Album Review // Jack White // No Name

Third Man Records

5/5 stars

No Name is a return to form for the indie guitar rock hero Jack White, with the album's monochrome cover, ironic title, and stripped-down blues sound highly evocative of his earlier work with the White Stripes.

The opening track "Old Scratch Blues" grabs the listener and continues through the rhythmic  "Bless you," which transitions into one of the poppiest songs from the album, "That's How I'm Feeling." The latter has the catchiest melody and chorus on the record, which, along with the track "What's The Rumpus," are sure to become crowd favorites on his current small club tour (which has been selling out within minutes).

While "It's Rough On Rats" and "What's The Rumpus" are reminiscent of the De Stijl era and early Raconteurs material, "Number One With A Bullet" has the most modern sound and would feel right at home on any of his recent releases. The record closes on "Terminal Arch Enemy Ending" which takes a step back and slows down to wrap up this blistering modern blues affair.

The White Stripes only released six studio albums during their tenure, and with this being White's sixth solo release, it is no coincidence that he has embraced the band's sound that he has been in the shadows of ever since their breakup.