The White Stripes

The White Stripes is a band I have been following for the past five years and I thought I'd post an entry about them in case some of you hadn't heard their music. They'd been around for a while (formed in '97) before I finally cottoned on to them.

They are a two-man band out of Detroit, Michigan, though at first impression you'd think they were straight out of Liverpool. For a while I thought they were a Brit band. Meg White (Megan Martha White) plays drums and occasional vocals and Jack White (John Anthony Gillis) plays guitar, piano & vocals.

It has been said that they are brother & sister, but then it was retorted that they at one time had been married then divorced. Either way, their music is amazing.

Anyway, back to the 'band'. To date, they have five CD's out: White Stripes, De Stijl, White Blood Cells, Elephant & Get Behind Me Satan. All of which are top notch. They also have a live dvd called "Under Blackpool Lights" recorded in England in 2004. Great show!

I'm not a music reviewer, so I can't tell you how song one hits with the force of a howitzer, or how song two brings a spine-tingling xylaphone ballad... All I know is that there is so much musical diversity in their repitoire I don't know how to categorize them. They have such a unique sound and play with such texture and fullness that you have to often remind yourself that it is just the two of them.

I remember when they played on Late Night with Conan O'Brien for an entire week a couple years back when they were promoting Elephant. That was the first time I saw them live and they blew me away. They are one of those bands that their live presence is better than their studio work.

I raise a toast to Jack & Meg. I hope that the conception of Jack's new band 'The Raconteurs' doesn't mean an end to the Dynamic-Duo.

If you haven't heard or seen them, give them a chance. They're not to everyone's taste, but they're my favorite.