Give it up for Jack White
How many of us have a hero in the music industry?
There were many people I thought were pretty awesome, but none of them were real icons for me. That is, until, I really took a long hard look at Jack White of The White Stripes/The Raconteurs/The Dead Weather. Alan Cross, radio DJ in Toronto who is also a professional music geek, recently made a twitter post about why he respects the guy so much. That got me thinking, why wouldn’t he?
Writer’s block? Pfffff…
The first thing that tipped me off about this guy is his supposed immunity from writer’s block. Considering the number of albums across multiple bands he has produced… 10 albums in 11 years, I can see it. Take, for instance, his hit song “Seven Nation Army.” The song title came from the fact that he mispronounced Salvation Army as a kid. Boom – song is written. “The Hardest Button to Button” – the track title came from a jacket of his and the top button was difficult to button. His ability to write songs is uncanny. It’s disheartening considering even when I have a good idea, I still get writer’s block. Most times I’m not sure whether my mind being a blank state is attributed to the copious amounts of alcohol I drink before attempting to write something or 9/11.
How about a song called “The Red Umbrella” and it can be about neglected puppies?
The experience of music
This is where I’m really on par with the guy. I feel that the experience of music is lost on today’s generation. We’re all about immediate gratification, even with music. I’m guilty of this while driving; that is, constantly hitting next track until I hit a song I’m in the mood to listen to. Even then, I might only listen to about a minute of it before moving on.
Music has become way too accessible for us to enjoy. I used to put on a Floyd album while I did chores, or crank some Enigma while practicing magic. Now, I just load up grooveshark with a bunch of random songs just so I can hear the hook and move on.
That’s why I make an effort to go see concerts and local bands. While there, I’m forced to listen to entire tracks and full setlists by artists. It forces me to enjoy the music. Recently, Tokyo Police Club put on a free show in my city and I went to go check them out. After listening to all they had to offer, I was really digging their sound and reminded myself the importance of experiencing the music.
What does this have to with Jack? Let me quote:
When we have concerts [at Third Man Records headquarters in Nashville], we don’t allow people to film and take photos. That’s not about not letting people have a memento, that’s about: how sick are you of watching people in the crowd not looking at the stage? They’re watching a tiny little TV screen in their hand instead of watching what’s really going on in life.
Flashback to my experience…
After reading this quote I had a flashback to a Rush concert. In the middle of the concert, the band left the stage to leave the legendary Neil Peart to do his ridiculous drum solo (7-9 minutes). There were people around me who whipped out their phones to try and record it, trying like hell to get a good angle. I just sat there and enjoyed it. If I wanted to see it again, it wouldn’t be that difficult to get a video. And at better quality than a cell phone. I can only live the experience once.
Then I thought of another experience I had with the local music scene. A friend of mine was playing a gig at a local music club that hosts quite a few big indie bands. After his band played, this artist, ‘Pernille’ begins her set. The second she started her music, the entire crowd was entranced. Everybody stood there, stunned. Nobody moved or took their eyes off her the entire time. We were, by dictionary definition, hypnotized. I’ll never forget that night in my own personal music history.
Why I love the guy
Jack is obsessed with the physical experience of the music. You don’t have to like his music, or him for that matter, but liking the experience music delivers - that is an aim and philosophy where I give him ridiculous amounts of respect. I also respect that he produces an entire album and hopes one of the songs hits. This is atypical in the music industry where studios produce hits and try to build an album around it.
If the music industry crumbled tomorrow and he were one of the very few people left to carry it, I wouldn’t be all that upset. The guy is a machine and will not quit. He’s always working on a new project and that gives me hope for the future. Keep producing Mr. White because I want the experience again. I want to feel something when I listen to music.
I feel it, you felt it-we’re all struggling with the trouble that this industry is in right now. And it’s not about sales; it’s about beauty and romance and a relationship to art that’s turning invisible, and it’s affecting people’s perception of music. It’s affecting whether they think of it as a viable art, because it’s so fucking disposable. It’s not about being modern or retro or a Luddite or being hopeful or pessimistic about the future; it’s about clinging on to what makes sense of our lives, and what give our lives value, and what gives us a commonality and a feeling of belonging.
Salut!
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