The White Stripes/Raconteurs

pearljam0000

I have been a big fan the white stripes for a long time, I like all of their earlier albums especially Elephant. I also really like the raconteurs. I'm just curious what your guys' opinions are on both of these bands. Do you like both of them? Or one more then the other? Or maybe neither of them. I'm just curious.

intodeep

Hard to judge them since the Raconteurs only have one album. The ranconteurs have some good potential but i love the stripes albums so it is hard to live up to.

I dig them both. Jack White is pretty awesome

western pearl

I really hope both bands continue to make music. I've heard JW has a whole albums worth of material... just need to get into the studio. I can't wait to see what they follow up GBMS with. That album was amazing!!

freewheelin3

elephant is hardly an lder album for the stripes...

i didnt know what to make of racounteurs (sabouteuers in aust) when i first got that cd, but i can honestly say that now i love it, i think the white stripes might have achieved all he wants too in the vehcile that is the stripes and that he may wanna progress under a different guise, the raconteurs afford him that given that they are all grwat players and the the songwriting duties are a more collaborative affair.. brendan benson was definantly the MVP on broken by soldiers..

anyways, whatever the case im a big fan of both, althought i found satan a bit lackluser and prefer the lo fi blues of their older stuff

red mos

pearljam0000 wrote:

I have been a big fan the white stripes for a long time, I like all of their earlier albums especially Elephant. I also really like the raconteurs. I'm just curious what your guys' opinions are on both of these bands. Do you like both of them? Or one more then the other? Or maybe neither of them. I'm just curious.

I really like both bands too, but I like the stripes more. I think the reason I do is because the stripes were just so raw. I thought it was great just to see a guitar player and a drummer with some very catchy and simple riffs. Jack White is an amazing guitarist to me (and yes people have blasted me for thinking so) but the dude just shreds and it works perfect for their raw garage band type feel. Du stijl is my favorite album of theirs (love it). I guess I'm going to have to wait until the raconteurs get a few more albums in before I can really judge them, but honestly, I thought at first and still kind of do that they are just a side project... not sure on that though, but that's my feeling.

western pearl

freewheelin3 wrote:

anyways, whatever the case im a big fan of both, althought i found satan a bit lackluser and prefer the lo fi blues of their older stuff

Yeah don't get me wrong. The early stuff (white stripes, de stijl) have a TON to offer. It's been fun to watch the progression of the stripes up through GBMS.

For the record i like Elephant the least (sounds the cleanest/most produced).

Alex_Coe

I love the White Stripes, but GBMS was pretty boring for me. I still have hope for the band because Elephant was so great... The Raconteurs are okay I guess.

Dustin51

I love the White Stripes. I was hoping The Raccountuers would rock a little harder but I still think it's a good album but a little softer then I was expecting. Anyway, I love them both and I think that The White Stripes came along right when music needed them.

Dustin51

Oh, and a lot of people didn't like GBMS but I think it was awesome. Maybe not better then Elephant or White Blood Cells but really freaking good. Come to think of it...The White Stripes are currently my second favorite band.

freewheelin3

i think with the white stripes, it kinda depends on when in the timeline you became a fan, that dictates how you view the albums

Call it a day (raconteurs) was one of the best songs of last year

red mos

Dustin51 wrote:

Oh, and a lot of people didn't like GBMS but I think it was awesome. Maybe not better then Elephant or White Blood Cells but really freaking good. Come to think of it...The White Stripes are currently my second favorite band.

GBMS is my 2nd fave album of theirs it was very experimental and they explored new musical direction with this album which was very good as all artists do this with an album at some point. A friend of mine commented that it has a salsa feel to it.

I have trouble getting into the self titled album. It's got some great songs, and a great garage rock/ blues feel to it, but I just can't get into this album reallyand I'm not sure why :(. I tried numerous times to listen to it all the way through, but I find myself skipping alot of tracks on this album.

