Tag: Jack White (31-38 of 38)

Feb 24 2010 12:25 PM ET

Jack White produces model wife's first album: Watch the new video here

Jack White can’t marry a lady, it seems, without making sweet music with her, too—literally. While the White Stripes frontman’s longtime gig with ex-wife Meg has been usurped lately by some 987 additional side projects, he recently somehow found time to produce the full-length solo debut of his current wife, British-born supermodel Karen Elson, at his own Third Man Studios in Nashville. The fruits of their spousely labor, The Ghost Who Walks, are due this summer.

Elson is not entirely new to music, having previously performed with the star-studded art-cabaret collective Citizens Band and dueted on Serge Gainsbourg’s delicious sonic-soft-porn coo “Je T’aime…Moi Non Plus” with Cat Power. And now Ghost‘s title track, a dusky, acoustic murder ballad, has its own video. Is it just us, or does this crew perambulate with spirits a lot?

What do you think? Are you eager to hear the rest come summer? And does Jack White have Matrix-like abilities to bend space and time? Maybe he just sleeps when he blinks.

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Dec 4 2009 07:15 PM ET

mtvU Woodie Awards: College students vote their favorite artists (Kings of Leon! Matt and Kim!) of 2009

The 2009 mtvU Woodie Awards penetrate dorm-room televisions this Friday night. Now, mtvU is a campus-only cable network, so this awards show is targeted to those seeking higher education: i.e., it is something kids watch before leaving their rooms, finding a party and making some questionable decisions.

So if you wanna know what your missing,  here it is: Woodies are golden logs given to musicians based upon student votes from across the country. According to MTV, the Woodies give us the pulse of the trend-setting campus crowd. Some of the featured artists at the ’09 Woodies are indeed of the up-and-coming variety—Passion Pit, Never Shout Never—and some were alt-music standbys present, like Death Cab for Cutie, Jack White and Clipse. But there was one thing I know for certain: You should question the indie cred of any show that provides two separate bottles of hair product on every sink in the bathroom.

All questions of “alternative-ness” aside, however, the performances were top notch. The show’s fantastic kickoff featured moving cameras following the Brooklyn duo Matt and Kim as they biked through the heart of Manhattan (in real time) and into the Roseland Ballroom, where they hopped off their bikes and jumped right into singing their college-radio hit “Lessons Learned” as audiences cheered along.

You might remember that song from its infamous music video—the indie twosome walk through Times Square shedding layers of clothing until they are completely nekkid in front of droves of gawking tourists. But in case you forgot:

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Nov 17 2009 03:52 PM ET

Jack White to produce Queen of Rockabilly Wanda Jackson's next album

At long last it looks like rock’s first lady, Wanda Jackson, is finally getting her due. Yes, it helps that the 72-year-old was just inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but the news that Jack White will be producing her next album makes an authentic comeback seem imminent.

When White produced Loretta Lynn’s 2004 album Van Lear Rose, the country singer went from “forgotten superstar” status to ubiquitous year-end list-topper. His indie cred brought her talent back into public consciousness, not to mention widespread acclaim: Van Lear Rose is still tied for the highest-rated album on metacritic.com.

For those who are kinda fonda Wanda, it’s a thrill that the first woman to holler her way into rock history may get the long-overdue popular reappraisal she deserves. Her ’50s singles never took off like those of her one-time boyfriend Elvis, but gutsy stompers like “Fujiyama Mama,” “Let’s Have a Party” and “Hard Headed Woman” (below) sound raw even today:

And don’t worry that her age will drag this upcoming album down—I saw her live a few years back, and she was still playing guitar and boppin’ the blues like a teenager. It will be fascinating to see how she and White mesh together, and it’s great to think that if all goes well creatively, Jackson could finally garner the mainstream acclaim that has so often eluded her.

