The Dead Weather
HMV Forum, London
Wednesday 24th June

The Dead Weather's entire European tour consists of a live set on Nigel Godrich’s ‘From The Basement,’ a secret gig for celebrities and industry peeps, tonight’s show and then one in Paris in a couple of days. Talk about extensive – that Jack White sure doesn’t do things by halves. *Cough* Anticipation was high as the room filled up over an hour before our headliners took the stage. As if the celeb band members weren’t enough of a reason, the web stream of their ‘Basement’ gig two nights earlier suggested what an energetic, dynamic band they may well turn out to be.

So we wait amongst a sold out crowd in a decent sized theatre-style venue. Eventually Jack White emerges, but...to introduce the support act. “Do band’s usually do that in London?” I asked my friends. “No, that probably just means they’re crap.” Fair enough. Such logic turned out to be kinda true. While The Smoke Fairies did their best with an expanded line-up to fill out the venue, their quiet alt-country stylings were hardly going to win over a venue packed with people excited to see a band of veritable superstars. The Smoke Fairies float by inoffensively and in the right environment could well be charming, but their set doesn’t pay off.

I read a review of a Dead Weather performance that said something to the effect of "even when on the drums it’s impossible to take your eyes off Jack White." While Jack White is a surprisingly accomplished and theatrical drummer, such a notion is complete bullshit. Frontwoman Alison Mosshart steals the limelight off her bandmates without barely saying a word to the audience. She’s an electrifying performer, thrusting and stalking her way across the stage, throwing herself about to the music – at one point even writhing around on the floor. Every shake of the hips and toss of the hair oozes with a sexual awareness that - while not quite as palpable when performing with her main gig The Kills - still draws the attention of all before her.

Apart from these "skills" as a performer, her vocals are alternately raunchy, soaring or growling, challenging the drums and guitar for attention in a loud, crowded mix. Dan Fertita (QOTSA) handles guitar duties for most of the night, but proves himself adept at the organ as well – even if it is so distorted and effected so as to sound like a guitar anyway. Jack Lawrence (The Greenhornes, The Raconteurs) does what he does best on the bass with his head down and a humble, workmanlike attitude. His rhythm section compatriot, one Mr White, is the name at the top of the posters and with a drum kit to match his persona (showy and large – zebra stripes, multiple floor toms etc), White pound the skins with the power you’d expect, but also manages to display some flair and finesse with his fills, often incorporating more complicated grooves. Everyone seems to know that whatever White touches turns to gold, but tonight cemented that wisdom for me.

Two of the tracks from their ‘Basement’ set appear early on, ‘Bone House’ proving even more powerful in front a live audience. White stayed behind the kit for most of the night, taking lead vocals on just one track, which was surprisingly the weakest of the lot. He finally emerged to play guitar on the closing track of their main set, ‘Will There Be Enough Water,’ and shared a mic with Mosshart before indulging in a raucous solo that incorporated two guitars and spanned several minutes longer than most other songs in the set. This left Mosshart to throw herself around the stage as though the howling amps were physically knocking her around.

They returned for a three song encore that included lead single ‘Hang You From The Heavens,’ which elicited a predictably raucous response from the crowd – presumably since it's one of only two songs the band have made available outside of bootlegs on YouTube. White and Mosshart’s presence was the main factor, but it’s still impressive to see a crowd hanging on every note of band whose music is still largely a mystery and speaks to quality of songs and their delivery. It was a set that barely dropped in intensity over sixty minutes and elevated the band well above a mere curiosity. The record will certainly be something worth listening to, with ‘Forever My Queen’ a highlight amongst a set of sultry garage blues music from this supergroup of sorts.

With Mosshart working on a new Kills album and White back with The White Stripes and reportedly working on a solo album (dude doesn’t know how to chillax), let’s hope these guys find the time to come down under.


The Dead Weather - 'Cut Like A Buffalo' live @ The Bowery Ballroom