Alex_Coe

I think the problem I have with the Raconteurs is that they don't make every song count like the Stripes. I don't want filler songs, ever. "Together" and "Call it a Day" and "Hands" were totally uneccasary. De Stijl, the S/T, and Elephant had no filler at all. It's like JW used his side project as a home for his half baked songs... I just hope he keeps his time focused with the Stripes.

EDIT: Okay, Hands wasn't totally dog drool, but I didn't like it. W/evr.

restlesssoul

the racnoteurs album is great. but the white stripes have 5 albums that are great. give the raconteurs time, if jack sticks with the sound they have, they will be amazing to hear in a couple of years. great vibe to their tunes.

Alex_Coe

Random Curiosity: Since the White Stripes released 4 albums in the space of less than three years, does that make them the most prolific band ever among a three year period? I mean, somebody surely is more prolific, but who? I can't think of anyone at the moment.

western pearl

Alex_Coe wrote:

I think the problem I have with the Raconteurs is that they don't make every song count like the Stripes. I don't want filler songs, ever. "Together" and "Call it a Day" and "Hands" were totally uneccasary. De Stijl, the S/T, and Elephant had no filler at all. It's like JW used his side project as a home for his half baked songs... I just hope he keeps his time focused with the Stripes.

EDIT: Okay, Hands wasn't totally dog drool, but I didn't like it. W/evr.

You didn't like 'Call it a day' ?! Although it's not amazing, i really like it. Steady as she goes & store bought bones got really old for me after listening to thme for a month or two before the album came out, lol. I guess everyone has their preferences though. Level, Yellow Sun and Intimate Secretary have always stuck out to me on their album..

red mos

Alex_Coe wrote:

Random Curiosity: Since the White Stripes released 4 albums in the space of less than three years, does that make them the most prolific band ever among a three year period? I mean, somebody surely is more prolific, but who? I can't think of anyone at the moment.

well, the self titled album and Du stijl were their releases as a local band in Detroit, and I think that was the only place to get those up until they made it big with White Blood cells nationally. They went in to record Elephant, and as we all know that album was a raging success, so the record label V2 I believe is their album company decided the following year to republish the self titled and Du Stijl albums and sell them nationally and they were released on the same day. Not sure if it was just a cash cow thing or not, but I'm glad to have Du Stijl in my cd collection... phenominal album.

restlesssoul

its DE STIJL.


its a dutch art movement. The most famous pieces being by Piett Mondrian. (the reason i know this is because i look 87% like this guy. yknow those celebtiry heritage lookalike tests) anyways, The stripes that appear on the album cover are in the form of DE STIJL.

sick album, nevertheless.

this is ME???? i dont think so. http://www.nndb.com/people/370/000024298/piet-mondrian-1.jpg zieg heil!

western pearl

restlesssoul wrote:

its DE STIJL.


its a dutch art movement. The most famous pieces being by Piett Mondrian. (the reason i know this is because i look 87% like this guy. yknow those celebtiry heritage lookalike tests) anyways, The stripes that appear on the album cover are in the form of DE STIJL.

sick album, nevertheless.

Art having to do w/ blocks right? I can't quite remember the description of it.

restlesssoul

ya. lines and colored blocks.

as for the most prolific band, you would be hard pressed to find ANYONE else who put out three, 4 to 5 star albums in 3 consecutive years.

i would have to go with yes , to that making them the most prolific.

formed in 97.

99, 2000, 2001 their first three records.

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:byb8b594msqg~T2

Alex_Coe

western pearl wrote:

Level, Yellow Sun and Intimate Secretary have always stuck out to me on their album..

Yes, Level and Intimate Secretary are two of my favorites.

restlesssoul

i got a red japanese tea pot.

Blind Melon

The thing that kills Get Behind Me Satan is the recording... it's so horrible. Other than that, it'd most likely be my favorite by the White Stripes. The Raconteurs are good, but definitely not as good.

Dustin51

chiefojibwa wrote:

beatles rubber soul/revolver/sgt. peppers

all due respect to the stripes, whom i love, but they're nowhere near this output.

