While there’s no denying
that riff or the melodic prettiness
of, say, “Truth Doesn’t Make A Noise” (among other things, of course), I’ve
never been a particularly huge fan of The White Stripes’ garage-y and hipped-up take on blues. Don't take me wrong, De Stijl and Elephant are both strong albums, we all pretty much agree on that, but it’s
as if something was always missing from that raw, self-consciously cool sound. I believe it was the songwriting. The kind of songwriting you could get your teeth into.
So is there that missing spark on Jack White’s feverishly anticipated debut? Well, it's both yes and no. Blunderbuss certainly sounds more
interesting, more full-bloodied than any WS album; its arrangements are rich
and its songwriting is so much deeper than that of Icky
Thump that the first listen is a lot more joyful than it probably should be. And
yet, try as I might, I just can’t get too excited about the actual tunes. Especially some of the album's slow and mid-tempo material (for instance, without that melodious line “On And On And On” would just be faceless and dull).
I guess it’s a good
thing that Blunderbuss is so diverse
stylistically. Yes, it is mostly rooted in blues (White would be pleased to
hear that), but there’s a difference between the slow and mellow title track
and that rip-roaring guitar work of “Weep Themselves To Sleep”. Interestingly, my favourite
songs are all concentrated at the very beginning: “Love Interruption” is an
intense ballad, all broken knees and raw emotions; there’s great heavy riffage throughout “Sixteen Saltines”; the funky “Freedom At 21” makes wonderful use of the playful
arrogance of White’s voice. All good stuff. And even if some of these tunes don’t
sound too inspired/inspirational, there are certain instrumental touches and delights to make up for
that. Like that lovely piano opening “Hypocritical Kiss”…
No problem with giving
this one a good 7. I just honestly can’t expect Jack White to record an album
much better than this. He is talented, he is audacious, he knows his music –
however, the bottom line would be this: he is not a great songwriter. He just isn’t.
7/10
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