De Stijl

"De Stijl" is a stunning album that yanks the listener back to the roots of rock and a simpler era when guitar gods walked the Earth. It is to the genre what a backyard barbeque is to cuisine: a back-to-basics affair whose simplicity in no way diminishes its exquisiteness.Throughout the album, Jack White dishes up drippy slide guitar like stacks of smoked ribs, while drummer Meg White hammers out beats like bite-sized sides of coleslaw or potato salad.The album pays direct homage to a couple of blues greats - Blind Willie McTell and Son House, whose Delta classic "Death Letter" is reworked here in one of the best blues covers by a rock band since Led Zeppelin.Zep's influence can also be detected when Jack breaks out his ferocious slide on tracks like "Hello Operator" and "Little Bird", where the string-bending hits a level of intensity rarely seen since Jimmy Page tore it up on 1975's "In My Time of Dying".The influence of stripped-down classic rock permeates other songs as well. "Apple Blossom" recalls The Beatles. "Sister Do You Know My Name" and "A Boy's Best Friend" evokes The Rolling Stones circa the "Beggar's Banquet" era. "Let's Build a Home" and "Jumble Jumble" remind me of The Kinks. Other listeners will doubtless pick up many more references. The album's closing tune, "Your Southern Can Is Mine" pays homage to the bluegrass and roots elements of blues-driven rock.Of course, saying that "De Stijl" simply borrows from the past diminishes the album's significance and the talent of its creators. The genius of The White Stripes has been to dismantle rock down to its fundamental constituents and then bolt together something completely fresh and timeless.

I could go for hours singing this album's praises. Jack did an amazing job on this album, and that's all that needs to be said.As far as this vinyl pressing goes, I'll say the same thing. It feels like it was something that thought was given to: the 180 gram quality is very evident here in the sturdiness and the sound quality of the record. The only tiny qualm is that there's no code to download the album. I almost feel cheated if a record doesn't include this, but in the case of the White Stripes, I've owned all of their albums for years, so it's honestly not a big deal (though Coldplay went so far as to include the CD version of Viva La Vida with the vinyl pressing).This is an absolute must-own for fans of the Stripes.

Jack and Meg may not make great lovers anymore, but the certainly make great music. This is maybe my favorite album by the White Stripes; just showing off just how versatile they are as a team. It's actually somewhat incredible. "Death Letter" is a perfect blues ballad; "Why Can't You Be Nicer to Me?", while 100% Jack White, is almost Rolling Stones in tone. On the other hand, "Your Southern Can is Mine" is pure country and "A Boy's Best Friend" is straightforward folk.Get it. You won't regret it.

This product/music is for pleasure. Also, the colors of the vinyl albums were stunning.

This is my favorite album from The White Stripes. Almost every song has excellent melody underlying subtlety excellent guitar and drum work. There isn't a bad track in the bunch. This is either No 1 or No 2 in my all-time albums, and I listen through the whole thing once a week or so.

**Intro**The White Stripes are disbanded now, but they produced seven albums through their career, and this was their second one. They weren't as famous back when they produced this album, but I would say that that wasn't because their music hadn't fully developed yet, it was more like their fans hadn't found them yet or gotten used to their unique style. While I do like some of their later albums a little bit better, this one is certainly worth getting.**The music**You will find catchy rhythms, electric guitar solos and accompaniment, and Jack White's characteristic raspy, bright tenor is right there in your face throughout the album. Meg's drums have this interesting characteristic in that her rhythm isn't really all that good, but that kind of contributes to the "casual jam in a garage" sound that makes The White Stripes good, and gives them a classic rock, non-intimidating, and slightly goofy feel.Jack White's lyrics tend to suggest the topics of love and relationships, nostalgic thoughts for a simple childhood, being troubadour, and losing friends to death. As one of my friend's once said, his rough textured voice makes you believe that the hardships and adventures that he's singing about are real whether they are or aren't, in a similar way to how Bob Dylan's voice also does this.Finally, don't forget that Jack White is a really, really good guitar player. The tone effects on his guitar seem perfectly selected for the personality of the music. Sometimes it is super nasal, some times twangy, other times more acoustic, and yet other times operating in a more percussive role and teamed up with the drums. The shapes of every guitar chord and note are always artfully done. There just seems to be a lot of emotion in his guitar, and this was already accomplished in this fairly early album.**Conclusion**I'm not sure if this is **the best** White Stripes Album, but it's certainly respectable. Buy it if you want to collect all 7 albums, or if you are looking to explore how they developed over their career. If you are into buying separate M3P files instead, you should definitely preview the album and pick out the ones you like. Enjoy!