jack the riffer

by the time jack white had tossed his belt into the crowd, mid-riff seguing into only the 2nd song of the night, perched up on his monitor gesturing to the crowd like "c'mon, give it to me!", and the crowd responding, arms up, giving it to him, he had earned my vote for this generation's modern rock guitar god. pure rock n roll showmanship. he had seemingly already earned 5000 or so other votes. i saw the white stripes at the JLC on the weekend for the first time and was totally blown away, all expectations thoroughly exceeded.

they opened in a big way, with a filthy dead leaves and the dirty ground going into icky thump, with the aforementioned frenzy inducing antics in the middle. the set was longer than i was expecting, and they seemed to play tons of songs.. and lots that i was wanting to hear and that had been swimming around in my head during the day leading up. highlights were im slowly turning into you, with the crowd doing big "HEY!"'s in between the organ parts, hotel yorba, finding it harder to be a gentleman, cold cold night where meg came out from the kit to sing and jack let her have the stage retreating towards the back, playing kneeling down with his back to the crowd. she maybe got the biggest ovation of the night. there was a proposal set-up, followed closely by an awesome union forever and a martyr for my love for you. the set finished with a wicked medley starting with the big 3 killed my baby > i think i smell a rat > little cream soda w/ parts of big 3 > astro (which was started earlier in the set) > i think i smell a rat. lot of energy packed in there, they had the place eating out of the palms of their hands. the encore was huge, too... i just don't know what to do with myself, you don't know what love is (you just do as you're told), hardest button to button, i can tell that we're gonna be friends, seven nation army, among others...

the stage was set up all in red with a riser at the back and a few ladders going up... jack used it as a stage for some big time riffing and soloing, stomping around in a powder to create a sort of smoke effect around his feet. a silhouette of meg filled the background most of the night, her kit was set up on an angle kind of off to the side of jack... over to the other side were an organ and some other keys that got a fair bit of use.

the crowd was totally into it all night, too... clapping along, chanting out "hey!"'s when appropriate, singing along - no doubt jack's energy was a big part of whipping them into shape.

it's kind of amazing the kind of show these 2 people can put on, without the use of a full band. to me it actually seems like the perfect dynamic for what they're creating, in a live setting it makes so much sense - i kind of wasnt expecting that, either. seeing them live gave me a whole new respect for the band, even though its not like i didnt like them before. i guess i just kinda see it a different way now. with so much amazing music out there, they're another great example of a creative way to get it out there. jack's monstrous playing certainly doesnt need any accompaniment on the guitars, and meg, for all her criticisms, i think is actually perfect for the part. she can drum, and her thrashy style is perfect for that sound and that stage dynamic - i couldnt really imagine how it could function any other way.

they continued the tradition of the afternoon secret gig on this tour, this time playing up at the arva flour mill - unfortunately, i didnt make it up to that, but by all accounts, it was pretty incredible. with this ambitious tour and all these little shows they've been doing, on top of the ridiculous rock n roll they've been dropping all over the country, i think it's safe to say this is going to go down as one legendary canadian tour.

White Stripes
John Labatt Center
London Ontario
07/07/07

Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground
Icky Thump
I'm Slowly Turning Into You >
Canon >
I'm Slowly Turning Into You
Hotel Yorba
I'm Finding It Harder To Be A Gentelman
Astro / Jack the Ripper
Death Letter
Cold Cold Night
Apple blossom
The Union Forever
A Martyr for my Love For You
The Big Three Killed My Baby
I think I smell a rat (riff)
Little Cream Soda (w/ big 3 words at the end)
Astro
I think I smell a rat

Encore

Blue Orchid
Party of Special Things To Do
I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself
You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)
Hardest Button To Button
Catch Hell Blues
We're Going To Be Friends
Seven Nation Army
Boll weevill