Sorry that I've been gone for over a month! Don't worry, I felt plenty of guilt in procrastinating; getting our house in shape won out over any reviews that I could dish out! Here's my latest, the indie rock phenom "The White Stripes", who are from Detroit (I believe?...). Already on their third release, this duo of Jack White (guitar and vocals) and Meg White (drums) churns out a basic three-chord power rock sound reminiscient of the punk revolution that grabbed my ears so well in the late 70's. Although The White Stripes won't be creating any new punk revival in the near future, their power and passion in playing is quite a refreshing change-of-pace to what is currently out there.
Two instruments, guitar and drums, along with the occasionaly organ, tamborine, or possibly bass accompanies these minimilistic song structures. Much like The Talking Heads made quite an impression on me with doing something new with basic rock and roll instruments, The White Stripes accomplish the same thing. The song that "grabs" me the most on "Red Blood Cells" would be "Fell in Love with a Girl". Basic power chord strumming along with Meg White's slightly out of time drumming gives the song plenty of charm and character. Jack White's whining vocals gives attitude to the traditional love song; "Red hair with a curl, mellow roll for the flavor and the eyes for peeping, can't keep away from the girl". The same formula is used on "Expecting". Double-tracked guitars and pounding symbols shows that this band enjoys keeping their garage rock sound. The duo does stray away from their basic sound slightly on "Now Mary". Acoustic guitar shows that they can sound "folky" or almost country in their approach to this particular song. "The Same Boy You've Always Known" could fit well on a 60's release from Donovan. Minimal percussion backs Jack White and his picking guitar; "You're looking down again and then you look me over. We're laying down again on a blanket in the clover the same boy you've always known. Well I guess I haven't grown the same boy you've always known". I think it's the "hippie" attitude that makes this one of my favorites on the release. For pure power, "Dirty Leaves and the Dirty Ground" make a huge impression that these two can play very hard. A somewhat depressing song that deals with loneliness, the sonically charged number reminds me of something Pete Townshend would have churned out in the mid 60's. The lyrics again are clever and precise: "Soft hair and a velvet tongue. I want to give you what you give to me and every breath that is in your lungs is a tiny little gift to me".
The White Stripes don't apologize for being very basic musicians. They aren't going to pave new paths in the history of rock and roll, but their passion and enthusiasm is heard well throughout this release. Presenting a new sound and having something new and interesting to say in rock music today is a rare treat. If you appreciate the minimilistic, yet raw and powerful sound of the Ramones or Sex Pistols, you should probably take a listen to this release.
