Photo Courtesy Scott Newton & KLRU
As Jack White’s career has steadily transitioned from unknown to indie hero to cultural superstar, he’s had the opportunity to collaborate with Loretta Lynn, share the stage with Lou Reed, and has seen his newest album hit number one on the charts. Sunday night, following a headlining slot at ACL Fest, he reached another career milestone when he recorded a set at the prestigious Austin City Limits studios.
The White Stripes were one of the first independent bands I recall encountering. I loved the Pixies and the Violent Femmes in high school, but my freshman year of college, small, independent acts were still foreign to me. Some friends were going to see them at Emo’s and there were still tickets available the day of the show. Not knowing who they were at all, I opted out and probably sat around watching TV or studying. They promptly exploded after the tour, and were well on their way to being huge. Although I didn’t go to the show, the same group of friends burned for me the recently released White Blood Cells. I proceeded to fall in love with literally every song on the album at some point over the next few months, making even more painful that I’d missed the show.
I watched White collaborate with some of my favorite musicians and bands of all time over the next few years as his career skyrocketed, but the closest I ever got to seeing him was in New Orleans. In fact, I did see him, but it wasn’t at a show. As I sat on the patio of a gelato shop on Magazine Street, Jack White and the other members of the Dead Weather walked out of a gothic antique store holding an enormous, ornate candelabra centerpiece. He’s taller than you can imagine.
So, after almost a decade of being a Jack White fan, I still hadn’t seen him live, until Sunday night. White struts onto a fittingly monochromatic stage wearing a powder blue suit backed by his all male band, The Buzzards. After playing his newest hit single, “Freedom at 21,” he launches into the classic “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground.” Everyone on stage is electrically charged as they power through the songs. The band hits other recent high points such as “Missing Pieces” during the set but also mixes in older material. Halfway through, the Buzzards depart, and the more elegant Peacocks, White’s all female backing band joins him. Vocalist Ruby Amanfu sings at a single mic with White through “Love Interruption” from his solo album Blunderbuss. I feel awkward calling pointed attention to this fact, but it’s nice to see an equal opportunity employer at the helm of such an important musical force. Too often, bands are staffed exclusively with white males, and the diversity onstage was an added bonus in accompaniment to the outstanding talent.
With White, you never know exactly how a song will be translated. As raw energy pulses through him, each cut is a little different, rough, inspired by the energy of the moment. It is perhaps this quality more than any other that aligns him with great blues artists of the past like Howlin’ Wolf and Robert Johnson. White is a true fusion of the new, brash rock energy of contemporary music, and the rugged, emotional improvisation of classic blues. ACL has certainly added to their list of performers one of the most vital musicians of our time, and one that echoes the traditions of musicians who have graced their stage in the past.
