Product Description

Album number six from the Detroit based garage rock duo is the follow up to 2005's Grammy Award winning 'Get Behind Me Satan.' Produced by Jack White himself and recorded over a period of three weeks in Nashville, 'Icky Thump' signals a welcome return to the band's trademark blues rock sound, yet with a few surprises thrown in. Flamenco rhythms, bagpipes and trumpets are just some of the unexpected elements that make an appearance over the course of the album, giving the band a new dimension whilst retaining their raw playing style and unquestionable songwriting skill. Includes the single 'Icky Thump.'

Track Listing

1. Icky Thump
2. You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)
3. 300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues
4. Conquest
5. Bone Broke
6. Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn
7. St. Andrew (This Battle Is In The Air)
8. Little Cream Soda
9. Rag And Bone
10. I'm Slowly Turning Into You
11. A Martyr For My Love For You
12. Catch Hell Blues
13. Effect And Cause

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2144 in Music
• Released on: 2007-06-18
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk
"Bagpipes", a song written as the soundtrack to a Michel Gondry music video, Patti Page's musical shadow, and Jack and Meg co-narrating a scavenger's rummages: it must be time for Icky Thump, the many-flavored riposte to 2006's Get Behind Me Satan. The duo starts big with the title track--Jack's fast-tumbling, falsetto-tinged lyrics jagging on hyper keyboard-sounding segues and Meg's pounding drums. They rarely shy from an idea, invoking acoustic Bob Dylan to frame "300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues", but interjecting a series of distortion-laden guitar paroxysms for good measure. The end of Icky, on "Effect and Cause," is where Jack's trademark vocal warble and spare, quick acoustic strums meet Meg's single-minded beats. Everywhere on Icky giant riffs leap and shout, with Flamenco horns and those eerie bagpipes and rhythmic shifts and Jack's impatient vocal kinetics, marking new territories even as the White Stripes again populate them with vintage ideas. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews

Pleasing addition to the White Stripes' catalogue
This is a damned fine album. I mean, notwithstanding the fact that it's 'Ecky and not Icky Thump, added to the fact that I am slightly bored with the concept of The White Stripes and wasn't exactly excited to hear that Jack & Meg were releasing a new album in 2007, the content of this album - or at least the majority of it - has won me over. There are plenty of songs on this album that would easily fit alongside the best output of 'White Blood Cells' or 'Elephant' and hearing that they had gone back to the hard-edged, bluesy style they excel at was pleasing.

Straight away, when I heard the lyrics of the title track, especially the lines;

"White Americans, what?/Nothing better to do?/Why don't you kick yourself out?/You're an immigrant too!"

...I knew I was about to rediscover exactly what made me such a huge fan of this band five years previously. Both 'You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)' and '300 MPH Torrential Outpour Blues' are trademark White Stripes electric blues-fuelled tracks and are extremely enjoyable.

The frenetic, mariachi band meets blues rock corker that is 'Conquest', featuring a duel between trumpets and squealing electric guitar, delivers a truly original sound and, for that, probably gets the title of best song on the album, but 'Little Cream Soda' is a track with a classic blues riff and storming, thumping, relentless beat which could be a standout on any of The White Stripes' best albums. The only lull in the album comes courtesy of 'Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn' and 'St. Andrew (The Battle Is In The Air)' a Scottish-themed pair which reek of cheesiness, like a tourist trying to replicate authenticity. 'Rag And Bone' also nearly falls into the same trap of musical tourism, but it just about has enough charm and balls to work.

This whole album isn't exactly what I'd call a return to form in the same vein as 'White Blood Cells' or 'Elephant', but - for me - it's a huge improvement on 'Get Behind Me Satan', an album I consider to be Jack & Meg's weakest. I'm now back in the position of looking forward to their next release, so I guess you can say that Icky Thump has restored my faith in The Stripes' ability and reasssured me that they haven't lost their touch.

The Off White Stripes..
I remember a time when The White Stripes were so necessary.

This album, together with Get Behind Me Satan, offer none of the thrills of the past. It all sounds a little too tired now.

One of the least happy events of recent times, in music, was to learn that John Peel had died. John of course loved the band. It really isn't for me to say, and I would not presume to do so, but, well, would John be playing Icky Thump with a grin on his face or.......

Maybe it's just me..Or maybe a band can get too big..

luv it
this album has got mixed reviews because of the "experimentation". but its still good white stripes music with a mad twist icky thump the single is class any man alive who doesent jump to that isnt alive , conquest the more recently released single at first i did not like but now i luv it i think i didnt like it because i heard it on the radio at work and cudnt hear the bass and proper rhythm of the tune. prickly thorn is my best tune i think i just love that tune for unknown reasons bag pipes n that crazy tune like if stone roses played in medievil scotland. a proper good album.