By: David Schultz

Even though there are close to four months left in the decade, lists cataloging and memorializing the best of the aughts are already starting to pop up with increased frequency. Back in the 60s, people followed to every move made by Bob Dylan and The Beatles. In the 70s, it was The Rolling Stones, the 80s, Michael Jackson and the 90s belonged to U2. Doubt the impact an artist can have on a generation? Look at all the hoopla surrounding today’s release of Rock Band: The Beatles. Each and every move they made drew attention and received untold amounts of scrutiny as people searched for meaning and discoursed over its importance. Bono notwithstanding, we’re likely past the point where a musician will have the sociological impact if a John Lennon and Elvis Presley. That doesn’t mean there aren’t artists pushing music forward. Taking a peek ahead to the next decade (the tens? the teens?), here are the five musicians whose every move should be followed as they should be worth noting.

Beck: From a musical standpoint, Beck always stays at the forefront of the waves generated by any of his genre-melding pastiches. Recently though, Beck has started to explore the ability of a Web site as an outlet for creativity. In addition to streaming DJ sets, Beck’s Record Club features himself and assorted friends re-recording classic albums like Velvet Underground & Nico, Oar and Songs of Leonard Cohen and Irrelevant Topics sees Beck playing talk show host with the likes of musicians and movie directors. A superstar for the wireless decade, Beck could redefine the conception of what the public can expect and demand from an artist.

Jack White: The White Stripes can hardly contain the creative output that erupts out of Jack White. Whether it’s with The White Stripes and his erstwhile wife/sister/ housekeeper Meg, The Raconteurs with power-pop maven Brendan Benson, The Dead Weather with Allison Mosshart and Dean Fertita or simply creating a song on the fly just to show he can do it, the quality of White’s prolific output defies logic. Playing rock and roll’s future to The Edge’s present and Jimmy Page’s past in It Might Get Loud, White stands poised to be one, if not THE, most important guitarists of the next decade.

Greg Gillis: The next great battle over fair use will likely center around Girl Talk’s raucously festive mash-ups of classic rock, 80s cheese, gangsta rap and anything else that catches his fancy. So fun that it may not be legal, Gillis’ name-that-snippet style is what evolved from DJ Danger Mouse’s legally estopped Grey Album. It makes no difference on the dance floor but Girl Talk abuts the current limits of fair use, derivative works and the entirety of copyright law to the extent that makes the establishment slightly uncomfortable. Unless Gillis decides to find a new profession, he could be genre-changing and legal precedent setting player in the 10s.

Thom Yorke/Radiohead: Freed from the constraints of any semblance of a traditional recording contract, Yorke and Radiohead are singlehandedly destroying and redefining all of the music industry’s conventions about distribution and sales. The pay-what-you-will pricing scheme they utilized for In Rainbows will likely be the tip of the iceberg. One of the few bands with the renown, clout and incentive to explore the freedom of non-dependency on a record label, they may pave the road through the uncharted forest for many others to follow.

Craig Finn/The Hold Steady: In the last decade, Finn and The Hold Steady have brought literacy and humor back to rock and roll. Stringing witticisms and trenchant observations together while Tad Kubler, Franz Nicolay and the rest reclaim the grandiose sense of arena rock from glam metal head bangers and emo rockers, Finn’s songs play out over time like chapters of a novel. There was a period of time when Robert Randolph could have been the savior of rock and roll but now that title seems within the grasp of The Hold Steady. For a band that details the folly of youth, it is appropriate that they are the dark horse contender for the band of the two thousand teens.

Labels: Beck, Girl Talk, Jack White, Radiohead, The Hold Steady

Seeing as it's been almost a year since Jack White started another project from scratch, the White Stripes frontman has formed Dead Weather, whose debut album, Horehound, will be released in June. If The Raconteurs moved White away from the spotlight, Dead Weather transports him to the back of it as it appears he is the band's drummer. The Kills' Alison Mossheart fronts Dead Weather and Raconteurs bassist Jack Lawrence and guitarist Dean Fertita fill out the band.

Whetting appetites until June, the first single "Hang You From The Heavens" backed with a cover of Gary Numan's "Are Friends Electric?" is already available.

You can check out the video (they still exist) for "Hang You From The Heavens" here.

