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Jack White and Thom Yorke Join Forces

17th November 2008 | by Aidan Williamson

Just got home from watching Quantum of Solace? Could you do with some having endured the sheer banality that was the Jack White/Alicia Keys theme song? Good news everyone: Jack has another duet in store for you all.

White is currently undergoing some down-time following a tour incident which saw him slip a disc within his neck area. After he's fully recuperated, he will head into the studio with Radiohead's Thom Yorke to work on one of the handful of tracks he already has prepared.

"We’ve known each other for a while now." White said speaking of Yorke. "But the doctors said I couldn’t perform for two months. I’ve been writing a lot instead."

True, this news was announced before most had to endure the travesty of Another Way To Die. Yet we thought a pick-me-up might be in order.

Comments

Dee

commented 2 months ago

Jack White is sheer genius, and almost everything he touches turns to gold. The Bond theme song got some mixed reviews -- some very high praise, as well as some people who didn't like it at all. In my experience, Jack White's songs can be an acquired taste, but one that's kind of addictive. And that's how I felt about Another Way to Die; it seemed kind of noisy to me at first, but with several more listens I started to really like it. Then when I saw it with the video and a movie trailer, it sounded fantastic. So I've learned not to judge too much the first few listens.

That was my experience with The White Stripes, too. I would listen to a new album, and love a few songs, like a few more, and be kind of indifferent towards the rest. But over time they grew on me, and my long-term favorites were often the ones that I was indifferent to at first. With Jack White's second band, The Raconteurs, the music is more immediately accessible; but in my experience it does not quite have the same addictive power that music of The White Stripes does.

I can't say that I'm a big fan of Radiohead; I like music that is more like Rock'n'Roll is meant to be: raw, noisy and intense. Radiohead's music seems technically proficient, but too bland and pretty for my own tastes. It kind of reminds me of Coldplay, in that a lot of it sounds like lullabies to me. But then, Jack White often seems drawn to collaborate with artists who who make music quite different from his own -- like Brendan Benson; and The Raconteurs have worked out great so far. So I feel like we can expect something quite good -- or maybe even great -- from his collaboration with Thom Yorke.