I'm proud to invest time in a place where Kali Durga shares with all of us her passion, incite, and intelligence–without being a bias fan.
Everyone should read her incredible article that digs deep into Lazaretto.
Of all the reviews so far, Kali is the first to focus on the words. What's singer/songwriter music without words that take you somewhere?
Bob Dylan said "the words always come first", then he writes the music.
Tons of musicians can play, but VERY few can write in the class of Dylan, Lennon...and McCartney.
The lyrics on Lazaretto are some of the most interesting ever.
I find myself wanting to keep listening to try and get a better understanding of the lyrics.
With most tracks on Blunderbuss, I did not feel as compelled because many lyrics were drowning in this country-ish thing.
The comments that crystalize why I LOVE Lazaretto over Blunderbuss are 2 things jgibbdah wrote which reconfirmed my fear of what the Blunderbuss follow-up might have been:
jgibbdah wrote: I don't want Jack to turn into a country-rock artist
jgibbdah wrote:I don't think the twang is ever going to be something I enjoy or what I want to hear from Jack
THANK YOU jgibbdah!
Blunderbuss was too much Nashville for fans who just don't like anything country.
The White Stripes were much closer to punk than country. Opposite sides of the spectrum.
Hotel Yorba is perhaps the one WS track that had a country vibe but it's so buried in the raw energy hugely thanks to Meg's drumming.
Meg kept it closer to punk than country. She is sadly missed. Rolling Stone, Jack said it himself regarding how important Meg was to him on stage in:
"Because on stage? Nothing I do will top that"
What a HUGE comment. To say that NOTHING he does will ever top him being on stage just with Meg White?
That was the bravest & most profound thing I've ever heard Jack say.
If Blunderbuss is 30% country-ish, Lazaretto is about 13%. Simply sanitizing the country-ness reveals a Jack White that's closer to The White Stripes on Lazaretto. And on his third album, if Jack brings down the countryness to 3%, I have a hunch that will be his best album yet. The 3rd one!
But I still think he's gonna release the first ever Triple Album for his 3rd one.
Lastly...Kali Druga is 100% on point about Black Bat Licorice.
That's the one song since the White Stripes split, that sounds the closest to a White Stripes song.
Sixteen Saltines was closest on Blunderbuss for me. But Black Bat Licorice takes me back to Icky Thump.
A little Conquest-like instrumentation in there. Just an AMAZING track.
How can anyone not love an album that brings you closer to The White Stripes?
...Closer to John Anthony Gillis.
This album means something to me. It reminds of the the first time I spun Led Zeppelin III. It was a game changer in my life and led me down this crazy vinyl collector path . A co-worker of mine asked for the lyrics of Entitlement today as I was streaming the album. He doesn't really care for music much but that song really grabbed his attention.