Pitchfork

[Posted Friday, October 31st, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Cory D. Byrom and John L. Ferrer report:
Your little brother's favorite band, The White Stripes, will drop a new single on November 17th, featuring one of the stand-out tracks from Elephant, "The Hardest Button to Button." Out on XL Recordings in the UK, the disc will also feature a previously unreleased live cover of Detroit blues-stompers Soledad Brothers' "St. Ides of March."

The CD version of the single will sweeten the deal in the form of a nice video bonus. The video for "The Hardest Button to Button," directed by Michel Gondry, features our heroes Meg and Jack performing in various locations around New York, surrounded by an animated legion of guitar amps and drum kits. It sounds rocking enough, but don't take my word for it. Jack White claims it's "the greatest video we've ever made." Tracklist:

01 The Hardest Button to Button
02 St. Ides of March
03 The Hardest Button to Button [video]

The Stripes are in Brazil this evening headlining the Tim Festival in Rio, but should be tanned and rested up (well, rested up anyway) for their weekend appearance at the Voodoo Music Festival in New Orleans and subsequent make-up tour of the U.S.and Canada. As previously reported, the Stripes are also hooking up with the Flaming Lips for a New Years' Eve gig in Chicago at the end of the year.

The Soledad Brothers aren't the only recent recipients of Jack White's career-starting lightning. The fledgling unknowns known as Blanche were lucky enough to have their song "Who's To Say..." covered by the Stripes on their last single, "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself." Now Billboard reports that Blanche's own recording will also feature Jack White providing the licks.

Of course, "twang" is a better word than "licks" here, as Blanche's gimmick is almost sickeningly quirky, atmospheric alt-country. Lyle Lovett look-alike guitarist Dan John Miller shares vocals with Elvria-meets-Scarlett O'Hara bassist Tracee Mae Miller while friendly looking folks with names like Feeny and Patch soothingly pluck banjos, autoharps, and steel guitars. A lady named Jaybird also lightly taps the skins. The overall sound is roughly like an attraction at Disney's Adventureland, right next to Tom Sawyer's riverboat.

Looking at the band's official site, however, the collaboration isn't quite so odd. Apparently Dan John Miller and John Anthony Gillis (uh, that's Jack White) had their own little "country-garage" act called Two Star Tabernacle before there was ever a White Stripes. Fascinating.

Blanche's debut album, If You Can't Trust the Doctors..., is due next January on Cass Records. The album was produced by frequent White collaborator Brendan Benson along with ex-His Name Is Alive frontman Warn Defever and the aforementioned David Feeny, and the band promises that there will be some more Jack White appearances on the full album, because... well, because they want people to buy it!