The Dead Weather - Horehound
Overall: 8.1/10
Sound: 8
Quality: 9
Lyrics: 8
Impression: 7
Production: 9
Tilt: 7.5
When discussing a bluesy brand of post-punk revival, the conversation usually doesn't swerve very far from The White Stripes and The Kills. The former, fronted by Jack White, has taken Motor City blues to a big stage with grandiose guitar and intriguing lyricism instantly finding a place in the hearts of music authorities. The latter, fronted by Alison Mosshart, have burst onto the scene as a "Stripes competitor", choosing a synthesis of garage, punk and blues that has left critics speechless. While both bands play to their respective audiences, the comparisons drawn have been many.
Going back a few years, Jack White's most prolific side project, The Raconteurs, were on tour and, fittingly enough, The Kills were given the opening slot for several legs of the tour. As legend has it, one night when Jack's vocals weren't quite up to snuff, he invited Alison up on stage to perform some of the set with him. Not knowing quite what to expect, the performance was lauded for the instant chemistry between its principal performers. After that, it wasn't a surprise that several months later, at the opening of Third Man Records' (Jack's recording studio) new home in Nashville, The Dead Weather was announced.
This new project between Mosshart and White came as a surprise announcement, but eventually grew to a new hype machine, driven by two of the greatest lo-fi garage artists of our time. Joining Mosshart on vocals and Jack on drums were Raconteurs bassist, Jack Lawrence, and Queens of the Stone Age guitarist/keyboardist, Dean Fertita. The day the band was announced, the quartet performed their debut single, Hang you From the Heavens, for all in attendence at Third Man's opening. What they heard was a smashing, blues-rich track, filled to the brim with distorted riffs and lyrics about broken, difficult love; all involved knew they had a hit on their hands.
Recorded in three weeks (three weeks!) in January of 2009, the end product is as dark, devious and debonaire as the debut single. Influences from both bands' respective styles fuse into a new kind of blues: one that is as tortured as it is powerful, as helpless as it is overbearing. For example, 60 Feet Tall is a prime 1-4-5 blues piece à la Jack White, whereas Hang you From the Heavens is The Kills in a nutshell, both lyrically and musically. Yet it's where the styles overlap that the greatest ground is broken. Songs like Rocking Horse and No Hassle Night, the combined efforts of Mosshart and White on this album, sound so astoundingly fresh. On Rocking Horse, the two bounce between a Nancy Sinatra-esque delayed guitar and a thrashing, distortion-filled onslaught to illustrate the taming of man who knows no true love by a woman who wants his. Additionally, as per Jack White again, a cover of Bob Dylan's New Pony is stellar and refreshing.
This album is organized in a similar fashion to that of a White Stripes or Raconteurs cut. The work ebbs and flows between intimate blues settings with grandiose riffs and truly catchy rock n' roll anthems. Such a transition is experienced between So Far from Your Weapon and Treat Me like Your Mother. Where the former seems like a direct biproduct from a tortured mind, the latter is empowering, aggressive and feminine, fittingly enough. Yet as powerful as the rock can be, the blues can seem repetitive at times. Where both musicians exhibit a vast amount of talent, their final product seems somewhat limited. No track on this album is no-holds barred enough to grab you by the throat and force you to listen. Eventually, I'm sure Jack and Allison will turn the knob to 11 and thrash something incomparable, but for now, much of it feels safe.
As a whole, this album is a thunderstorm. Like a heavy black cloud, it hangs over you the entire time, mauling you with gale-force winds, searing rain, thunder and lightning. There are points where it lets up a little and you think you can move again, but it's the times you're glued to your seat, surrounded by sound, that truly make this album the black and moving piece it is.
No comments:
Post a Comment