Labels: Dead Weather, Jack White

By: David Schultz

In a world where rock stars are becoming increasingly interchangeable commodities, Jack White has chiseled an unshakable reputation in stone. With his sister/ex-wife/third cousin, once removed Meg in tow, White has methodically worked his way from the underground clubs of Detroit, Michigan onto the cover of Rolling Stone with the Rolling Stones. Just in case he’s getting too much attention on his own, White has rejoined his don’t-call-it-a-side-project side project The Raconteurs for a summer tour that brought them back to New York City for three sold-out shows at Terminal 5. On the offhand chance there was still any debate on the subject, The Raconteurs shows established one simple fact: Jack White is a rock star, a flat-out, honest-to-God, bigger-than-life rock star.

A year ago, The Raconteurs – or The Saboteurs as far as our Australian readers are concerned - played an efficient one hour set at the Roseland Ballroom. Sounding gritty and raw, the show centered on their noteworthy debut album Broken Boy Soldiers. For their Saturday night Terminal 5 set, The Raconteurs moved well past the ninety minute mark playing, tapping into the electric blues maelstrom they unleashed on their recently released Consolers Of The Lonely.
At a White Stripes show, when he’s only accompanied by Meg on drums, White is essentially a one man inferno, prowling the stage and blowing audiences away with his charisma, energy and wild interpretations of traditional blues riffs. As a member of the Raconteurs, White still digs deep into the well of distorted blues rock, he just gets more help in rounding out the sound from bassist Jack Lawrence, drummer Patrick Keeler and guitarist Brendan Benson.

Amid the stylized curtains, unusually ornate sets, high-quality posters and identically dressed roadies, The Raconteurs seemed a little out of place within their own creation when they hit the stage in casual dress. If they’re trying to bring back Seventies style guitar-based power rock, they are doing it by bringing back the wild white-boy afros that went hand in hand with the genre. Packing arena-sized rock into the concert hall, Benson and The Greenhornes rhythm section played like they were an extension of Jack White, in tune with his penchant for electrified blues. At times they sounded a little like Black Sabbath, at others they had a touch of Robby Krieger-heavy Doors style and Keeler seemed to know the exact moment when the drumbeat from “My Doorbell” would accentuate what they were doing..

Even though their time together has been relatively short, The Racs played with veteran assurance. For “Steady As She Goes,” White and the boys set up the song as if they were leading into a classic rock powerhouse before delivering it like that’s exactly what it is. Benson and White traded lead vocals for most of the night with Benson’s sounding like a more measured and calm version of White’s excitable, often manic delivery. When they sing together, as they did on “Together,” they put forth a nice change of pace from the direct and incendiary rave ups of “Rich Kid Blues” and “Consolers Of The Lonely.”

With their opening set The Black Lips matched The Raconteurs for vintage sound, pushing the distortion levels to new highs. Heavy on garage style psychedelics, the Lips sounded a lot like a young version of The Who must have sounded in the early 60s, tearing off one fuzzy yet melodic riff after another. The only set that remained lacking was The Raconteurs encore, during which they seemed to have lost their focus. Lacking the same zip of the main set, they became mired down in plodding guitars. They did earn themselves a little bit of New York bo-ho credibility by bringing out Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs who came out to trade licks with White and Benson during “Broken Boy Soldier.”

Unlike the traditional lead-in to the many tours, The Raconteurs didn’t sow the seeds of expectation by recording an album and then letting anticipation build by making people wait for an arbitrary release date. Rather than let the tracks sit and wait for the inevitable leak, The Raconteurs moved while the iron was hot and got the new album out there. It hasn’t hurt them one bit and they may have created a blueprint for other bands to follow. After all, once the album is done, why let it sit for weeks when people could be listening to it? Then again, by now we should be used to going wherever Jack White leads.

Labels: Jack White, The Raconteurs

Given the success of Jack White's "side project" The Raconteurs there was some speculation that perhaps Jack wouldn't do further recordings with Meg White as the White Stripes. Stories circulating on the net now say otherwise. Reports have the Whites close to a new record deal.

Warner Brothers is reportedly close to signing the duo to a one record deal. No word on when the said project may commence but the deal could garner the Whites a $3-4 million dollar guarantee. Not a bad haul in today's market before selling a single disc. Although I have no doubt that if the Stripes can recapture their former magic they'll move some units.

Labels: Jack White, The Raconteurs, White Stripes

By: Rinjo Njori

When Jack White and Brendan Benson announced they were forming The Raconteurs with Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler (The Greenhornes' rhythm section) there were rumblings through the "underground" that not only did this make sense, but that fans of both The White Stripes and Brendan Benson's power pop would by default create the elusive "supergroup."

