and heartache harmoniously. “Oh goodbye / I heard you were leaving / won’t try / changing your mind / goodbye / don’t know where you’re going / the only thing I really know / my love for you was real,” Auerbach sings in falsetto.

This is The Black Keys strongest album yet. Since debuting “The Big Come Up” in 2002, the duo have managed to evolve their music while holding onto their distinct bluesy rock roots. With “Brothers,” “El Camino,” and now “Turn Blue,” it’s apparent that the synthesizer has become another characteristic to their core sound. In other news, Auerbach is currently finishing up Lana Del Rey’s follow-up album “Ultraviolence.”