It began with having tickets for the ill-fated final White
Stripes UK tour in 2007, cancelled due to Meg White’s acute anxiety. I've since seen
The Raconteurs from great distant in a fairly muted mid-afternoon main stage
slot at Reading Festival, and have twice seen Jack plays drums in The Dead Weather.
But I’ve longed to see him front and centre, axe in hand as
he was meant to be. News of his solo album was a welcome break amid fears he
was losing his identity through his endless collaborating and his roles as
producer/record label owner/gun for hire. It also presented the best
opportunity in a number of years to see Jack White live.
Set lists from his show at the HMV Forum in April and his
American tour in May also suggested a perfect blend of solo, Stripes, Raconteurs
and Dead Weather material. Almost a greatest hits set.
And so, with a critically lauded solo album to add to his
back catalogue and the intriguing possibility of which backing band he would
use, Jack White took to the stage at the Hammersmith Apollo last night (22
June) as a genuinely exciting prospect.
The first question was answered when The Peacocks, Jack’s
all female backing band, took to the stage. Six strong (drums, double bass,
pedal steel, fiddle, organ/piano and backing vocals), they create a semi circle
around the stage and build for Jack’s arrival with a flurry of noise.
Jack casually walks on, barely reacting to absolute hysteria
of the crowd and immediately rips into the raucous Dead Leaves and The Dirty
Ground. When he stands still, which isn’t often, he is lit from the front,
casting a thirty-foot shadow on the back of the stage that is a fairly accurate
representation of his now towering stature.
Three Blunderbuss songs follow, kicking off with opening
track Missing Pieces before singles Sixteen Saltines and Love Interruption, the
latter of which sees backing singer Ruby Amanfu seductively sharing Jack’s mic
front and centre. Her excellent vocals are a feature of the gig, giving Jack
time to throw himself around with abandon.
From the get go, the other Peacock most prominent is drummer
Carla Azar. Situated at the front of one end of the semi-circle, on Jack’s
right hand side, she is the antithesis of Meg White, brilliantly quickening and
complicating every song, making use of her entire kit with constant frantic
beats.
Four songs in he stops momentarily to ask 'Are you awake now
London?', the screaming replies have barely died down before he rips into Hotel
Yorba, perhaps the best example of the way his new band have taken White
Stripes songs and evolved them. With added fiddle and pedal steel guitar, Yorba
becomes a stomping hoedown of a song that has people out of their seats and
literally dancing in the aisles.
After seven frenzied songs and barely a breath, Jack puts
down his guitar and takes to the piano to play a country section featuring
Guess I Should Go To Sleep and a Hank Williams cover.
White Stripes numbers I’m Slowly Turning Into You and an
evolved Ball and Biscuit close the first set, with Jack bouncing around his
semicircle of support before casting his guitar down in a howl of feedback. He
strides off stage to get a few moments of recovery before the energetic encore.
He arrives back on stage flanked by his Peacocks and after
warming his fingers and fret up again bursts into Freedom at 21, the current
single from Blunderbuss.
He hisses 'You still awake London?' before introducing The
Peacocks, revealing its the debut show of the double bassist. Said Peacock then
gets the gig going again with the recognisable bass intro of The Raconteurs'
Steady, As She Goes. A highlight of the set, it is quickened and slowed several
times, extended and punctured by two blistering solos.
Throughout the gig, Jack demonstrates why he is without doubt one of the world's best players. He wails, shreds, plucks and coaxes every possible sound out of his instrument and doesn’t miss a chance to do so.
Throughout the gig, Jack demonstrates why he is without doubt one of the world's best players. He wails, shreds, plucks and coaxes every possible sound out of his instrument and doesn’t miss a chance to do so.
The encore is eased a touch with Hip (Eponymous) Poor Boy
and We're Going To Be Friends, which has the cute feel of the final slow number
at a school disco with Jack's soft vocals and dimmed lights.
By the final flurry of songs, which include Stripes favourites My Doorbell and
the unofficial anthem of Euro 2012 Seven Nation Army, I’ve pretty much run out
of superlatives, so don’t even try to describe them. Needless to the say the gig
finishes with a bang.
It was a sad day when The White Stripes confirmed they would
not be returning in 2010 for those who had never seen them live, but last
night’s performance went some way to softening the blow.
Support on the night came from First Aid Kit, the latest
band off Sweden’s conveyor belt of cool, though until they speak you could be forgiven for thinking they hail from the American south.
Their brand of country folk was perfectly pitched to set the
scene for Jack, and their set of songs from second album A Lion’s Roar was
short, sweet and hugely enjoyable. The best way I could describe them would be
as a female Fleet Foxes, in that they create beautiful harmonies and
outstanding volume for just two sisters.
