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My Dad Loves The White Stripes

A band that transcended generations.

Posted 3rd February 2011, 11:31am in Blogs by Willis Arnold
Willis Arnold

Willis Arnold

Writer

My Dad Loves The White Stripes Since early adolescence my dad and I have shared the ritual of driving from my hometown of Northfield, Minnesota to one of the worlds greatest independent music stores, the Electric Fetus in Minneapolis. What began in my youth as an excursion in search of Beach Boys and Sublime CD's soon became a mission to procure music by Rage Against The Machine, the Chili Peppers and the Dandy Warhols. As time passed the trips evolved and it wasn’t long before we stopped heading to the store with any particular purchase in mind, returning late with stacks of albums by Kings Crimson, Modest Mouse, and Pavement.

On one such occasion we headed to the city, the radio tuned to a local music station, and found ourselves listening to 'Fell In Love With A Girl,' one of The White Stripes first singles to break into the national airwaves. Within seconds of that first buzzsaw riff, my dad turned to me and asked me who it was. "Well, The White Stripes. They’re from Detroit," is an approximation of my response. "Cool. They’re pretty good," responded my dad.

I thought nothing of it at the time, and I’m unsure whether my dad bought the album that day or whether it was given to me later, but the band would eventually grow to be a presence in my household. Soon 'White Blood Cells' would nestle in our stereo, weary from heavy rotation. There was something to the band that transcended generations, their modernization of traditional blues, their simplistic structure yet wholly unique sound (characterized by Jack White’s barked vocals and guitar chops) made them easy to like for anyone familiar with the rock and roll template.

Years later I was at college and woke up slightly hung over from a Saturday night of red wine and stomping around a kitchen to 'Seven Nation Army' left on repeat. My dad was calling. "Hey Will, have you heard that new White Stripes album, 'Elephant'?" These were the words that greeted my slightly soaky brain. I’m sure I responded with something like "Yeah I was just listening to it…" before we were off, talking about the more robust guitar tones of the new album.

The end of The White Stripes comes as a blow to rock and roll. I’ve never been a complete devotee, but in comparison to the current trends toward bedroom pop and hazy electronics, it will be sad to see a true rock band disappear. With the band’s leave-taking goes a good deal of the strut and kick that embodied their music for even in the darkest moments of their songs there was an element of joy. Perhaps tonight I’ll call my dad, and play a little of the 'Icky Thump', through the phone in elegy.
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