If the Beatles are the only band that has topped them then they are in good company.

libragirl

I like them both but i think i like the whitestripes better..like other people said the ranconteurs really dont have too much material so it's a bit hard to compare. I do hope they make another album though as i like what they have did so far.

stu gee

Never been able to get into the white Stripes or the raconteurs myself. The singles from elephant i found really boring, and heard the album a few times as well. Really not for me at all.

Dustin51

chiefojibwa wrote:

well, they're not. you could probably come up with hundreds of artists who have had an incredible string of albums in a 3 year period. neil young comes to mind, he's probably got at least 5 examples himself.

like the "doom trilogy" of time fades away, on the beach, and tonight's the night.

Well, im not trying to bust your balls and all music and art is subjective anyway but I'd have to put The White Stripes a notch above Neil Young personally. Just my humble opinion and maybe its got something to do with only being 28 and not really being into Neil Young's whole career but I've got to vote for the White Stripes in that battle.

Just a thought on this 3 year period thing but I know back in the day people used to put out a lot more albums. I'd be willing to bet that the Rolling Stones, Elvis, Led Zepplin, Hendrix, and a few other have all had runs like that. I think you'd have to put it in the context of maybe the last 20 years.

restlesssoul

i thought the question was were they the most prolific of those particular 3 years..... and they were, but nobody can touch the beatles. god , not even close, pick any 3 years together from mid sixties to early 70.....its a done deal.

as for zeppelin:

69 led zeppelin
69 led zeppelin II
70 led zeppelin III
71 led zeppelin IV


so thats FOUR of the best rock albums ever made in 3 years. SHIT! we have a winner!

off_the_record

brendan benson's solo stuff was pretty good too.

it was great to see him and jack come together, but i prefer each doing their other stuff.

off_the_record

and the greenhornes are also pretty damn good

restlesssoul

meg is hot though.

BetterManningNYG

chiefojibwa wrote:

well, they're not. you could probably come up with hundreds of artists who have had an incredible string of albums in a 3 year period. neil young comes to mind, he's probably got at least 5 examples himself.

here are a few examples of artists who were more "prolific" than the white stripes. but everyone reading this should note that i am not a jack white fan at all, so therefore you can consider my response to be biased if you like. that being said, i don't think too many people will find fault with the artists listed below. i don't feel like taking the time to list each individual album title, but i'm sure you guys will instantly recognize that most of these timeframes encompass the prime of the artists' careers:

Bob Dylan: 11 studio albums between 1962-1970
(29 total studio albums between 1962-1993)
(32 total studio albums from 1962-present)

The Beatles: 12 studio albums between 1963-1970

The Rolling Stones: 9 studio albums between 1964-1967
(15 total studio albums between 1964-1974)

Jimi Hendrix: 3 studio albums between 1967-1968

The Doors: 6 studio albums between 1967-1971
(not counting the 1971 and 1972 albums released without Jim Morrison)

Pink Floyd: 8 studio albums between 1967-1973

Led Zeppelin: 4 studio albums between 1969-1971

Black Sabbath: 5 studio albums between 1970-1973

and i'm sure there were many other bands from that era who released albums with this type of frequency. the reason why mainstream bands are not as prolific as they used to be is largely because the record labels will not allow them to be. it's a money issue, really. if you release multiple albums in the same year, they will end up competing against each other in the record aisle. the end result is that you will not sell as many overall albums as you could if you spaced them out a little more. i have no idea what the white stripes' record contract was like when they first started out, but i would suspect it was a factor in their proficiency.

and let's not assume that any of the above bands wrote all of their material within the timeframes mentioned. most songwriters will already have accumulated an impressive stockpile of songs prior to getting signed (possibly even prior to starting a band). so when they get into the studio, it just becomes a matter of deciding which songs they want to play (betterman is a good example of this). this is one of the reasons why bands tend to put out greater quantities of material early in their careers.