| Icky Thump | 
 enlarge | Artist: The White Stripes
Label: Warner Bros / Wea
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $5.99
You Save: $12.99 (68%)
New (61) Used (27) from $5.46
Avg. Customer Rating:  181 reviews
Sales Rank: 538
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 162940
UPC: 093624996712
EAN: 0093624996712
ASIN: B000OYC3J8
Release Date: June 19, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: new, sealed
|
| Tracks:
| • | Icky Thump | | • | You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told) | | • | 300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues | | • | Conquest | | • | Bone Broke | | • | Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn | | • | St. Andrew (This Battle Is In The Air) | | • | Little Cream Soda | | • | Rag And Bone | | • | I'm Slowly Turning Into You | | • | A Martyr For My Love For You | | • | Catch Hell Blues | | • | Effect and Cause |
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
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
Amazon.com
The White Stripes are back with the most bombastic album they've ever produced! While revealing the band's roots in American folk music, Icky Thump is an explosive, revolutionary assault that brings together garage rock, every blues style of the past 100 years, nouveau, and flamenco. This is truly a modern rock and roll masterpiece! The White Stripes Photos More from the White Stripes 
Elephant | 
White Blood Cells | 
The White Stripes | 
Get Behind Me Satan | 
De Stijl | 
Walking With A Ghost + 4 Live Tracks | 
The Document | 
Candy Coloured Blues | 
Rhinoceros |
Album Description
Japanese version includes one bonus track, 'Baby Brother'.
Album Details
2007 Japanese Release of the Alt-duo's Label Debut on Warner Brothers that is their Loudest and Most Diverse Set to Yet to Date. This Edition Includes the Song "Baby Brother" which is Not Found on the Us Equivalent.
| Customer Reviews: Read 176 more reviews...
White playfulness rules again June 23, 2007
47 out of 51 found this review helpful
It's hard not to think that Jack White has developed something of an ego--after all, when music critics call you a genius for anything as small as slapping an organ around a bit, it must be hard not to get a little bit of a God complex.
But if he has, he has not let it diffuse the element of play and seeming improvisation that brings the White Stripes sound together. The White Stripes is where Jack White is at the height of his powers. His brief excursion into The Raconteurs with Broken Boy Soldiers felt too constricted and lacking energy, and in other projects he didn't sound as though he was having all that much fun. Many regard Get Behind Me Satan as dark White Stripes, but I don't go along with that diagnosis--there are way too many fluctuations about that disc even that keeps me from thinking that Jack and Meg were getting too dour during that recording session.
With rock 'n' roll creature Meg White, the music becomes music again, playing with all types of sounds and styles and maybe even poking a little fun at musical schools that we may take a little too seriously. This IS rock, after all, and if we can end "I'm Slowly Turning Into You" with a repetitive La chorus, what the hell? Why not? "Rag and Bone" is an exquisite track with its shout-outs as though one is listening in on take 1, and the plain out noise assault of the the title track lets you know that you're not in for the the old heavy-yet-light-since-there-are-only-two-of-them bluesiness of The White Stripes, but a pair who have spread their sound out wider and into something of a full arc. The snideness of "You Just Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)," and the garage-can twanginess into submarine assault with "Catch Hell Blues"--every song works at being its own tone poem, sounding at times like a radio dial flipping about to give one snatches of different styles and stations (that is, in the days when you could tell one radio station from another).
But, just in case you thought that the Stripes might have left behind their heavy blues influence, they give you that purity of back-porch blues with "Effect and Cause." I love this playfulness about them, their willingness to explore anything (even if it's something they've explored before) if the song leads them to it.
This album isn't the profound and unannounced classic that De Stijl is, but it's solid White Stripes stuff--which is to say that it's diverse, imaginative, entertaining on both sides of the speaker, and a foot-stomping good time.
Rock on.
