With the follow up to their magnificent White Blood Cells, the record that put them on the map, the White Stripes hit the market in 2003 with Elephant. On Elephant, Jack and Meg White tried to take the music a little further and make it a little better. Elephant is a 14-track beauty that is bound to please even the most stubborn of fans.
The disc opens with Seven Nation Army, a haunting song with a powerful bass line that kicks it off before exploding into high gear. It is a charged opening song and from that moment on, the listener is hooked.
The third track, There’s No Home for You Here, is one of the best on the disc. Jack’s vocals are crisp and the cries of “There’s no home for you here girl, go away, there’s no home for you here” become a chant and a shout that fills your head and never leaves. Loud, angry roars give this song a passionate feel.
I Want to Be the Boy That Warms Your Mother’s Heart is an excellent, mellow track that draws you in and forces you to listen. The melody is smooth and sweet and the lyrics make you think about how people can be so judgmental and what we will do sometimes to seek approval that is neither needed nor should have time wasted pursuing.
Ball and Biscuit contains some of the best guitar work that I’ve ever heard from Jack White. Blistering, long ripping solos fill this song and prove that Jack is great with an axe in his hands. The lyrics are odd, the singing is heavy, and the guitar makes it all worthwhile. A punk filled melody sung with passion, Ball and Biscuit is one of the better moments on this CD.
Elephant is not without its pleasant surprises. Meg White gets to take over lead vocals on Cold, Cold, Night and shares vocals on the album’s final track, Well It’s True That We Love One Another. She has a beautifully sweet voice, the perfect contrast to Jack’s rough vocals.
The aforementioned final track is a strange song that you can’t get out of your head after you’ve heard it. With guest vocals by Holly Golightly, this song is esoteric, and yet highly addictive. Jack, Meg, and Holly all sing in what can only be described as a “campfire, folksong, sing-along.” It’s a happy song about friendship and love, with light, playful, and sometimes silly lyrics. At first I thought it was a throw away piece added to the end of the album, but after listening to the disc a few more times, I realized that it is the perfect way to end the CD. The song is the complete opposite of the opening track and it sets the CD into a perfect balance.
This is a disc that is definitely worth adding to your collection.
Ryo’s Rating: 8 (out of 10)
The disc opens with Seven Nation Army, a haunting song with a powerful bass line that kicks it off before exploding into high gear. It is a charged opening song and from that moment on, the listener is hooked.
The third track, There’s No Home for You Here, is one of the best on the disc. Jack’s vocals are crisp and the cries of “There’s no home for you here girl, go away, there’s no home for you here” become a chant and a shout that fills your head and never leaves. Loud, angry roars give this song a passionate feel.
I Want to Be the Boy That Warms Your Mother’s Heart is an excellent, mellow track that draws you in and forces you to listen. The melody is smooth and sweet and the lyrics make you think about how people can be so judgmental and what we will do sometimes to seek approval that is neither needed nor should have time wasted pursuing.
Ball and Biscuit contains some of the best guitar work that I’ve ever heard from Jack White. Blistering, long ripping solos fill this song and prove that Jack is great with an axe in his hands. The lyrics are odd, the singing is heavy, and the guitar makes it all worthwhile. A punk filled melody sung with passion, Ball and Biscuit is one of the better moments on this CD.
Elephant is not without its pleasant surprises. Meg White gets to take over lead vocals on Cold, Cold, Night and shares vocals on the album’s final track, Well It’s True That We Love One Another. She has a beautifully sweet voice, the perfect contrast to Jack’s rough vocals.
The aforementioned final track is a strange song that you can’t get out of your head after you’ve heard it. With guest vocals by Holly Golightly, this song is esoteric, and yet highly addictive. Jack, Meg, and Holly all sing in what can only be described as a “campfire, folksong, sing-along.” It’s a happy song about friendship and love, with light, playful, and sometimes silly lyrics. At first I thought it was a throw away piece added to the end of the album, but after listening to the disc a few more times, I realized that it is the perfect way to end the CD. The song is the complete opposite of the opening track and it sets the CD into a perfect balance.
This is a disc that is definitely worth adding to your collection.
Ryo’s Rating: 8 (out of 10)
