De Stijl [VINYL]

Description

The White Stripes: Jack White (vocals, guitar, piano, acoustic bass); Meg (drums, tambourine). Additional personnel: Paul Henry Ossy (violin); John Szymanski (harmonica). Recorded at Third Man Studio, Detroit, Michican. Detroit's own "brother and sister" drum-and-guitar duo broke out of local obscurity with their eponymous debut, a primitive garage romp that borrowed liberally from Led Zeppelin, the Kinks, the Rolling Stones, various American bluesmen and other rock & roll stalwarts. With DE STIJL, the band eschews its earlier raw posings in favor of blues with a hint of art rock. DE STIJL (literally translated, "the style," a European art movement that praises the virtue of simplicity in design), hints at a band that plays its music guided by simplicity in form and function. The 13 songs on DE STIJL show this stripped-down duo coming into their own with more complex arrangements and more varied instrumentation. DE STILJ features an electric violin, harmonica, and piano (played by singer Jack White). All in all, DE STIJL offers more dynamic range and melody than the band's debut and a (comparatively) slick production. From the confectionery pop bounce of "You're Pretty Good Looking," to the blues howler, "Hello Operator," to the dirge-like "Death Letter," DE STIJL is one step forward for a band deserving of a wider audience.