Do you think the White Stripes/Raconteurs/Dead Weather frontman can pull a Rick Rubin a la Johnny Cash and bring Jackson back to the top of her game? And what other sadly neglected rock n’ roll originals would you love to hear given a fresh start in the studio?

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Oct 16 2009 12:53 PM ET

The Dead Weather, 'Cut Like a Buffalo': a Jack White do-over

Not only can’t Jack White decide which band he wants to be in, he also has a rough time figuring out which music video to use for the Dead Weather’s latest single.

He directed two versions of his garage-blues band’s “Cut Like a Buffalo” and liked them both so much he can’t stand the thought of one of them wasting away in the vaults. The original (admittedly better) version came out a few weeks ago, and now this one (bits of which are shown in the original) is available for your pleasure/judgment:

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Jul 6 2009 05:23 PM ET

Want in on Jack White's subscription service, the Vault? Join the club

 Jack-white_lBecause clearly he is not busy enough, Raconteur/ White Stripe/Dead Weather-er Jack White has launched an online subscription service for his own Third Man Records, offering fans access to pre-sale tickets, podcasts, video streams, special merch, exclusive vinyl, contests, and other insidery bits.

The service, dubbed the Vault, isn't free, alas. For $7 a month (with a three-month minimum) you get many of the basics listed above; the $20 "Platinum Membership" will get you "exclusive subscription-service-only releases" (could be a White Stripes one-off, could be something from Kentucky goth-teen kook and recent Third Man signing Mildred and the Mice), including one 12" LP, one 7", and a free t-shirt.

So basically, it sounds kind of like the claw-machine game at your local bowling alley — sometimes you get a magical treasure and brag to all your friends, sometimes you get a sad mangled stuffed dragon thing that you just let the dog chew on.

But you tell us, readers — does the Vault (see the full terms here) sound like one mystery door you'd like to open? Are you a fan of similar services out there, like the famous Sub Pop Singles Club, which relaunched for one brief glorious moment last year?

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Jul 6 2009 04:36 PM ET
Jun 19 2009 02:55 PM ET

The Dead Weather: Jack White's new band makes its (unimpressive) TV debut on 'Conan'

Jack White's new alt-garage supergroup the Dead Weather made their splashy television debut last night on Conan, and I think I'm just going to have to come out and say it: I don't like them. At all.

The few tracks that have leaked from their forthcoming album Horehound (due July 14) struck me as aimless and noisy, and their lifeless performance on Conan did nothing to alter that opinion. A stringy-haired White was relegated to drums, with the Kills frontwoman Alison Mosshart taking center stage for the group's song "Hang You From the Heavens."

Mosshart's got charisma, but the repetitious whirring of the guitars and the track's obnoxious lyrics did her no favors. (Sample lyric: "I'd like to grab you by the hair and drag you to the devil." Uh, okaaay.)

As a semi-enthusiastic fan of both the White Stripes and the Raconteurs, my displeasure with the Dead Weather is both disappointing and surprising. There just doesn't seem to be anything special about their (generic) brand of dark-rock.

But what do you think, Mixers? Do you like the boozy intensity of Jack White's new band? Or do you prefer him in Stripes or as a Raconteur? Watch the performance below:


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Jack White reveals plans for solo album; proves existence of own space-time continuum

Jun 9 2009 05:44 PM ET

Jack White reveals plans for solo album; proves existence of own space-time continuum

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Jack-white_l Seriously, is this man bionic? He's already got a White Stripes reunion in the wings, the debut from supergroup side project The Dead Weather due in July, and, for all we know, new Raconteurs tracks just spontaneously conjur themselves in his basement while he carpools the kids.

Now, Jack White has announced plans for a possible solo album, which he hopes to start working on in "late 2009." I hope he enjoys his eight-minute daily power nap, because the man clearly can't be wasting any hours on something as dull and unproductive as REM-cycle sleep.

What do you think, Music Mixers? Is all this White magic welcome, or could Jack be a little too nimble, and start diluting his gifts?

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