 Icky Thump, Who'd-a Thunk? July 24, 2007
40 out of 47 found this review helpful
For the longest time the White Stripes were my guilty pleasure. Saying their name around musicians is like uttering the name Charles Darwin among Christians or George Bush among Democrats. However, the Whites seem oblivious to outside praise and criticism. They are an anomaly: A two piece band who reduces genres to their bare essentials to see how many ways they can twist, hammer, and shape it into something viable. They do this without an ounce of flash or technical abilities. Jack's near juvenile guitar playing, and Meg's "trained monkey on drums" abilities are among the worst in all of music. The Stripes are essentially an exercise in maximization through minimalization. The variations and nuances they're able to saturate this simplicity with is extraordinary. The results are endlessly surprising and rewarding.
They also seem to alternate - album wise - between interpretations on traditional forms (rock, pop, folk) and experimentation: Although these two sides - the traditional and experimental - are almost always integrated, the focus usually remains on one. De Stijl was their most traditional blues/pop album, with Elephant being a logical progression on that concept that expanded the overall palette. White Blood Cells is perhaps their quirkiest, as it leaped into vast new territories and styles, with Get Behind Me Satan being a focused, refined, near perfection of that stylish mishmash. Now to Icky Thump: At once a return to tradition and complete perfection of it. The spiritual precursor to Icky is Elephant - not the experimental Get Behind Me Satan. The first three songs epitomize this concept:
The title track is monumental, crushing rock. Featuring a towering riff from Jack White, A pulsing "thud" beat from Meg. Along with a vocal delivery that teeters on the edge of manic breakdown and complete control, spitting venom the entire time. "You Don't Know What Love Is" is a foray back to De Stijl and pop in its purest form with no excess. It's also perhaps (and I say this tentatively) the best pop song Jack has written. From electric and eclectic to calm with aplomb (bad wordplay, I know) we get to "300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues" (I have to gasp just saying it!). This song evokes Bob Dylan like nothing else I've heard from the White Stripes or anyone. The reiterated acoustic lick is absorbing in its meditative restraint. The electric breaks only provide a contrast rather than a driving force to the track.
Then we head into the experimental grasp of Jack again. "Conquest" is pounding and incessant, with its horn flourishes evoking a definite Mexicano vibe. From Mexico to Ireland (or Scotland) we get "Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn". An acoustic, Irish (Scottish?) clog dance that's as charming as anything Jack has done. "St. Andrew" provides a kind of epilogue to "Prickly Thorn' with its accelerating rhythm being lead by a lively bagpipe and miniscule female vocals. "Little Cream Soda" continues the 'Little' tradition, returning to the metal tones of "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground" with a distortion drenched riff from Jack that's as good as any he's produced. "Catch Hell Blues" features a tumultuous slide riff that's vaguely reminiscent of "Little Bird" from De Stijl, but more hellish and electric. Jack also hasn't lost his sense of humor. Both "Rag & Bone" and "Effect & Cause" are as whimsical as anything he's done. The former being a rhythmic, comical take on requesting people's unwanteds and the latter being a country-esque romp on refusing to accept the consequences of one's actions.
What catapults this album above the previous Stripes' efforts is Jack's transcendent leap in his lyrical and vocal stylings. I normally don't care for lyrics, but Jack White forces you to pay attention to his due to the inventiveness at which he writes and the originality in which he delivers. The title track being a prime example: At first it sounds akin to a rapper's delivery as Jack rhythmically blurts out variations on "ump", while expanding on this concept throughout. Jack wrenches, bends, twists and distorts syllables; emphasizing serpentine rhythmic drive over melody. This is similar to The Beatles' most experimental vocal work, and Dylan's flow of delivery. Jack's variety of emotive abilities are among the best in all of modern music. If the idea of song is the fusion of music and words - where one acts to enhance the other - then The Stripes may personify that idea better than any other these days.
This album only 'fails' - a better term would be "fail to surpass previous efforts" - when Jack doesn't push himself. Reverting back to comfortable territory. "Bone Broke" is an attempt to return to their punkish, garage days - but it is no Fell In Love With a Girl. Both "I'm Slowly Turning Into You" and "A Martyr for My Love for You" are decent, but lacking in the freshness the rest of the album permeates. However, their inclusion is welcome as they're too good to be considered filler.
