THE WHITE STRIPES –
BLUE ORCHID (XL RECORDINGS)
Finally I have found a
White Stripes song that I full on love.
The fact that it heavily reminds me of “Latin Roots” by Fugazi perhaps goes a
long way to explaining my affection but still this is one hell of a stonking
track.
So what is the
secret? I guess it’s the manner in
which Jack White’s guitar stabs on the show as Meg White perfectly accommodates
and accompanies. This is a tight
fucking duo. And now I finally get it,
I see why people have regularly lost their shit to this shit.
This is a dirty
sounding track, probably as close to the blues as man can currently
muster. The pulse of its existence is
the kind that makes a soul move, generates and rejuvenates. To dance is unavoidable, the licks are those
of a man grabbing the body and shaking.
So what’s it all
about? What is Jack singing? What is on his mind? Where’s the beef? It’s about “you took a white orchid and turned it blue”.
To turn blue has never
been a good thing. It symbolises
sadness, symbolises being cold and often the result of a change of
circumstances/situation. As Mr White
begins stating “you got a reaction” there is little doubt this is anything but
a bust up, the breakdown of a relationship, perhaps one DOA. His is being sung/spoken to Meg? Well she’s sat there at the back hitting the
drums with a smile. I’ve met a lot of
women in the past that will do that.
As I say this is the
White Stripes at their best. This is a
short sharp shock of an offering which is lean and doesn’t meander. It’s a punch to the head designed to make
you wince even when it’s just on record.
Solid.
Thesaurus moment: frosty.
No comments:
Post a Comment