The Dead Weather:Horehound

The Dead Weather: Horehound

2009

Third Man/Warner Bros.

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing: 1. 60 Feet Tall  2. Hang You from the Heavens  3. Cut Like a Buffalo  4. So Far from Your Weapon  5. Treat Me Like Your Mother  6. Rocking Horse  7. New Pony  8. Bone House  9. 3 Birds  10. No Hassle Night  11. Will There Be Enough Water?



Hey! It's a supergroup record! I like supergroups...Here's my dream supergroup...

 Jim Gillette from Nitro on vocals...

 Guy Mann-Dude on guitars...

 Wolfgang Van Halen on bass...

The Ent from Slipknot on drums...

 Zamfir on lead Panflute...

Douglas Bishop on rhythm Panflute...

Ludwig Van Beethoven on lead keyboards...

 Figrin D'an II on lead kloo...

The Wizard from Sorcery on lead spells...

"You know what country has the best supergroups?" 

 "Heaven. Think about it, man...You got Janis and  Hendrix and Morrison all up there...I have a scientific theory that all the clouds up there are really just dope smoke, and they're just having a big jam session up there all the time...Jerry Garcia is up there playing "Dark Star" for all eternity..."

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Alright, I should probably get to the point someday, so we can all get home in time for dinner... The Dead Weather is a band comprised of blues-rock guitarist Jack White from the White Stripes (whom I enjoy very much) who takes on the drum role in this particular project, Alison Mosshart from the Kills (whom I think I've heard in passing...I think they were also one of those early 2000's two-people "the" bands)  on vocals,  Dean Fertita from the Queens of the Stone Age (whom I don't really care much for)  and Jack Lawrence from The Greenhornes, The Raconteurs (also with Jack) and City and Colour (which are all bands I like alright...).  

What does it sound like?

 It sounds like a pitch black swamp that eats people. More damp, dark and heavy than the White Stripes ever were...Alison and Jack trade lead vocals throughout the album, and they sound pretty much like different shades of the same person (Alison being the cooler and more evil half)... The whole album shares this really cohesive mood despite the variety within the sound, for example "Treat Me Like Your Mother" is uptempo and "rocks" more than the most of the album, while on the opposite end of the spectrum "So Far from Your Weapon" is slower and  more brooding...Regardless, the two songs seemingly run together on the first listen or two due to the overarching feel of the record (Even the 80's Dylan cover ("New Pony") blends right in)...

There are a few stand-outs though...The sheer strangeness of "Cut Like a Buffalo" jumped right out at me, reminiscent of  a rusty, malevolent reverb spring come to life...And "Hang You From the Heavens" absolutely towers, with the band sounding particularly monstrous...Come to think of it, this is more distinct than you'd expect from a "super-group" project...I just can't think of anything else to really compare it to, musically...Not even the band-member's other bands, which you could still kind of do with the Raconteurs...Again, all I can picture is the Swamp Thing jamming with Led Zeppelin in a flooded basement...

The band released another album after this one in 2009, called "Sea of Cowards," but I never got around to picking it up...'



To be honest, I don't really spin "Horehound" that much, since I have to be in a pretty specific mood to hear it...But on the particularly humid summer night where evil thoughts cloud your mind, I can't think of a better soundtrack...

 But unfortunately,  I live in the relentless, dry blast of sunny Tempe, Arizona...Not much humidity here, so I turn to this for dark escapism...Still, a little bit of this goes a long way...

Here's "New Pony" by the Dead Weather...Enjoy...