TWO

I got the newest album from The Raconteurs, and while I love it, I am still disappointed about a few things. The first record (“Broken Boy Soldiers”) was superb. It was nice to hear Jack White contributing to an actual band instead of him carrying the full load, to the sub par drumming delivered by his ex-wife (do they still claim to be brother and sister? Weird). I would like to have some snazzy segue here, something like “but enough about the White Stripes”, but that’s just it: While the first album was a significant departure from the WS, Consolers of the Lonely is not. It seems more often than not, Jack White is the prominent voice heard and he seems less of a contributor to this “super group” and more the director.

Tracks

1. Consoler of the Lonely – superb track! Rocks in all the right places and is on par with anything off the first record.
2. Salute Your Solution – also rocks, but sounds like it was intended to be a White Stripes song. Once Benson’s vocals enter, it slightly sets me at ease. I could really see this being on Icky Thump as a WS track featuring Greenhornes members. Still, not a bad song at all, just now what I would expect from this band.
3. You Don’t Understand Me – this falls more in line with what I would expect. While it doesn’t remind me of any particular track on Broken Boy Soldiers, it does retain the band’s style, while adding a nice soulful feel. I love what happens at 3:38.
4. Old Enough – another more traditional Raconteurs song. I love the strings. They, along with the organ, really give it a nice 1970s sound.
5. The Switch and the Spur – like nothing you would hear on the first record, but a great track just the same. It really has a WS feel to it, but Benson takes the lead vox. If he ever appears on a WS album, this might be what it sounds like. And then there’s Patrick Keeler, a superb drummer. As usual, he plays the perfect part for this song. The drumming at the end of the song has a great Mitch Mitchell feel to it, similar to Manic Depression.
6. Hold Up – a straight-ahead rocker. Can’t wait to see this one live (if they come to VA again). This is a side of The Raconteurs I absolutely love. Could Keeler get a more perfect drum sound? I would love to play that snare drum for a day.
7. Top Yourself – good bluesy track. Yet again, the drums sound top notch. It’s so nice to see Ludwig being used by so many great drummers again. Its like the 90’s never happened.
8. Many Shades of Black – this reminds me of something… Can’t think of it. Not my favorite track but it is growing on me. I have the feeling that seeing it live will cause me to love it. Nice big drum fills though.
9. Five on the Five – I find myself wanting to skip to this track after tracks 1 and 2. I saw them play this one on Austin City Limits a while back and have a live recording of it from their last tour. Such a fun song. 1:59 begins a drum part that sounds like a good version of what Matt Sorum went for in “You Could Be Mine”. Nice to see some good come out of what might be the worst GnR song of all time.
10. Attention – Still sad that track 9 is over… the bass line reminds me of a Mother’s Milk era RHCP riff, but then the band kicks in and swiftly dispels any doubt. This is one of those songs that I can tell I will love once I get sick of constantly playing tracks 1, 2, and 9. It has everything I love in a song, and either I keep turning the volume up as the album progresses, or the drum sound gets (somehow) better and better as this record plays. 1:43ish kicks off what could pass for a newer Queens of the Stone Age song. By the time the vocals kick in I feel even stronger about that. Yeah, this is a killer track! Can you tell I am writing as I listen?
11. Pull This Blanket Off – this one takes us back to White Stripes territory, not that it’s a bad thing. Love the attitude of the guitar. Piano reminds me of the Marshall Tucker Band a little.
12. Rich Kid Blues – RUSH-haters beware! Multiple RUSH moments early in this track. To start, vocals sound like “Take A Friend” with a little bit of “Rivendell” and “Making Memories”, all songs off the first 2 Rush records. Next hurdle, once it starts kicking in its VERY Styx-ish. Finally the beat gets a bit more soulful and the song takes a new direction. Traces of The Who come out here and there. I love two out of three of those bands, and don’t exactly hate Styx, so this is a very good song. Fairly new territory for the band too.
13. These Stones Will Shout – right off the bat it feels like a more traditional Raconteurs song. I like the song a lot but (at least while writing this) am more drawn to the songs that rock. WAIT A SECOND – 2:13 brings a rocking beat, followed by a riff straight off a newer Rush record! This is very Vapor Trails/Snakes And Arrows-worthy stuff, but in a good way. I can totally picture Geddy Lee finishing up the song for them… right as the drums kick in at 2:13, Jack or Brendon announces “Ladies and gentlemen… Geddy Lee”. That would be something. The gap between hipsters and musician geeks forever changed.
14. Carolina Drama – Whenever Jack White sings he brings his White Stripes style with him. I would say that’s just how he sounds, but I didn’t notice an overwhelming amount of it on the first record. While this is a good track, some of the vocals follow the same pattern as (gulp) Everlast’s “What Its Like”. Yeah, you could lay one track on top of the other and it would line up, vocally speaking. The flow of the vocals switch it up for a very climatic ending that kept me interested through the conclusion of the song.

I like The White Stripes. I could never commit 100% however, because I always longed to hear what the songs would have sounded like with the addition of multiple capable musicians handling them. With “Consolers of the Lonely”, I feel closer to knowing. I will be listening to this album for a long time. I hope a 3^rd will follow.

I hope this didn’t come off as an anti-Meg White tirade. She is in a very tough spot. I have read that she wishes to do more playing on the records but Jack has her drum in an intentionally childish way. I am positive she could be more capable, as its not possibly to have been playing for so many years without learning anything.