A White Stripes album is always an event, either you like them or not, there's no one in music biz like Jack & Meg White, especially if you had/have the chance to see their amazing live shows, two small people making big rock music.
"Icky Thump" at first is a strange record (as much as "Get Behind Me Satan" first time around) but slowly you'll get sucked into it like you did with every album they previously released; good news is that this is so full of incredible guitars solos that you'll go back to play that old "air-guitar" in front of the mirror like you used to do back when you were a teenager, the only disappointment is "St. Andrew", a messy noise with Meg bizarrely talking for (thank God!) less than two minutes.
The other two songs that go off the Stripes canons are the remake of the 1950's Corky Robbins' "Conquest", a mexican influenced melody with Jack singing against a powerful trumpet played by Regulo Aldama -it's an awkward listen at first but it turns into a lot of fun after a few plays - "Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn" is a celtic bagpipes scored simple tune that goes by quietly leaving you puzzled as well as amazed to constantly witness Jack White's insanity/genius.
As usual, Led Zeppelin are the heart and soul of the Stripes, and they burst into majesty in the classic "Bone Broke", "Little Cream Soda" and the Jack & Meg duet "Rag & Bone".
Another White Stripes album and another summer upon us, life feels so much better...
7,5/10
