Review Summary: What you know about havin' a baby? You're crazy!
Jack White has an impressive resume of music to lay claim to. To even begin to summarize it would be an exercise in futility. However, one of the more intriguing side projects he’s partaken in has always been The Dead Weather. Their blend of heavier, grungier blues rock was tailored well to those who enjoyed the edgier side of Jack White’s work, satisfying those looking for a little more balls to their rock. Where most “supergroups” fall short of expectations from insurmountable hype, The Dead Weather rose above because they carved their own niche within the blues rock genre and strived not to recreate someone else’s great work, but to merge it all together into something unique that they could call their own. It could largely be a result of how they craft their music, choosing to write and record at the same time, letting everything come together naturally. After releasing an impressive amount of music (two albums over the course of two years), they smartly chose to take a break and now five years later we have yet another solid addition to their discography.
Dodge & Burn plays out like most Dead Weather albums, it contains its fair share of aggressive driving riffs thanks to the business-like consistency of Mr. White (see the catchy two singles “I Feel Love” and “Buzzkill(er)”). Alison Mosshart’s presence is just as crucial as prior releases, her menacing and maniacal voice weaving in and out of the music; sometimes deceitfully subtle, sometimes blisteringly piercing and sassy. Cuts like “Let Me Through” and “Open Up” offer up some of her wildest performances to date.
But doesn’t Jack sing too?
Glad you asked. While the first three tracks on the album are the band’s way of re-connecting with their fanbase, it’s tracks like “Three Dollar Hat” where the band experiment a bit. It’s on this song that Jack White appears on vocals for the first time, and it’s an absolute gem. He spends the first minute of the song hysterically singing over an eerie and glitchy beat about a man named Jackie Lee who seeks revenge after his hat his stolen. While startling and bizarre at first, it becomes an album highlight and a sign that the band are still branching out, refusing to get comfortable and it pays off here big time. The memorable moments from this band have typically been when both Jack and Alison share vocal duties and “Rough Detective” is another instant classic where both fire on all cylinders. They almost make the verses more entertaining than the actual choruses sometimes, the way they play off each other, capping the song off with a ridiculously entertaining bridge section. Anytime both are singing on this album, the listener can’t help but be drawn in.
If there’s one thing that really keeps the album from reaching colossal heights, it’s that the band really can’t keep it going down the final stretch. After the brooding "Be Still", the final four songs either come off as filler or are poorly executed. “Cop and Go” is a neat concept at heart, but Mosshart comes off as trying too hard, with flimsy lyrics like the incessant repetition of “you cop like a cop and go” that sound more annoying than impactful. While obviously another experimental track, closer “Impossible Winner” also joins the rest of Dead Weather closers as yet another negligible ending to an album, something the band has struggled with on every release. But despite this,
Dodge & Burn is certainly worth the five year wait and should reignite everything you loved about the band. While Jack's solo work has tended to lean more towards the softer side these days, with an ever-increasing involvement of country in his sound (bleh....), it’s nice to see that The Dead Weather can still deliver a nice slap to the face to wake us all up after a long hibernation, just as energetic as ever.
