Please Don't Hate On 08.05.09: The White Stripes and Carroll Report #1
Posted by Jay Carroll on 08.05.2009
This week's column manages to talk about Jack and Meg White, issue apologies like Chris Brown, and make you laugh like Tom Green (hopefully). If you enjoy long columns with plenty of things to click on, this week is for you.
Edit: Before you read this column, I implore you, plead with you, beg of you, to go here and vote for the Cold War Kids "I've Seen Enough" video for the MTV VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS for Breakthrough Video. Do this, or your soul is forfeit.
This week's sponsor:
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First off, I would like to apologize to you, the reader, for me missing the last two weeks. As I've been without internet access and with very limited access to a computer, I haven't been able to put together even a snippet of a column, and I would like to take this opportunity to issue a sincere apology for not fulfilling my 411mania.com contractual obligations. Now that I at least have a steady stream of internet access (and a new laptop, which will be subsidized by the Obama Administration), I promise you a column a week unless my computer craps out again, and in that case I promise a fill in columnist. Consider this the re-launch of this column, albeit with the same awesome banner. Also, as a make-good offer for your appeasement, I'm issuing the first ever Carroll Report as well. I'm being just like that girlfriend in high school who left town unexpectedly, only to come back offering your that thing you like. I just have smaller tits.
Anyway, for those who don't know (which would be everyone, because I never defined what a Carroll Report would consist of), The Carroll Report is a non-recurring idea that I've been kicking around since Mitch green-lit this column. As you can see, this column is dedicated to defending artists I deem worthy of your admiration, despite whatever reasoning people have for disliking them. A Carroll Report, on the other hand, is literally me brainstorming about trends, themes, bands, artists, or anything else music related, that I may like or dislike. One week it may be an in general flaming of Nickelback. The next time it may be singing the praises of some indy band 4 people have heard of that I find amazing. Another time it may contain a conversation I have with a friend about a genre of music. It will serve as a healthy break from my constant defense of artists and bands, and possibly get me more hits than A.J. Grey.*
*We can only hope for the day that well written articles take precedent over Britney Spears in a tight dress, but I digress.
Hailing from Detroit, Michigan (hold the jokes please), this band has went from being the indy band du jour at the turn of the century to being one of the best selling mainstream bands going today, despite their striped down approach to fashion and music. Red, black, and white are the colors that fuel this 2 man/woman machine, along with an affinity for distortion petals, minimalistic drumming, and a do it yourself aesthetic largely missing from music in general since the creation of Pro Tools. With many magazines such as Rolling Stone and Spin lauding accolades on them since their emergence onto the national scene in 2002, there has been a backlash from hipsters angry that their darling band has been taken away from them (Come on, the criticisms of "Seven Nation Army" were stupid. "OMGZ he's playing a bass I give up on the White Stripes!") to music critics who get off on roasting the sacred cow of the moment.
Radio Raheem, take me away!
Jack enjoying a tasty cigarette before his stint as the Marlboro Man
Complaints, complaints, everyone's got a reason to complain. I'm just the person to try to dissuade you from doing so.
Complaint #4: They are a two person "band" who look like they could have been Edward Scissorhand's childhood friends. Why should I bother to listen to them?
To be fair, neither Meg nor Jack can claim to be beautiful in the usual parameters of the word, but that isn't really relevant to their musical prowess.
Their 2 person band approach is very different from the standard 4+ member set up of a band, and lends itself to their striped down approach to making music, while also allowing for less outsider input into their musical direction. There is a clear chain of command between the two, with Jack leading and Meg supplying the occasional vocal and a drum beat to accompany Jack's blues/punk driven guitar work. In my opinion, this is the perfect dichotomy for the two of them, particularly Jack, who hasn't been as successful with his other projects as he has been within the confines of the White Stripes.
Don't let the looks or the two person approach turn you away from listening to the Stripes though. They accomplish more by themselves than some bands do with 6 members and a touring entourage.
Complaint #3: They've sold out.
The beauty and the curse of being an indy darling is that as soon as you stop touring your local stomping grounds and move up into bigger and better ampitheatres, and making the progression from being lucky to make the radio to having a video in heavy rotation on MTV (you know, when they actually bother to play music), you're told that your new sound changes suck, or, worse, that you've "sold out" somehow because the art you once made in your parent's basement is now the art that pays your bills. The White Stripes are no different in that aspect, and from the way some of their detractors speak, you would think that they had ditched the red, white, and black for Armani suits and that Jack would have replaced Meg on drums with Neil Pearl and went all Prince/Nine Inch Nails on us with a touring band.
The catcalls of "You sold out" started with a very distinctive, almost-bass-line that kicked off their fourth album, and major label debut Elephant, the aforementioned "Seven Nation Army".
Seriously, I dare you to dislike this song.
Thanks to Jack's DigiTech whammy pedal, and the use of it on a few tracks off of Elephant, the few people who couldn't find themselves sucked into the superior sounds of the album itself started crying about how this was going to lead to nothing but bad things for The White Stripes. Fortunately, Jack and Meg seem to have a certain disdain for leaving their comfort zones, and outside of Jack's love for whammy pedals and distortion, along with the occasional foray into instruments such as the mandolin, the piano, and a marimba, he's sticking to his beloved guitar.