Benson, a pop song writer and producer, has been releasing albums since the mid-90s. White, the reluctant avant-garage godfather, had just released Get Behind Me Satan and produced Loretta Lynn's comeback album, Van Lear Rose. While seemingly sudden, the truth is the band had been evolving for some time, with friends coming together to write some music void of expectations. In a perfect world, the two would bring everything great about their respective bodies of work and create something greater, perhaps a spectacular rock record that would incorporate blues, country, rock and power pop. Sadly Broken Boy Soldiers makes you think this might be a one shot deal. There's nothing spectacular or great, just pretty good music with Benson and White rarely taking any chances.

The ten songs on Broken Boy Soldiers cover just over thirty three minutes. "Steady As She Goes," the first single, is a good song and lays the groundwork for the rest of the album. White and Benson trade verse and chorus and display their aptitude for writing lyrics. As usual, White inundates the song with all sorts of "effects." Fortunately, he has left the marimba at home and the "effects" are limited to guitar pedals, solos, and Benson's work on the keyboards. "Hands," "Together," and "Yellow Sun" are textbook Benson tunes; purely crafted pop songs with shades of the 60s and 70s singer-songwriters. While Benson handles the majority of the vocals on these songs, it's White's singing on the chorus that brings them to life. "Store Bought Bones" and the creepy and magical "Broken Boy Soldier" are the two most adventurous songs. The middle-eastern flavor of "Broken Boy Soldier" matches up with the hauntingly repetitive chorus, "the boy never gets older," and showcases what kind of great songs The Raconteurs are capable of writing. Lawrence and Keeler are obviously along for the ride and have the least at stake. They provided the rhythm section behind White on Van Lear Rose and prove again to be more than able behind White and Benson as they run through the songs along a range of styles.

Where it mostly goes wrong for The Raconteurs is on the last two tracks. The Benson tune "Call It a Day" sounds like a half finished Weezer song. And, not even Weezer's best stuff - think green album, not the blue album. "Blue Veins" is nothing that White hasn't done before with The White Stripes. He sounds more like Robert Plant than he does in the White Stripes and the blues-jazz music just doesn't translate. Benson also fails to offer much on the songs where he sings the chorus over White's lead.

In the whole, Broken Boy Soldiers is a good album. When "Steady As She Goes" and "Store Bought Bones" were initially posted to their official website [one of the goofiest sites the Earvolution E-I-C has seen] they were met with indifference and most hoped that Broken Boy Soldiers would have even better songs. On "Together," Benson sings, "you want everything to be just like/the stories that you read but never write/you got to learn to live and live to learn." Perhaps that's the expectation that White and Benson set for themselves when they concocted The Raconteurs in Benson's attic. An expectation that isn't quite met.

Labels: Jack White, The Raconteurs

A producer who worked on the first White Stripes recording says he helped shape the "White Stripes' sound" and is suing for royalties. Meg and Jack White, say they paid him for the time they spent at his studio and that should be the end of it.

Well kids that's why you need contracts ahead of time - even if you're just making your first demo. Bands and producers can contact me and I'll help you avoid this kind of stuff.

Labels: Jack White, White Stripes

It's all fun and games until someone calls the lawyers.

The war of words between White Stripe Jack White and British garage rocker Billy Childish has become litigious. Aquarium, a London gallery that exhibits Childish's art, created a poster exploiting the bitterness that has developed between the two musicians. Designed as a boxing announcement, the disputed "art" promotes a fictional boxing match between "Bitter" Billy Childish and Jack "Whingy" White.

Lawyers for The White Stripes claim that the poster violates their intellectual property rights and have successfully halted sales of the item on eBay. "It was just a bit of fun but these people don't seem to have a sense of humor," said Aquarium owner Steven Lowe. "I did the poster to entertain Billy and our customers really, but then we go and get this letter."

However, since receiving the letter, Aquarium has replaced a photograph of White with an artist's rendering, thus avoiding use of any alleged White Stripes intellectual property. To allay White's fears that only Aquarium shall profit from the venture, they have offered to split the revenue evenly with him. "We'll split the wadge of dosh straight down the middle between the two foes and Jack's money will be converted into solid gold, put it in a pot, and we'll keep it here at the gallery so he can collect it when he's next in London. Seems fair to me."

Labels: Jack White

Clearly relishing his 15 minutes of fame, British rocker Billy Childish responded to Jack White's churlish charges of plagiarism in an open letter to the White Stripes frontman.

"Though I have undoubtedly angered Jack White, I think it's a bit nasty of him to accuse me of plagiarism merely because his former admiration of my work was not reciprocated. It all smacks of jealousy to me. I have a bigger collection of hats, a better moustache, a more blistering guitar sound and a fully developed sense of humour. The only thing I can't understand is why I'm not rich. Yours sincerely, Billy Childish."