If any Stripes albums could truly be called serious, then Icky Thump is the furthest away from that definition. Rather, this is Jack and Meg at their most playful and fun. Confident in what they can do, they produce songs that effortlessly fit within their respective abilities. As always, variety is key. Acoustic, electric, and ultimately eclectic, Icky Thump isn't a radical departure for the Whites, but just an assured, adept execution of their wealth of styles and ideas. It's the nuances that reward repeated listens. This isn't musically dense material, but it's subtle music all the same. Perhaps the only other fault is that in the Stripes' refusal to strive for eminence they may also never reach the heights of albums like Highway 61, Sgt. Pepper, or Born to Run (insert your applicable favorites). If Icky Thump is their peak (and it may be), then I only wonder where they go from here.
The White Stripes have transformed me from a hesitant supporter into an avid one. If Get Behind Me Satan was my acquiescence, then Icky Thump was my revelation. No longer do I consider them my great "guilty pleasure". I could solely appreciate the fearlessness at which they tackle everything. Most bands walk on eggshells afraid of failing, but The Stripes seem apathetic to the notion that they could - with any misstep - ruin their popularity. Instead, they seem rather insouciant about the entire thing - likely wondering how a quirky garage band ended up being hailed as the 'saviors' of pop music. They seem to belong to a bygone era. One in which bands pushed themselves into uncharted waters - daring themselves to improve - growing and evolving in the studio instead of behind closed doors. Perhaps, most importantly, they seem to produce everything with a real sense of passion and honesty, completely lacking any of the contrivances and pretenses in modern pop and rock music.
In the end, I can only echo what Steve Vai (I believe it was) said about them: "Out of tune. Out of time. Beautiful."
Don't forget me June 18, 2007
31 out of 41 found this review helpful
All "Icky Thump" initially brought to mind was Graham Chapman telling Terry Jones how to say, "Eee, ecky thump!" into a mike.
But it's also the title of the White Stripes' sixth album, and after the mediocre dry spell of "Get Behind Me Satan," it's nice to hear that the Stripes seem to have regained their creative juices. This time they pack the album with dark seventies-style rock'n'roll and some traditional folk flourishes.
It kicks off with the dark, plodding guitar that blazes up to life every few seconds, and a sinuous synth ripple that slithers through the melody. "Icky thump/Who'da thunk?/Sittin drunk on a wagon to Mexico?" Jack yowls, describing the less pleasant corners of Mexico, and taking a moment to jab at Americans ("Why don't you kick yourself out/You're an immigrant too!").
It softens up a lot for the catchy, bluesier rocker "You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)," and the mellow gritty "300 MPH Torrential Outpour Blues." Then the album goes through two phases: the first is one of British and Scottish folkiness, and a trumpety rocker that sounds like a B-side from Beirut. Then the last leg of the album slips back to blazing rock'n'roll, full of dark energy and retro organ.
I never quite figured out what was going on in the halfhearted "Get Behind Me Satan," except that every band has their dud. And fortunately "Icky Thump" is everything that album wasn't -- spirited, creative, enthusiastic, and full of those little moments and brilliant instrumentation that bring it alive. Nice to see they haven't run out of juice yet.
Yeah, we have Jack blazing away like a forest fire on his guitars, whether it's softer blues riffs, ringing blasts or hard-rocking swirls. And Meg smashes the drums like no other. But their music is festooned with a colourful array of extra instrumentation -- sweeps of eerie, vintage psychedelic synth, sprightly gypsyish trumpets, and even bagpipes for the mesmerizing "St. Andrew (This Battle Is In The Air)."
Jack seems to have regained his verve as well: he sounds assured and a little sad, and his quirky voice has a new depth and power. But he hasn't lost his melancholy edge, singing of Mexican robberies, stream of consciousness love songs, the rag and bone man, and a man who loves a woman so deeply, he lets her go so he won't make her unhappy.
