scramblings

Jack White has done some crazy shit. Prided playing one-note shows in Canada, possibly marrying his sister and going through phases of wearing nothing but white, red and black, he surprised the media and fans alike by releasing a follow-up to The Raconteurs’ highly successful first album, Broken Boy Soldiers, without any notice.

Available today, Consolers of the Lonely follows the latest trend in the music industry. More and more artists are cutting out the companies and getting the music directly to their fans. In the footsteps Radiohead and Trent Reznor with their “pay what you think it’s worth” experiment, such an abrupt release doesn’t give reviewers any advantage over the listeners – an interesting idea.

I was expecting a lot from The Raconteurs sophomore release. The crazy offstage is mirrored in the crazy onstage; Broken Boy Soldiers is one of my all-time favorite recordings. With these heavy expectations, I enjoyed Consolers. I remember being more impressed after hearing the first album but that may be because the only changes between the two aren’t much more than a fiddle and the occasional femme backup. Consolers of the Lonely is a solid piece; dark, powerful and bluesy enough to remind me why The Racontuers is not only Jack White, but modern rock at its best.