• Jack White - vocals, guitar
• Meg White - drums

Hailing from Detroit as one of a new breed of back-to-basics rock acts, the White Stripes comprises enigmatic bass-free duo Jack White (guitar and vocals) and Meg White (drums).

The White Stripes are assumed by some to be brother and sister and by others as ex-man and wife, both theories have been denied but they still keep the press on their toes by acting elusive about their real relationship.

Jack had previously played guitar in garage rock band The Go, but in the White Stripes his musical output is influenced by blues predominately and an eclectic mix of folk, punk and broadway show tunes all wrapped up in a blanket of childlike innocence.

The duo released 1997's debut 7-inch single, "Let's Shake Hands", on the Italy Records imprint. After one further single ("Lafayette Blues") for the label, they relocated to the leading independent Sympathy For The Record Industry. They have since signed to XL Recordings for a reported £1 million.

Their most recent album, White Blood Cells, has proved the most popular with singles such as 'Fell in Love with a Girl' getting much airplay and even scooping three awards at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards. The two previous albums (The White Stripes and De Stijl) are still very much acclaimed but White Blood Cells, brought the White Stripes to the attention of pretty much everyone.

Their fourth LP, Elephant, brought them global megastardom and plaudits, not least because of the hugely popular 'Seven Nation Army' single which preceded it. They followed it up with 2005's Get Behind Me, Satan, which experimented with the group's core sound and met with generally positive reviews. A new record, Icky Thump, is due in June 2007.

Dressing in only red and white, Jack and Meg, are both striking in turn and refused a $1 million offer from The GAP to star in a special Christmas commercial. The duo claimed not wanting to be involved with anything so corporate. Then Jack went and wrote a song for a Coke ad, which admittedly might complicate things a bit.

Jack and Meg both ooze effortless cool and are highly respected within the music industry. Jack has many side projects, most notably producing the Von Bondies album and more recently filming in Romania alongside Jude Law and Nicole Kidman in romantic war/love saga, Cold Mountain.

Renowned for their electric live sets, the White Stripes were once described by Ryan Adams as 'music that makes you wanna eat crack pipes and dance with the voodoo bones of the dead'. The Stripes use no setlist when performing live and Jack claims if he doesn't feel like playing a particular song he will change halfway through to another. The duo have in the past notoriously covered such songs as Dolly Parton's 'Jolene' and Blind Willie McTell's 'Boll Weevil'.

Releases

• Conquest - single, out 31/12/2007 on XL Recordings. (post review)
• You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told) - single, out 10/09/2007 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• Icky Thump - album, out 18/06/2007 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• Icky Thump - single, out 11/06/2007 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• Coachella (DVD) - album, out 19/06/2006 on Anti. 1 review (read/post)
• My Doorbell - single, out 22/08/2005 on XL Recordings. (post review)
• The Hardest Button To Button - single, out 24/11/2003 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself - single, out 01/09/2003 on XL Recordings. (post review)
• Seven Nation Army - single, out 21/04/2003 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• Elephant - album, out 31/03/2003 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground - single, out 02/09/2002 on XL Recordings. 1 review (read/post)
• Dead Leaves and The Dirty Ground - single, out 26/08/2002 on XL Recordings. (post review)
• Fell In Love With A Girl - single, out 18/02/2002 on Sympathy For The Record Industry. 1 review (read/post)
• Hotel Yorba - single, out 12/11/2001 on Sympathy For The Record Industry. 1 review (read/post)
• White Blood Cells - album, out 09/07/2001 on Sympathy For The Record Industry. 1 review (read/post)

Past events

• Fri 02 Nov at London O2 (formerly the Millennium Dome). (post review)
• Thu 01 Nov at Nottingham Arena. (post review)
• Wed 31 Oct at Sheffield Hallam FM Arena. (post review)
• Mon 29 Oct at Cardiff International Arena. (post review)
• Sun 28 Oct at Birmingham NEC. (post review)
• Fri 26 Oct at Newcastle upon Tyne Metro Radio Arena (formerly Telewest Arena). (post review)
• Thu 25 Oct at Manchester MEN Arena. (post review)
• Wed 24 Oct at Glasgow SECC. (post review)
• O2 Wireless Festival, Fri 15 Jun at Leeds Harewood House. (post review)
• O2 Wireless Festival, Thu 14 Jun at London Hyde Park. (post review)
• Tue 12 Jun at London Royal Hospital Chelsea. 1 review (read/post)
• Tue 12 Jun at London Rivoli Ballroom. (post review)
• Wed 09 Nov at London Alexandra Palace. 1 review (read/post)
• Wed 21 Jan at London Alexandra Palace. 1 review (read/post)
• Sun 04 May at Manchester Heaton Park. 1 review (read/post)
• Fri 11 Apr at London Brixton Academy. 1 review (read/post)
• Mon 07 Apr at Wolverhampton Civic Hall. 1 review (read/post)
• Tue 20 Nov at Bristol Anson Rooms. 1 review (read/post)
• Mon 19 Nov at Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall. 1 review (read/post)

News

• 25/02/2008: Jack White helps out Bob Dylan on new album
• 06/02/2008: White Stripes in hot water: rock duo sued by DJ
• 10/12/2007: Panic in Detroit: White Stripes to quit touring?
• 28/11/2007: Autolux, Sonic Youth, Laura Marling: our first ever Sky news story!
• 27/11/2007: Watch: White Stripes new 'Conquest' video
• 14/11/2007: Beck to White: Stripes recruit for ‘Conquest’ release
• 17/09/2007: Chart round-up: Fiddy takes his ball home
• 13/09/2007: White Stripes cancel UK tour
• 03/08/2007: Hack Attack: Jack White rants about journalists
• 18/07/2007: Tight Stripes: Jack and Meg play one-second gig

Features

• 07/05/2008: The Weekly DiScussion: the greatest bands to have never played at ATP
• 24/01/2008: The Weekly DiScussion: Brits at the bookies, and our favourites
• 18/07/2007: DiS does Wireless... half the time, anyway
• 18/07/2007: Primavera Sound 2007: the DiS Review
• 06/07/2007: Raz on The Raz @ Reading
• 15/01/2002: DiS Album of the year? you must be joking! - The Best of 2001

Links

• White Stripes - fansite
• White Stripes - official site

User ratings