Childish addressed the plagiarism charge in a post script, "I always stay well within the music industries recommended guidelines of never plagiarising more than 50% of my material. But no matter who my influences may be, I would never stoop so low as to rip off Led Zeppelin."

In conclusion, Childish added, "P.P.S I hope I've gone and offended Led Zeppelin."

Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones have yet to comment on the issue.

Labels: Jack White

In response to comments made in GQ magazine by British musician Billy Childish, Jack White lashed out at the singer, accusing him of plagiarism. Once lauded by the White Stripes, Jack White took time out from The White Stripes' Japanese tour to recant his past praise on the Stripes' web site. "Meg and I really feel sorry for you," White says about Childish. "It must be lonely in all of that garage rock bitterness. You know children, when you take someone else's music and put your own lyrics on top of it, it's still called plagiarism."

White's anger stems from Childish's quote about the Stripes' music. "I can't listen to that stuff. They don't have a good sound. Jack's half into the sound and music, but then he wants to be a pop star as well, so you've got a big problem."

Having played with Childish in the past, White clearly feels the sting of ingratitude. "Billy, we didn't have to have you play with us, and we didn't have to mention you in interviews, we were just being polite in a foreign land," quips White. "But you're welcome anyways."

No matter which way you look at this situation, clearly, this is the most publicity Childish has ever received in his nearly 30 year career.

Labels: Jack White

Fresh from a summer tour with his significant other, Jack White has quickly moved onto his next project, as one fourth of the all-star combo The Raconteurs. Joining White in this new venture will be guitarist Brendan Benson, Greenhornes' drummer Patrick Keeler and bassist Jack Lawrence.

The Raconteurs' first album, Broken Boy Soldiers, will be released this May. For those who can't wait, two songs, "Steady, As She Goes" and "Store Bought Bones," can be streamed at their wonderfully retro-style web site.

The seeds for The Raconteurs were sown when Benson and White got together over the summer and wrote "Steady, As She Goes." Inspired by their new song, the two were motivated the put a band together with old friends and recruited Keeler and Lawrence for the effort. Benson and The Greenhornes opened various dates for the White Stripes on their recent tour.

Labels: Jack White, The Raconteurs

By: David Schultz

Success can do strange things to a band. It can also do strange things to the band's fan base. The White Stripes have always had a following amongst discerning listeners who pride themselves on their exceptional taste in music and concomitant ability to detect talent long before the rest of the world catches on. Fans who picked up on the stripped down, minimalist sound of the Stripes' eponymous debut and sophomore effort De Stijl watched like proud parents as White Blood Cells, Elephant and their latest release Get Behind Me Satan skyrocketed the band to credible success. Unfortunately, as evidenced by the crowd at this Sunday's show at Coney Island's Keyspan Park, there is a dark side to this story. The Stripes' popularity has spread to the high school level, causing a crowd more apropos to a Blink 182 show to come screech their little brains out. In the general admission atmosphere of the ballpark, the younger concert-goers lack of concert "etiquette" became mildly distracting as the evening wore on.

Striding onto the stage constructed in dead centerfield, the Stripes, clad in jauntily matching white outfits with red trim, looked like a pair of villains from the campy TV version of Batman. With Meg White quietly and demurely taking her seat behind the drum kit, brother, ex-husband, passing acquaintance and local hobo Jack White prowled the stage in a manically possessed state taking self photos with a Polaroid camera and then dismissively flinging them into the audience. Launching into When I Hear My Name, the Whites proceeded to speed through an intense 90 minute set showcasing Jack White's distinctive ability to adrenalize blues riffs into a menacing mélange of noise. With the stage basically to himself, Jack bounced like a child with ADD between different sets of keyboards, the marimba and several strategically placed microphones all while unleashing a devastating aural assault from his guitar.

In concert, the Stripes do not expand or significantly deviate from the studio versions of their songs. However, they hardly recite them note for note either. The most notable difference came during Denial Twist, forgoing the piano accompaniment for electric guitar, Jack managed to give the song additional swagger. The Stripes touched on their current hits, racing through Blue Orchid and My Doorbell and used Meg’s admonishing Passive Manipulation as a bridge to a foot-stomping version of Dead Leaves In The Dirty Ground. Perpetual motion personified, Jack White rarely stood still, stopping only momentarily at the keyboards for an intriguing cover of Bob Dylan's Love Sick and pausing at the marimba for The Nurse.

