Anybody who has followed Jack White's online screeds and offstage brawls knows that the White Stripes' mastermind can tend to get a little, well, defensive when he's challenged (and sometimes even when he's not), but this trait hasn't always surfaced on record -- at least not in the way he and his merry band of Raconteurs do on their second album, Consolers of the Lonely. At the very least, this bubbling blend of bizarro lues, rustic progressive rock, fractured pop, and bludgeoning guitars is a finger in the eye to anyone who dared call the band a mere power pop trifle, proof that the Raconteurs are a ock & roll band, but it's not just the sound of the record that's defiant. There's the very nature of the album's release: how it was announced to the world a week before its release when it then appeared in all formats in all retail outfits simultaneously; there's the obstinately olde-fashioned look of the art work, how the group is decked out like minstrels at a turn-of-the century carnival, or at least out of Dylan's Masked and Anonymous. Most of all, there's the overriding sense that the Raconteurs are turning into an outlet for every passing fancy that Jack has but will not allow himself to indulge within the confines of the tightly controlled White Stripes, whether it's melodramatic Western operas like "The Switch and the Spur" (whose concluding bridge states "any poor souls who trespass against us...will be suffer the bite or be stung dead on sight", functioning as a virtual manifesto for the band), or the slick studio trickery that makes this the biggest White-related production yet. And it's hard to shake the feeling that this is the show of Jack White III (as he now insists on billing himself, playing right into his ongoing Third Man fetish), as that despite the even split in songwriting and producing credits between Jack and Brendan Benson, and even how they trade off lead vocals, that only White could have pushed the Raconteurs to get as stubbornly, stiffly weird as they do here. Of course, that impression is not tempered by how Brendan mimics Jack's manic lues babble, particularly on the spitfire "Salute Your Solution" -- White does follow Benson's gentle, rounded phrasing on the elongated melodies, but that's a subtle distinction overpowered by the force of Jack's concepts. And this is indeed "concepts" in plural: how cult hero Terry Reid is used as a touchstone for the band's progressive blues-rock via a blazing cover of "Rich Kid Blues," or how there's an evocation of the old weird America in all the album's rambling centerpieces, or how half of the record fights against pop brevity, while all of it is a deathblow against the idea that the Raconteurs are power pop sissies. Sometimes, the group hits against that notion with a bluesy bluster, especially on the opening pair of tunes which tread a bit too closely toward Jack conventions, sometimes their attempts to stretch out are either ill-defined ("Attention," "You Don't Understand Me") or collapse under their own weight ("Many Shades of Black"), but the moments that do work -- and there are many -- make for the best music the Raconteurs have yet made. The album truly kicks into gear with the tipsy country stomp of "Old Enough" and after that, there's a series of remarkable moments: that absurd Morricone dust-up "The Switch and the Spur"; "Hold Up," which rages like '70s Stones at their sleaziest; the rampaging "Five on the Five"; that splendid Reid cover that finds its heir on the steadily building "These Stones Will Shout," and finally, the closing backwoods ballad on "Carolina Drama." These songs illustrate all the ways that Jack White's stubborn stylization pays off -- they're quite deliberate in their conflation of the traditional and modern, yet they never sound over-thought, they kick and crackle as pure kinetic music. Broken Boy Soldiers lacked tunes like these, tunes with considerable weight, and these songs turn Consolers of the Lonely into a lop-sided, bottom-loaded album that's better and richer than their debut.
I'm wearing headphones, the kids are asleep, and its quiet inside. But inside these cans (some big, open-backed AKG's I picked up last year) I've got something rare: its rock, and it's got rigor, it's got substance, and its loud. I'm not one for lyrics, I get wrapped up in a tune and a beat when there is one to be had, and I forget about the rest, because, ususally, there isn't much to hear. ...
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I'm too dazed to write an eloquent and proper review so I'll just give you my thoughts about last night as they come to me:-The Raconteurs...one word: ridiculous. No one should ever be allowed to be that good! This show just made the best shows I've ever been to seem completely subpar. Everything was intense and tight and awe-inspiring and just absolutely amazing! I think I'm going to be gushin...
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Santa Barbara Bowl - Sep 25 - The Raconteurs put on a decent show musically but the energy was lacking. I think Jack White mentioned at the beginning that he was not feeling well and it showed. He sat on the drum riser a number of times during the show and just did not have the rock god aura that he had when I saw him a few years ago. Brendan Benson and the rest of the band did a good job of ...
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My friends, who have superb taste, were turning to me during and after this show saying things like, "This is the best classic rock show I've ever seen." I try to stay away from such extremes, but I am hard pressed to disagree, at least for a modern era rock band. But what do I mean by this? I mean total vocal, guitar, and rhythm section mastery, combined with perfectly crafted, simple yet intr...
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...were pretty good last week at Bimbo's, but Jack White is such a genius I guess I expect more from him and his band(s). While I like the new Raconteurs record a lot, it wears it's influences a bit more nakedly than I'd like, and live those influences were all I could hear.Damn those high expectations.That said, "Salute Your Salution" (which I like to call "Blue Orchid II") was a serious high...
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An audio pinkslip to Meg White - your services will no longer be needed.All hail the Raconteurs and their new album - way to turn it up to 11 boys.
