i had my world rocked last nite.
we didn't make it in time to see the opener, the soledad brothers, but were fortunate to get to the gates as the yeah yeah yeah's took the stage. the guy on the drums and the other guy on the guitars knew their shit but it was all about lead screamer karen o and her bottle of champagne. this chick is 100% attitude, from microphone fellatio to her jaggeresque/school marm no-no finger wag. i remember seeing a picture of karen on the cover of KoreAm magazine when i was in line purchasing some bulgogi and bibim namul at the korean market by my office but never really made the connection between her pixie-ish looks and the rock diva that burned the stage up last nite.
the headliners for once lived up to the hype. the white stripes were nothing short of astounding and had the crowd at the greek theater on their feet and cheering in full force. the gay guys that sat in front of me were such a crack up, with their nordictrack fist pumping and vigorous pelvic thrusting, but its good to see great music inspire people in their own individual ways. meg white was on drums and had a nice moment when she took the mic but let's face it, its all about jack. jack who sings like robert plant who sang like otis rush and muddy waters. jack who plays with the lyricism of albert king and the fury of randy rhodes. at least he did until went all mad scientist with his steel guitar and slide. jack sounded fucking genius against the spartan background beats that his sister/ex-wife/whateverthefuck laid down but i couldn't help wonder what it'd be like if someone like ?uestlove, someone with real vision, backed him up. i want to run out right now to buy up all their albums but i can't help but wonder if their studio offerings will leave me wanting after their explosive performance last nite.
happy 77th birthday JOHN COLTRANE!
***update***
daily variety didn't print a review of monday's show but the hollywood reporter's john lappen said "while the white stripes' sound is imminently more palatable than the lunkhead rap-metal and formulaic pop-rock that is spewed out by way too many of their--for lack of a better word-- contemporaries, let's not get too damn excited about this new wave whippersnapper rock 'n' roll becuase... when its all said and done, the band is simply regurgitating rock and blues riffs that have been recycled countless times before by much more talented bands.
"if this is as good as modern rock gets, of course we'll take it. but as far as longevity and wide-ranging influence of their own on the part of the white stripes past this current window of opportunity [is] probably not in the cards."
the los angeles times' robert hillburn wrote "singer-guitarist jack and his ex-wife drummer meg played with a fury and renegade sipirt that was by turns thrilling and inspiring."
"whether playing bottleneck guitar soulful enough for a mississippi juke joint or rock 'n' roll guitar stricking enough for the hottest bar in town, jack white seems to be still searching for his own musical destiny. no one knows quite where this journey will lead, but ever indication continues to be that the journey itself is going to be glorious."
we didn't make it in time to see the opener, the soledad brothers, but were fortunate to get to the gates as the yeah yeah yeah's took the stage. the guy on the drums and the other guy on the guitars knew their shit but it was all about lead screamer karen o and her bottle of champagne. this chick is 100% attitude, from microphone fellatio to her jaggeresque/school marm no-no finger wag. i remember seeing a picture of karen on the cover of KoreAm magazine when i was in line purchasing some bulgogi and bibim namul at the korean market by my office but never really made the connection between her pixie-ish looks and the rock diva that burned the stage up last nite.
the headliners for once lived up to the hype. the white stripes were nothing short of astounding and had the crowd at the greek theater on their feet and cheering in full force. the gay guys that sat in front of me were such a crack up, with their nordictrack fist pumping and vigorous pelvic thrusting, but its good to see great music inspire people in their own individual ways. meg white was on drums and had a nice moment when she took the mic but let's face it, its all about jack. jack who sings like robert plant who sang like otis rush and muddy waters. jack who plays with the lyricism of albert king and the fury of randy rhodes. at least he did until went all mad scientist with his steel guitar and slide. jack sounded fucking genius against the spartan background beats that his sister/ex-wife/whateverthefuck laid down but i couldn't help wonder what it'd be like if someone like ?uestlove, someone with real vision, backed him up. i want to run out right now to buy up all their albums but i can't help but wonder if their studio offerings will leave me wanting after their explosive performance last nite.
happy 77th birthday JOHN COLTRANE!
***update***
daily variety didn't print a review of monday's show but the hollywood reporter's john lappen said "while the white stripes' sound is imminently more palatable than the lunkhead rap-metal and formulaic pop-rock that is spewed out by way too many of their--for lack of a better word-- contemporaries, let's not get too damn excited about this new wave whippersnapper rock 'n' roll becuase... when its all said and done, the band is simply regurgitating rock and blues riffs that have been recycled countless times before by much more talented bands.
"if this is as good as modern rock gets, of course we'll take it. but as far as longevity and wide-ranging influence of their own on the part of the white stripes past this current window of opportunity [is] probably not in the cards."
the los angeles times' robert hillburn wrote "singer-guitarist jack and his ex-wife drummer meg played with a fury and renegade sipirt that was by turns thrilling and inspiring."
"whether playing bottleneck guitar soulful enough for a mississippi juke joint or rock 'n' roll guitar stricking enough for the hottest bar in town, jack white seems to be still searching for his own musical destiny. no one knows quite where this journey will lead, but ever indication continues to be that the journey itself is going to be glorious."
xox