Complaint #2: What the hell is up with Jack White and his side projects?
All fun and no work make Jack a busy boy, hence his various side projects, from The Racounteurs, to the newly formed Dead Winter. The Racounteurs were launched in 2006, and while they may resemble something closer to the usual band aesthetic, they sound and play like an expanded White Stripes, only with Jack White being accompanied by a larger set of musicians.
It's not often that a side project of a successful band actually gains a lot of traction and acclaim from critics, but the Raconteurs were loved almost out of the gate, and have gotten Grammy nods for their first album. Their second album wasn't as well received, due to the changeover from minimalistic playing to more grandiloquent fare from the band. Some people feel as if the Raconteurs were more of a great side-band than an actual great band as well. This criticism hasn't slowed the band in the slightest, but has almost been morphed into his newest side project Dead Winter (with him lifting 2 members from the Racounteurs, along with sitting behind the drums, eschewing his usual lead vocals for Alison Mosshart) He also finds the time to make James Bond themes with Alicia Keys as well, apparently.
So, for those counting at home, if Dead Winter is a success as well (and the early feedback from their shows has pointed in the affirmative) then he will have been a member of 3 different successful groups. I'd say that Jack White hasn't reached his outer limits as a musician, and that we are all the better for it.
Complaint #1: Jack White is NOT a guitar god, and those of you that say he is are fucking retarded.
I'm not going to make the argument that Jack White is a guitar god. Any argument in the affirmative would be foolish to make, flawed in delivery, and ultimately wouldn't stand up for very long. However, the argument against his virtuoso-ness started here .
Thanks to Rolling Stone's list of 100 greatest guitarists (which has been pandered to hell and back, repeatedly), Jack White has increasingly been the target of people who don't think he's worth his status as the best guitarist going today. While he may not be the greatest (or even #17 on that list), his guitar work and dedication to his craft and innovative approach to the art has a big influence on how he is regarded by most people. He may not have the groundbreaking abilities of a Jimi Hendrix or a Carlos Santana, but 20 years from now kids that are looking back at the 2000's nostalgically will begin and end their interest in the guitar with Jack White when all is said and done. As a matter of fact, I'm surprised we haven't seen a growing trend of artists striving to emulate Jack White and play a more minimalistic style to capitalize on the work he has laid forth over the last 10 years. If he continues at the clip that he's been going at over the last few years, Jack White's ascend to the top of that list won't take as long as you may think, and the concept of comparing Jack White to the usual guitar legends won't be that far off.
Now that I'm done explaining why my fellow hipsters need to stop hating on this pale two-some, let's get to the other things I'm contracturally obliged to do for 411mania.com, shall we?
Only one this week, Ian's Dancing About Architecture. Reason why? He's covering the Fuck Buttons.
No, I seriously like the Fuck Buttons. This is not an attempt to write "Fuck Buttons" as many times as I can. I think we're more mature than that.
Fuck Buttons.
Fuck Buttons overload complete.
Oh yeah, I've forgotten something, haven't I?
Yes, my ugly mug.
Anyway, it's the first week of August. While most sports fans are trying to find ways to stop missing football so damn much, about 10 million people are awaiting a special day when they get to storm their local video game store and plunk 60 bucks down to get their virtual football fix. That's right, Madden season is right around the corner.
As much as I look forward to playing the actual game (when the Rams don't completely suck as they have the last two years), I look forward to the video game soundtrack just as much. Dedicated Madden fans know that for the next year, the tracks selected by the programmers are going to be the first thing they hear everytime they fire up their system of choice and get ready to play a game of Madden. Madden is also a good way for an indy band to get a break, or for a well known band to expand their place in the marketplace by contributing to the Madden soundtrack. Ludacris in particular saw his career get a boost from having the opening track on Madden 2000. After utilizing rapper Xzibit and Pharoahe Monch for the game's main theme in 2001 and 2002, EA Sports went full blast with a soundtrack in 2003, including Andrew W.K (remember him?), Hed P.E., Seether, and a little known Chicago band that later got famous for dancing on treadmills. AFI, Outkast, and inexplicably Jet landed on the 2004 edition. 2005's soundtrack may not have been the greatest, but Faith No More and the best hip-hop/rock mashup this side of heaven were featured, along with Yung Wun (remember him? Neither does his record label.) and the first, and last, Will.I.Am song I've ever liked. 2006.... sucked ass., to be honest. I can't remember liking any of the songs they put on the soundtrack. However, that was also the first year that they included the old NFL Films songs (you know, the ones that would play while Harry Kalas talked over old NFL footage), which was awesome. Dashboard Confessional, Less Than Jake, Lupe Fiasco, Taking Back Sunday, and Wolfmother kept me tuned in between games in 2007. The 2008 edition introduced me to The Bravery, Earl Greyhound, and Jupiter One, three bands who have found their way into my regular rotation since then. And finally, 2009's edition included a demo from the All American Rejects, an early Wale track, Rev Theory, Innerpartysystem, and Senses Fail.. So, the same way I look forward to making people my bitches with the Philadelphia Eagles this year, is the same way I look foward to hearing some hidden gems on the soundtrack.
A few of my personal favorites from over the years:
Had to use the live version, real vid isn't embeddable