And Meg gets to display her clear voice a few times -- she gets to talk with Jack in "Rag & Bone," and the eerie Scottishy ballad "St. Andrew (This Battle Is In The Air)" has her murmuring a prayerlike song over a bagpipe/drum melody. ("This battle is in the air/I'm looking upwards/where are the angels?/I'm not in my home!").
"Icky Thump" is both a wonderful return to form, and a foray into new territory for the White Stripes. A glorious experience, and it only gets better with repeated listens. A triumph.
 Tiresome July 11, 2007
17 out of 29 found this review helpful
First, if all you've heard of rock up to this point is stuff like the White Stripes, Coldplay, Radiohead and other contemporary bands than this album will probably sound fresh and cool and it would be pointless to read my review. But, if you expect a little bit more from your rock and roll than the same old sh#@ this review is a buyer beware....
Tiresome is a word I never thought I would put to a White Stripes album, but I find it the most natural word to express my impression of Icky Thump. I was surprised how many rock cliches I heard on his side project with The Raconteurs and thought perhaps because it was a band effort that once he got back into the saddle with as The White Stripes all that bombastic artiness would return, but no!
Icky Thump has really poor melodies and the lyrics are some of the worst this side of Paul McCartney ala Wing's Wildlife.
The best moments of the album which there are very few come in songs like A Martyr For My Love For You and the catchy Icky Thump. But overall this is just a big disappointment from a man that is capable of much more.
Get Behind Me Satan was a pretty good album but it marked a departure from the other White Stripes albums because it sounded like Jack White was expanding his sound, after the awful Raconteurs album and this Icky Thump it sounds more like it was an failed attempt to escape his own success.
Back with a Thump!!! June 19, 2007
15 out of 19 found this review helpful
With a buzzing bass line, thumping beat, and sudden bursts of guitar and percussion (and a squealing guitar solo), The White Stripes announce their return with lead off single "Icky thump", which is already a UK #2 smash.
"Icky Thump" is the Stripes 6th studio release, and the first since Jack White's detour to his Grammy nominated side project, The Raconteurs last year, and its a plethora of great edgy blues/garage rock songs. The album has a fuller sound than the more stripped sound of "Get behind me satan".
The blues influenced "You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do What You're Told)" flows effortlessly, while the horn peppered "Conquest" is a cover (rare for the Stripes) of a Patti Page song; it features fab trumpet layering to give a band effect and a duelling guitar/trumpet solo over a pseudo mariachi rhythm (you can almost picture Jack in a poncho and sombrero).
"Rag and bone" is a power house featuring both Jack and Meg on vocals (his southern drawl nicely contrasted by her whispering) and is brilliant! Just as rocking is "Little cream soda" with its thumping beat, crashing cymbals, and spoken delivery.
"Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn" throws bagpipes (giving a Celtic touch) into the mix, aptly followed by the psychedelic "St. Andrew (This Battle Is In the Air)", a spoken piece (by Meg) set to percussion and bagpipes.
"300 M.P.H. torrential outpour blues", and the brilliant "Catch hell blues" are (as their names imply) the most heavily blues tinged songs, the latter featuring interesting tempo shifts (gentle to explosive) and very interesting and exciting guitar work (from delicately plucked, to squealing guitars).
"I'm a Martyr for My Love for You", a beautifully melodic song about an affair with a teenager that can never be, is the album's lone ballad. "I'm slowly turning into you" is a midtempo rocker with a blistering guitar riff, and lyrics recognizing how alike two people in a relationship become over time. Closing out is the brief country tinged "Effect and cause" with Jack having fun singing, even giggling.
Much more accessible than the dark, experimental (even by the Stripes standards) "Get behind me satan" (which I loved, don't get me wrong), they are still pushing the musical envelope, something loads of acts seem unable to do these days. Look out, The White Stripes are back!!
| |
Powered by Associate-O-Matic
| |
