Jack White, the lead singer and guitarist of The White Stripes, released his new album titled ‘Fear Of The Dawn.’ This is his fifth solo album and the first of two he’s planning to release this year.
T-Bones Records & Café held a listening party the day of its release, so I went with a clean slate, unknowing of its content and it honestly sounded how I thought it would.
Jack White is no stranger to creating weird music, as ‘Fear Of The Dawn’ is entirely weird–in a good way.
He has always included an amped-up, electrifying guitar, which isn’t afraid to be on display on this album.
My favorite track is ‘Hi-De-Ho’ despite ‘Taking Me Back’ being the fan-favorite.
‘Hi-De-Ho’ featuring Q-Tip, is one of the more peculiar songs, starting off intriguing and experimental then becoming quite the catchy tune. It reminds me of a song that would play on Cartoon Network at night when I was a kid.
‘Taking Me Back,’ which seems to touch on his divorce, is a nice asset to this album and his sound in general–I’m surprised it wasn’t released as a single instead of ‘What’s the Trick?’ It’s more single-esque than the latter, though ‘What’s the Trick?’ is good as well.
‘Morning, Noon and Night’ sticks out the most on this album, feeling like a more mellowed classic-rock song. It has less spunk and noise than the others, but it’s a strong, favorable move for the album.
I also really appreciate the once-again build-up before ending. This song was done right–not to say that the others weren’t, but this one was just done especially right.
‘Shedding My Velvet’ is one of the best songs on the album despite it having the fewest listens on Spotify. It’s got a je ne sais quoi air to it. It’s gloomy, jazzy, and feels like magic, but nothing can quite capture the feeling.
On another note, some tracks on the album seem pointless as in they do not add much to the project. It’s a non-song in song form.
For example, ‘Into the Twilight’ sounds like a filler for the album, and ‘Fear Of The Dawn’ wouldn’t be lacking quality-wise if it was removed.
The “filler” comment also applies to ‘Dusk,’ but I do think it’s a delightful addition. It serves as a nice album break for listeners.
White has a very notable, attention-catching voice that’s always spurting out something worth listening to. ‘Fear Of The Dawn’ is loud, eccentric, and full of surprises throughout–just as White does best.
8.7/10
