The White Stripes’ fourth record, “Elephant,” should not have surprised anyone, yet critics around the country are baffled. From a converted New York Post critic to a rare five star Rolling Stone review, the Stripes are proving their worth to the world.
With expectations of a patiently created masterpiece of 15 new versions of “Fell in Love With a Girl,” it took Jack and Meg White roughly a month to astonish anyone who cared.
Anyone looking for a cliché follow-up to “White Blood Cells” threw those hopes out the window upon listening to the first track, “Seven Nation Army.” After a bass riff synthed by an octave pedal, a new addition to Jack’s musical arsenal, he confirms his plan to take the listener by surprise.
“I’m gonna fight ’em off/ A seven nation army couldn’t hold me back,” he sings, commencing the non-conformist anthem.
Jack throws listeners for a loop again on the third track, “There’s No Home For You Here,” when he adds a Queen-esque harmony effect on his voice. At first, the harmony seems contradictorily clear for garage music. But after multiple listens, Jack once again proves his talent as the effect begins to feel at home in the song.
Continuing the theme of surprises, a cover of Burt Bacharach’s and Hal David’s “I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself” follows, leading into Meg’s lead vocal debut in “In The Cold, Cold Night,” which is initially reminiscent of the Pink Panther melody.
The climax of the record is undoubtedly “Ball and Biscuit,” a song that would feel at home in the middle of Led Zeppelin’s “IV.” Jack’s phenomenally distorted blues guitar talent juxtaposed against Meg’s eerily effective minimalist drumming combine for a song that refuses to become tiresome.
Just when listeners forget the expectations they had coming into the record comes “Fell In Love With A Girl” part two, “Hypnotize.” In all of its one minute and a 48 second glory, the song includes the same drumbeat as its predecessor, as well as the theme of unattainable love. “Hypnotize” falls a bit short of the pop flavor of “Fell In Love With A Girl,” but fits in with the sound of “Elephant” better than the latter with “White Blood Cells.”
The record closes with an acoustic folk tune, “Well It’s True That We Love One Another,” that features a guest appearance from Miss Holly Golightly. The song plays on the famed rumors of Jack and Meg’s apparent marriage, divorce and claim to be brother and sister. After singing the title line, Holly continues the ambiguity by singing, “I love Jack White like a little brother.”
A statement in the liner notes says, “No computers were used in the writing, recording, mixing or mastering of this record.” This may be true, but this record is way ahead of its time.
The only way to understand the hype behind this record is to approach it after dismissing the hype. Any listener who accomplishes that will want everyone else to know about this record too.