The White Stripes were one of the most important "millennial" bands and Elephant is one of the most important albums of the last decade, because it synthesizes the old and new into something fresh, original, and entirely compelling. The White Stripes defining statement, Elephant, does something that comparatively few modern albums even attempt to do and that is to make a cohesive statement over the course of an LP. As mp3s (and the loss of audio quality and attention spans that go with them) take over the listening market, its refreshing and even startling to hear artists who put their all into every song on their albums, instead of just a few highlights surrounded by filler. That, of course, does nothing to explain the eccentric, yet accessible experience of "Elephant". Stripped down to the barest essentials of guitar, drums, and occasional piano, traversing through the Americana genres of rock, country, folk, blues, metal, and punk, and featuring lyrics equally divided between bravado and doubt, and full of folksy, yet literate word associations, "Elephant" almost gives the impression of what punk-metal made in the rural south in the earlier part of the twentieth century might have sounded like, if it had ever existed. "Seven Nation Army" was the popular single, but every song on here is a treasure. The ever dependable Burt Bacharach gets the WS treatment on "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" to earnert and humorous effect. Meg White gets lead vocal duties on "In the Cold, Cold Night" and the final song "Well It's True That We Love One Another", sung by three different people, ends the album on a hilarious, fun note. The White Stripes have earned their place in popular music history and if any one album will convince you of that fact, it's "Elephant".
Friday, June 8, 2012
Music Review: The White Stripes - Elephant (2003)
The White Stripes were one of the most important "millennial" bands and Elephant is one of the most important albums of the last decade, because it synthesizes the old and new into something fresh, original, and entirely compelling. The White Stripes defining statement, Elephant, does something that comparatively few modern albums even attempt to do and that is to make a cohesive statement over the course of an LP. As mp3s (and the loss of audio quality and attention spans that go with them) take over the listening market, its refreshing and even startling to hear artists who put their all into every song on their albums, instead of just a few highlights surrounded by filler. That, of course, does nothing to explain the eccentric, yet accessible experience of "Elephant". Stripped down to the barest essentials of guitar, drums, and occasional piano, traversing through the Americana genres of rock, country, folk, blues, metal, and punk, and featuring lyrics equally divided between bravado and doubt, and full of folksy, yet literate word associations, "Elephant" almost gives the impression of what punk-metal made in the rural south in the earlier part of the twentieth century might have sounded like, if it had ever existed. "Seven Nation Army" was the popular single, but every song on here is a treasure. The ever dependable Burt Bacharach gets the WS treatment on "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" to earnert and humorous effect. Meg White gets lead vocal duties on "In the Cold, Cold Night" and the final song "Well It's True That We Love One Another", sung by three different people, ends the album on a hilarious, fun note. The White Stripes have earned their place in popular music history and if any one album will convince you of that fact, it's "Elephant".
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