Jack White- No Name
Label: Third Man
Producer: Jack White
In late July, Jack White quietly awoke from the two-year slumber since his pair of LP releases in 2022 to secretly unleash his sixth studio album via a one-day surprise, physical-only roll-out. In the intervening time since that occasion and the widespread release of No Name this past week, critics have been quick to proclaim this record as a full-throttled return to his primitive White Stripes roots, and its difficult to argue with that notion. Since releasing his critically acclaimed solo debut, Blunderbuss a dozen years ago, White’s notorious and engrossing reputation for being one of rock music’s most experimental curators has only expanded through a collection of albums that have continuously pushed the limits of even the most alternative corners of alt-rock. No Name however reigns as White’s purest exercise in the straight-forward garage rock that initially put he and sister, Meg White on the map as definitive, new-millennium innovators throughout the 2000s. Now, no Jack White album is without its wondrously bewildering quirks or genre-fluid influences, however this record maintains squarely centered focus on thunderous garage band riffs, vigorous rock choruses, and heady alt-themes. And to put it more simply, it’s fucking catchy as hell; this is Jack White flat-out rocking out without overthinking the artsy minutia of it all. It still shouldn’t be confused with anything closely resembling frothy background music; it commands your attention for every moment. But in a year that has been desperately wanting for memorably accessible guitar riffs, No Name delivers in overwhelming throngs, and does one better by delivering guitar-rock moments on the scale of the classics of the genre. A track like the album’s finale, “Terminal Archenemy Endling” would have been comfortable at home on a peak Led Zeppelin LP. Meanwhile, standouts like “Old Scratch Blues” and “That’s How I’m Feeling” have an infectious, repeat-demanding durability that White has rarely delivered since the “Love Interruption”/”Sixteen Saltines”/”Freedom at 21” hat-trick on Blunderbuss. And when he does traverse into more complicated topical territory, he does so with a refreshing sense of sardonic humor on “It’s Rough on Rats (If You’re Asking)”, “What’s the Rumpus?”, and especially the pentecostal parody of “Archbishop Harold Holmes”. The creative genius of Jack White is most certainly alive and well. And how rapturously triumphant is it that the rock star inside Jack White is as well. No Name is precisely the thirst-quenching revelation that rock fans have been waiting all summer for.
Track Listing:
- “Old Scratch Blues” (Jack White)
- “Bless Yourself” (White)
- “That’s How I’m Feeling” (White)
- “It’s Rough on Rats (If You’re Asking” (White)
- “Archbishop Harold Holmes” (White)
- “Bombing Out” (White)
- “Whats the Rumpus?” (White)
- “Tonight (Was A Long Time Ago” (White)
- “Underground” (White)
- “Number One With A Bullet” (White)
- Morning at Midnight” (White)
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