Bring Out Your Junk On Wednesday And We'll Give It A Home

...or, here's something I made earlier. Much earlier. 

 

Here's a review of The White Stripes' then-new single that appeared on my old blog in June 2007.

 

I have this strange connection with certain bands, in that I like their songs that I hear, read their interviews, articles and reviews with interest and yet don’t get around to actually buying any of their records. Perversely, I’ll often pick up records that I’ve never heard by bands I know little or nothing about, often for the flimsiest of reasons, but that’s a whole other story. 

 

So, this happens to be the first White Stripes record that I’ve bought, even though I’ve been a ‘fan’ since I saw the video for Fell In Love With A Girl donkeys years ago. I haven’t even got around to downloading anything by them; the best my iPod can muster are mash-ups of 7 Nation Army and The Doorbell Song, pairing the duo with Alter Ego and Jay-Z respectively. 

 

In fact, the impetus for getting this record without having heard it was that part one – the one-sided, etched red vinyl 7” of Rag And Bone – was a giveaway with the 9 Jun issue of NME. Icky Thump was released the following week, seven days before the album of the same name.  

 

Rag And Bone is my favourite of the three songs here, mainly for the subject matter, the ‘in character’ dialogue between Jack and Meg that bridges each verse and a guitar hook that sounds uncannily like Mud’s 1973 smash Tiger Feet.

 

In fact, there’s a 1970s (by way of the 1950s) feel pervading this EP, the antiquated guitar licks and muffled rhythms evoking the ghosts of blues and rock ‘n’ roll. Yet at the same time, The White Stripes continue to sound fresh and exciting.  

 

Icky Thump reminds me of Led Zeppelin of all things, with Jack’s vocals recalling Robert Plant, some mighty Jimmy Page-esque riffs and a naggingly insistent keyboard and drum combo. 

 

Exclusive B-side Baby Brother is unabashed blues rock, the reference points here being Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and The Cramps. It’s short and sweet but lacks the inventiveness of the previous two songs.

 

Fast forward to 2024 and whilst I managed to catch up with The White Stripes' back catalogue in the years that followed. Icky Thump turned out to be their sixth and final album. In September 2007, The White Stripes cancelled the remainder of their tour dates in the USA and UK. The band went on hiatus and though Jack White referenced plans for a seventh album, The White Strips officially called it a day in February 2011.

I haven't heard this single in a long while and it's been good to revisit the songs again. In resurrecting this review for today's post, I also discovered two wonderful fan-made films for Rag And Bone and Baby Brother, neither of which had an official video back in the day.

Whilst The White Stripes arguably made better music, these songs take me back to a particular place and time and it's a good place to revisit.

If, like me, you're of a certain vintage and lived in the UK during the 1970s when there were only three TV channels, none of which ran 24/7, then you'll almost certainly have got the reference point for Icky Thump. 

 

If you weren't, brace yourself.