Review Summary: Doesn't sound as raw and garage rock as The White Stripes should; borders on Scottish folk music to a Quick Draw McGraw anthem at times. Another self-indulgent album by Jack White and co.
Last night, I was watching TV and an ad for Icky Thump, the latest White Stripes album came on. They played the introduction to
Conquest, and a bit of
Icky Thump. After I saw that commercial I figured I was missing something; that Icky Thump couldn't have been as bad as I had originally thought the first time I listened to it. I went to my iTunes library, and listened to Icky Thump all the way through again. This time, a few songs stuck out as classics, but the problem remained; it's not hard enough. It's not raw enough. The White Stripes were a garage band and always will be a garage band to me.
I enjoy The White Stripes-to a point. I'm a fan of White Blood Cells and Elephant. Man, when I heard
Icky Thump (the song) on the radio, I was in shock and awe at it's greatness; from the loud, rough guitar solos. But that's all Icky Thump has. The record was over-produced for White Stripes standards; it's not loud enough, it's not rough enough, it doesn't feature what the White Stripes were known for; pure, guitar/drum driven rock. Featuring a variety of instruments in this album; it just doesn't feel like the same old garage White Stripes to me.
Of course, there's the raw, noisy, title track
Icky Thump featuring a wide variety of guitar solos, Jack White's funny political driven lyrics, and a nice tempo. The song isn't that bad; it's just too cut-up. It's wonderful quality died with time. It just sounds to repetitive and it feels like it goes on forever when it's only 4:13 long! Not to mention some of the louder, rougher sounding solos give me a headache.
Songs like
Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn and
St. Andrew (The Battle is in the Air) are irritating, repetitive and so un-White Stripes I wonder what I'm listening to when I hear them. Whether Jack White is trying to integrate scottish folk music into his band is beyond me; but it doesn't integrate well into the pure rock that is The White Stripes.
There's some rockers in there too though;
Bone Broke,
Little Cream Soda and
Catch Hell Blues all feel like they should have been featured in White Blood Cells or Elephant. They all sound raw, and feature some nice guitar riffs and solos. These songs feel like The White Stripes to me and are some of my favorites by far.
But there's the strangest song on the album
Conquest, which features a battle-cry like lyric, "CONNNNNQQQQQUUUUEESSSSSSTTT!". The song features an interesting trumpet, and the song suddenly changes into a Quick Draw McDraw anthem. Eventually it picks up a little tempo, but the song is corny and seriously sounds as if it could be in a cartoon.
You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do What You're Told) is my favorite song off Icky Thump; it's got some nice guitar solos; the tempo is catchy, and the lyrics rock and Jack White's vocals are perfect in this song. It's pretty hard rock too, but doesn't seem to never end like the title track. Easily Icky Thump's best song.
Icky Thump comes off as another self-indulgent record that manages to also sound like a Scottish folk record. It follows up to Get Behind Me Satan because its every bit as bad as its predecessor. Jack, I was let down. I was seriously excited about Icky Thump. I thought it would be another Elephant or White Blood Cells. Oh well, there's always next time.