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As much as I would like to just say, "This is a White Stripes album without Meg," I guess there is always a nicer way to look at The Raconteur’s new release, Consolers of the Lonely. I think it's just one of those things where you have to decide for yourself. I find the entire album a beautiful collection of driving songs where Mr. White shows us his mild diversity. I think he likes the 70’
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MOGstars 9/10Smuggled onto the shelves with a minimum of hype, save for the publicity garnered by an unfortunate iTunes leak, Consolers of the Lonely is the second album from “Jack White’s other band”. Taking up from where 2006’s Broken Boy Soldiers took of this is a record infused with blues, Americana and bourbon. Born in a communal band-house in Nashville the album comes out snarling a
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The Raconteurs - Old EnoughJust when I thought I had things all figured out along comes Jack White and his new best friends with "Consolers of the Lonely". I was a big fan of the White Stripes first two albums but something happened that I had no control over. A loudmouth redhead walked into my bar one sunday afternoon and she just wouldn't ever stop talking, she was from Seattle and she was a...
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Grizzly Bear fa la la la la-ed, Your Vegas wore too much clothing (long sleeve shirts and jeans) for the 85 degree and humid Chicago weather, Duffy sounded just like she does on her album, Ohio-based duo the Black Keys' music was so powerful that I was convinced there was three or more people on stage, but the first day of Lollapalooza 2008 really belonged to Radiohead and The Raconteurs. For t...
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(Click and read the Day 1 wrap up: photos of Hot Chip, Goldfrapp and more.)Back to the island! It started off windy and stayed that way. Some performers struggled with the wind - Fleet Foxes asked, "Can you turn the wind down? Less wind, thanks." The wind and cold affected the atmosphere of the crowd. They seemed underdressed and cold, inhibiting their enthusiasm. But Okkervil River hit the sta...
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The Raconteurs' Consolers of the Lonely (country twang slipping in and out of Who-esque rock tracks) has been spinning nonstop on my iTunes. Today news that the band have extended their spring/summer tour, which is kicking off on 4/20 in Vancouver. The US tour culminates with a performance at Bonnaroo on June 13th, after which the band heads to Europe for the remainder of the summer.The Raconte...
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The Raconteurs definitely give you a bang for your buck when it comes to their live show. And for anyone who missed Jack White and co. the first time they came west coast you've got luck on your side because the Raconteurs are coming back around. This time with an added bonus: openers the Kills. The Raconteurs kick off their extended fall tour on September 19th at the Roseland Theater in Portla...
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Last year after the inaugural "Treasure Island Music Festival,":www.treasureislandfestival.com MOG was lit up with posts about the event, posts that made me wish I was there.(Wow!)The fest returns Saturday, September 20th and Sunday, September 21st for its second year at the same locale, the little island between the Bay Bridge in San Francisco. Along with headliners the Raconteurs and Justice,...
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Behold the powers of the mandolin! You gotta love how the instrument can turn the Racontuers pseudo honky-tonk romp "Old Enough" into a full-fledge bluegrass number. The Raconteurs hung up the electrical equipment and went into a converted church studio to jam with bluegrass/country star Ricky Skaggs. White seems to be making a lot of new friends now that he's livin' in Nashville. They also pic...
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Adele's version of The Raconteurs' song Many Shades of Black! .Audio Only;.
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MOGstars 9/10Smuggled onto the shelves with a minimum of hype, save for the publicity garnered by an unfortunate iTunes leak, Consolers of the Lonely is the second album from “Jack White’s other band”. Taking up from where 2006’s Broken Boy Soldiers took of this is a record infused with blues, Americana and bourbon. Born in a communal band-house in Nashville the album comes out snarling a
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Yesterday(March 25) Jack White side group The Raconteurs released their sophomore album ??Consolers Of The Lonely??(Warner Bros.). A video for the first single from the album, "Salute Your Solution" was released on the same day. This album is unique in that the band has done no promotion previous to the album's release, and its existence was only confirmed a week before its release.Quite simply...
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Radiohead's name-you-own-price tactic was novel in the sense you got to download the band's album virtually for free and straight into your iTunes Library, without having to head to iTunes. But, today when I headed over to the Raconteurs Web site, not necessarily to purchase their new album Consolers Of The Lonely, but to see the band's new video for "Salute You Solution," the novelty of going ...
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Just when things started to get quiet on the Raconteurs front, the boys put on their favorite top hats, took to the woods with mirrors and director Autumn De Wilde to shoot the video for the Consolers of the Lonely track "Old Enough." Wilde's "Old Enough" shoot captures a honky-tonk good time between Jack White and co, and even recalls some horror movie memories, like the Blair Witch Project. J...
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The Raconteurs sophomore release, Consolers of the Lonely, will be released Tuesday, March 25, according to a press release from the group that includes the White Stripes' Jack White.The first single is "Salute Your Solution," and a video will be released online next Tuesday as well.The 14-song album was completed during the first week of March and "was then taken immediately to a vinyl pressin...
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Bookmark it now this Fri June 13- 15BONNAROO MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL
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| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Consoler of the Lonely |
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| 2 Salute Your Solution |
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| 3 You Don't Understand Me |
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| 4 Old Enough |
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| 5 The Switch and the Spur |
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| 6 Hold Up |
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| 7 Top Yourself |
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| 8 Many Shades of Black |
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| 9 Five on the Five |
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| 10 Attention |
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| 11 Pull This Blanket Off |
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| 12 Rich Kid Blues |
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| 13 These Stones Will Shout |
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| 14 Carolina Drama |
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Click to purchase…
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 "Consolers of the Lonely")
