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ONE love, blood, life
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By Carrie Alison, Editor
2006.09
Meg White, we hardly knew ye. No more shall Jack White sing the tale of "Boll Weevil" to conclude a White Stripes concert from here on out. He no longer needs to look for a home. He's found one in Nashville with The Raconteurs and school was in session Monday night at Roseland Ballroom.
The inimitable White returned to New York City with his storytelling band of brothers—critically adored singer-songwriter Brendan Benson, Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler of The Greenhornes—to a sold-out crowd of devoted fans (already?!) and your requisite scenesters as "Broken Flowers" director Jim Jarmusch and Michael Stipe looked on.
Opener Dr. Dog from West Philadelphia, who, in its own words, "are interested in three-part harmonies, the out-of-doors, hoagies, vegetables and diminished chords," performed its opening duties with such ferociously rocking, tequila-drenched barroom bravado, you consider yourself extremely lucky to witness the band before it hits Black Keys-type mania with the music bloggers.
With just two hanging lanterns, and a grand, old-fashioned curtain with a proud, sprawling "R," The Raconteurs immediately launched into "Intimate Secretary," a naughty romp of a tune that simultaneously feels like a delicious road trip through America's Heartland, and a warm, laughter-filled day at the beach with your best friends, a cooler full of PBR and the promise of a bonfire that night.
"Level" followed, proving that not only are Benson and White the coolest men in rock, their sheer axe and harmonic power together is fearsome. It used to suck if you weren't in the White Stripes circa "Elephant" in 2003, now it truly must be intimidating to not be a Raconteur in 2006.
Next up were a lovely "Hands" and "Together," both feeling as familiar and worn-in as the beat-up La-Z-Boy your grandma fell asleep on after watching "Cat Ballou" on Sunday afternoons after dinner. The ultra-talented Benson is truly the MVP you want on your team. A revelatory "Yellow Sun" would confirm to me that these guys would be satisfied enough to play anywhere, be it a back porch in rural Kansas, a dingy subway station, or in the middle of Union Square. I sensed not a shred or hint of ego emanating from that hallowed stage (especially from rock superstar White), only confidence, and The Raconteurs certainly have every right to feel confident these days.
"Store Bought Bones," replete with dirty slide guitar and Queen-ly falsetto is why I despise commercial radio and trendy, throwaway rock bands. They can't produce epic guitar and lush harmonies like this.
The showstopper would arrive next in the form of an overwhelmingly dramatic cover of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang," with White's impassioned vocals and extraordinary guitar front and center. This will be my rock concert moment of the year, as it has been of many a concertgoer who has witnessed "Bang Bang" at The Raconteurs' myriad festival appearances this season. Check out various clips of the band's take on song on YouTube if you don't believe me. Or hell, check out YouTube if you want to see some magic.
A masterful "Broken Boy Soldiers" gave way to a playful and frisky version of the hit single "Steady as She Goes, but it was the swaying, crooning, devastating show closer, "Blue Veins," that would take the audience's breath away and lead a guy next to me bellow, "the guy's [White] just a freak of nature."
Power chord and '60s rock-pillaging criticism be damned—the Raconteurs have made this longtime White Stripes admirer a believer out of me. Come to Daddy(s), ya'll.
For more information on The Raconteurs, please visit the official website. The debut album, "Broken Boy Soldiers" is available now on V2 Records.
By Carrie Alison, Editor
2006.09
Meg White, we hardly knew ye. No more shall Jack White sing the tale of "Boll Weevil" to conclude a White Stripes concert from here on out. He no longer needs to look for a home. He's found one in Nashville with The Raconteurs and school was in session Monday night at Roseland Ballroom.
The inimitable White returned to New York City with his storytelling band of brothers—critically adored singer-songwriter Brendan Benson, Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler of The Greenhornes—to a sold-out crowd of devoted fans (already?!) and your requisite scenesters as "Broken Flowers" director Jim Jarmusch and Michael Stipe looked on.
Opener Dr. Dog from West Philadelphia, who, in its own words, "are interested in three-part harmonies, the out-of-doors, hoagies, vegetables and diminished chords," performed its opening duties with such ferociously rocking, tequila-drenched barroom bravado, you consider yourself extremely lucky to witness the band before it hits Black Keys-type mania with the music bloggers.
With just two hanging lanterns, and a grand, old-fashioned curtain with a proud, sprawling "R," The Raconteurs immediately launched into "Intimate Secretary," a naughty romp of a tune that simultaneously feels like a delicious road trip through America's Heartland, and a warm, laughter-filled day at the beach with your best friends, a cooler full of PBR and the promise of a bonfire that night.
"Level" followed, proving that not only are Benson and White the coolest men in rock, their sheer axe and harmonic power together is fearsome. It used to suck if you weren't in the White Stripes circa "Elephant" in 2003, now it truly must be intimidating to not be a Raconteur in 2006.
Next up were a lovely "Hands" and "Together," both feeling as familiar and worn-in as the beat-up La-Z-Boy your grandma fell asleep on after watching "Cat Ballou" on Sunday afternoons after dinner. The ultra-talented Benson is truly the MVP you want on your team. A revelatory "Yellow Sun" would confirm to me that these guys would be satisfied enough to play anywhere, be it a back porch in rural Kansas, a dingy subway station, or in the middle of Union Square. I sensed not a shred or hint of ego emanating from that hallowed stage (especially from rock superstar White), only confidence, and The Raconteurs certainly have every right to feel confident these days.
"Store Bought Bones," replete with dirty slide guitar and Queen-ly falsetto is why I despise commercial radio and trendy, throwaway rock bands. They can't produce epic guitar and lush harmonies like this.
The showstopper would arrive next in the form of an overwhelmingly dramatic cover of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang," with White's impassioned vocals and extraordinary guitar front and center. This will be my rock concert moment of the year, as it has been of many a concertgoer who has witnessed "Bang Bang" at The Raconteurs' myriad festival appearances this season. Check out various clips of the band's take on song on YouTube if you don't believe me. Or hell, check out YouTube if you want to see some magic.
A masterful "Broken Boy Soldiers" gave way to a playful and frisky version of the hit single "Steady as She Goes, but it was the swaying, crooning, devastating show closer, "Blue Veins," that would take the audience's breath away and lead a guy next to me bellow, "the guy's [White] just a freak of nature."
Power chord and '60s rock-pillaging criticism be damned—the Raconteurs have made this longtime White Stripes admirer a believer out of me. Come to Daddy(s), ya'll.
For more information on The Raconteurs, please visit the official website. The debut album, "Broken Boy Soldiers" is available now on V2 Records.
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