There is nothing fancy about Meg White's drumming, but then again the same could be said could be said for Maureen Tucker. There was also nothing fancy about the featured opening act, The Shins. They may not have changed anyone's life this evening but they did prove deserving of the hype surrounding them. In their tight 45 minute set, the Shins gave their songs a looser workout relieving them of the mopey mood that permeates much of Chutes Too Narrow.

The Stripes saved their most intense onslaught for the end. Saving the hardest and the funkiest for the end, the White's interjected the howling Red Rain into The Hardest Button to Button before revving up the blues on Ball and Biscuit and bottoming out the bass on Seven Nation Army. Anticlimactically, the show finished on its slowest note with Jack beseeching the audience to sing along with him on the last verse of Brook Benton's Boll Weevil. White's attempt to end the show on a sentimental note fell slightly flat, owing to the fact that he usually evokes more emotion with his aching heart on his sleeve and the amplifiers cranked to 11.

The Stripes' popularity presents problems to their core fan base. As each new album pushes past the boundaries set by the previous one, they attract a wider audience. Much like Pearl Jam in the early 90's, the Stripes are outgrowing their old haunts and trying to find their comfort zone in newer ones. While outdoor shows usually disappoint due to the difficult acoustics, Keyspan Park, home of minor league baseball's Brooklyn Cyclones, the Stripes turned it into a surprisingly intimate venue. The crowds will grow as the arenas get larger and it will be interesting to see how the Stripes broaden their stage show to match their popularity while still making the same connection with the audience.

Labels: Jack White, White Stripes

The White Stripes have kicked off a global tour to support their new cd, Get Behind Me Satan, which was released in the U.S. on June 7th. No word on whether Jack White's recent bride Karen Elson is traveling with the group.

The tour began in Brazil, and is followed by a few dates in Europe. Then the White Stripes come back to the states, progressing up the West Coast, and then back down, eventually making their way to Chicago. More dates will likely be added.

06-24 Pilton, England - Glastonbury Festival
06-26 Moscow, Russia - Mekanika
06-27 St. Petersburg, Russia - Manezh Kadetskogo Korpusa
06-29 Tallinn, Estonia - Club Hollywood
06-30 Riga, Latvia - Dream Factory
07-01 Kaliningrad, Russia - Vagonka
07-03 Prague, Czech Republic - Archa
07-05 Zagreb, Croatia - Stara Klaonica
07-06 Ljubljana, Slovenia - Krizanke
07-09 Gdynia, Poland - Heineken Open'er Festival
07-10 Novi Sad, Serbia - Exit Festival
07-12 Thessaloniki, Greece - Theatro Gis
07-13 Athens, Greece - Olympic Beach Volleyball Stadium
07-29 San Diego, CA - Street Scene
08-06 George, WA - The Gorge
08-07 and 8 Vancouver, British Columbia - Orpheum
08-10 Portland, OR - Keller Auditorium
08-12 Berkeley, CA - Greek Theatre
08-15 to 18 Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre
08-19 Phoenix, AZ - Dodge Theatre
08-22 Denver, CO - Red Rocks
08-23 Kansas City, MO - Starlight Theatre
08-24 St. Louis, MO - Fabulous Fox Theater
08-26 Minneapolis, MN - Orpheum Theater
08-27 Minneapolis, MN - Orpheum Theater
08-29 to 31 Chicago, IL - Auditorium Theater

Labels: Jack White, White Stripes

A posting on the White Stripes website announces that Jack White and Karen Elson were married Wednesday in Brazil:

Karen Elson and Jack White were married yesterday on the confluence of three rivers - the Rio Negro, the Solimones, and the Amazon - in the Amazon basin in the city of Manaus, Brazil. They were married by a traditional Shaman priest on a canoe at the exact point where the three rivers meet. The bride and groom were accompanied by a small party of friends. The best man was Ian Montone. Meg White was the maid of honor. The ceremony was immediately followed by a blessing by a priest at a Catholic Cathedral called Igreja Matric in the historical city of Manaus. This was the first marriage for both newlyweds.

That last line is perplexing since Jack White was once married to Meg White. He may have tried to pass her off as his sister later, but then there's the marriage license and divorce certificate that say otherwise. Also, you have to find the timing a bit interesting since White's ex Renee Zellweger just married Kenny Chesney. Come to think of it, there's a lot going on in all of their past dating lives, so to keep score:

• Zellweger also dated Jim Carrey and Damien Rice,
• White also dated Marcie Bolen from the Von Bondies,
• Elson also dated James Iha from the Smashing Pumpkins and Aurelio Valle from Calla (one of our Artists to Watch!).

Labels: Jack White