REVIEW: Jack White – Lazaretto

Looking back through the decades, each generation of rock fans have their own heroes. Whether it’s The Rolling Stones in the sixties, Bowie in the seventies, Pixies in the eighties, or Cobain in the nineties, there are always several names that stand out. For some, the stand out rock band of the early noughties are The White Stripes, and in particular, Jack White.

Lazaretto's cover.

Now aged 38, and living in Nashville, White has recently released his highly anticipated second solo album, titled Lazaretto. The critical reception of the album has been hugely positive, receiving reviews that even someone as experienced as White would be proud of. The album is available as digital download, CD, and on limited edition vinyl ‘Ultra LP’, which features hidden tracks, alternative takes and spinning angel holograms. Yeah, I said holograms.

‘Three Women’ is a track heavy with blistering slaloms of bluesy guitar and clanging piano, with catchy rhythms and vocals that steam with attitude. A track that shows White at his best; infusing classic and modern sounds to create something incredibly good.

The title track follows. ‘Lazaretto’ is a funk ridden, fast paced, fiery three and a bit minutes of melody that tears through the auditory receptors. Heavy, harsh and swift. Contrastingly, the next track is the country infused ‘Temporary Ground’. Featuring beautiful and tender vocals; imagine a modern day Eagles song. Temporary ground fades into the whisking, echoing bass that opens ‘Would You Fight for My Love?’ Alive with atmosphere, punchy riffs and chugging bass which are layered beneath the passionate, writhing vocals from White. A brilliant track that represents all that is good about Jack’s music.

‘High Ball Stepper’, the fifth track of ‘Lazaretto’, is an instrumental screamer. Squawking guitar, disjointed piano, savage riffs that effectively tear the limbs off of the layers of music beneath it. Basically, the track sounds how I imagine a guitar battle between Satan and Godzilla would sound. Lovely.

Returning to the shallow waters of sanity for a moment, ‘Just One Drink’ begins with a distorted chord progression, which leads into a brilliant chorus. The song is laced with elements of blues and country, and sounds like it could be comfortable on The Rolling Stones ‘Let It Bleed’.

A jovial piano riff bursts open the next song. ‘Alone in my home’ is full of joy and happiness, featuring verses that build on foundations of twanging vocals and uplifting piano. Ridiculously catchy, you can’t help but fall in love with this track. Following on, ‘Entitlement’ opens with a swaying line of notes, and white’s rasping vocals begin sullenly. As lovely as the song is, it gets boring, and after about three minutes is pretty skip-able.

Next, returning to the borderline creative insanity that we have come to love from White, ‘That Black Bat Liquorice’ begins with a searing riff, and as soon as White’s vocals start you know you’re in for a treat, rapidly sung lyrics curdle with the melodies and riffs that I believe genuinely increase your heart rate. Bursting with angst and aggression, it’s another song that throws you back to the hey-day of The White Stripes. Again, for the penultimate track ‘I Think I Found the Culprit’ Jack slips back into his new-found country sound, using whinging slide guitar to accompany the deep rumbles of chords that add meat to the bones of the instrumentals. A slightly mediocre song, which delivers only on creating atmosphere, but not showcasing Jack White’s prowess as a musician or song writer.

The final song of ‘Lazaretto’, titled ‘Want and Able’, opens with several callas caws, which echo and reverberate. White’s two vocal recordings are harmonised, and layer over mellow acoustic strums. Sadly, a mediocre end to an album which features an array of styles, and brilliant tracks. My final verdict on the album is that you should definitely listen to it, the attitude and passion put into most of the tracks is inspiring, the melodies and riffs are typically Jack White; catchy, rasping and powerful.

Jack White has further cemented his place in the hearts and minds of rock fans worldwide.

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