Album/Film Review: The White Stripes – “Under Great White Northern Lights”
Attention all bands: This is how you make a live album and tour documentary.
Under Great White Northern Lights is a documentary film and accompanying live album of the Canadian tour that the White Stripes went on in 2007 in support of their album Icky Thump. Their goal was to visit and play in “every province and territory” in Canada, and the film, directed by Emmett Malloy, follows the intrepid adventurers as they seek not only to push another pin into their map of global travel destinations, but to sincerely experience the new lands and people they were discovering.
And truly, at its heart, this film is an adventure story. Jack and Meg White were not content to simply land in every big city, play a show at the largest venue there, and then immediately jet to their next destination. Instead, they did something that quite frankly a lot more musicians should be doing these days; in every city, they played both a regular nighttime concert as well as a daytime “side show” – often small, intimate, spontaneous (fans were only given an hour’s notice in some cases) shows in unique local venues or in no venue at all (on a public bus, for instance).
The landscapes were vast and varied, from the western Yukon Territory all the way to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Despite hailing from Detroit, this Canadian outing had a real “We’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto” vibe for the band, and the album artwork furthers that idea, with Jack and Meg standing in the doorway of a house, under which you can see the witch’s feet sticking out.
The first thing that immediately jumps out at you when watching this film is how exquisite it looks. Most of the footage is shot in beautiful black and white with red making an appearance during the concert pieces. If you didn’t know the band, it would be easy to mistake this film for a classic tour doc from the seventies. The way it was shot just lends a timelessness to the proceedings – like an unearthed time capsule, except this only took place three years ago.
Some of the most endearing moments of the film are Jack and Meg’s interactions with the small-town locals. Whether it’s the mayor of a small city personally driving them to their destination and talking to them about hunting or sharing their music with elderly Inuits at a community center, these scenes add a level of humanity to the band that their self-mythologizing ways often cover up. The “side shows” are also a hoot. At one stop, they essentially recreate the plot from Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, sending out an anonymous tip over the radio that they would be playing a secret show in the park. Of course, hundreds of people show up to hear an intimate acoustic set with Meg sitting on the floor shaking away with her tambourine.
During an interview, Jack White talks about the restrictions that he’s placed on the band (color scheme, instrumentation, sound) and how they form a limiting box which is simultaneously frustrating and formative. He ascribes to the idea that infinite choices inevitably lead to paralysis and that being forcibly limited in his choices breeds creativity as it forces him to make due with what he has. To this end, he talks about how, during shows, he places his guitar picks all the way at the back of the stage rather than on his mic stand so that he has to make a concerted effort to get a new one if he drops one during the show. It seems like the “side show” concept is just furthering this idea, changing the setting and the rules so dramatically in order to remove the band from its comfort zone.
The large venue concert snippets (rarely are the entire songs allowed to play out) are usually presented right after a “side show” or local excursion, and the evident dichotomy is a major defining element of the film. The muted acoustic strumming in the park stands in stark contrast to the furious raw energy of the arena shows. The accompanying live album demonstrates the killer sound the band has in a live setting. Jack’s screeches are even more plaintive, his guitar sounds like a rusty buzzsaw (a good thing!), and there are enough rearrangements to surprise even hardcore fans.
A second dichotomy that defines the film is the relationship between Jack and Meg. Much has been said in regards to their relations (are they siblings?! are they lovers?!), but the exact definition is not important here (OK, they used to be married, now they’re divorced…apparently). It’s fascinating to see these two people who couldn’t be more different from one another going through all these experiences together. Jack’s a guitar master, a true extrovert, a leader. Meg’s drumming is simple, she’s exceedingly shy and quiet as a dormouse, and the way she longingly stares at Jack in many of the shots creates the image of a loving kid sister who always wants to tag along with her big bro. Before watching this movie, I had always cast Meg to the side, asking myself what she really added to the group. After seeing this, I have a whole new view of her. There’s a hint of something deeper there, whether it’s the way she adorably pleads, “I’m just quiet. What can I say?” or the way she hauntingly begins to cry as she sits next to Jack as he plays the piano.
For the most part, concert films these days are disappointments – just high-res shots of a band on stage edited with hyper fast cuts that give the appearance of watching a music video. There’s no passion and there’s no soul. Under Great White Northern Lights is dripping with passion and soul. It puts the band on display in settings both familiar and foreign. It humanizes the band while simultaneously adding to their mythology. You hear the music in new ways as it’s laid over magnificently gorgeous images of Jack and Meg wandering the shoreline together and otherwise simply existing in landscapes fit for a portrait. This movie and album have it all. It’s a feast for your eyes and your ears, and, like any good movie, it makes you think. If you like rock n’ roll, you must see this movie.
Rating: 
(Note: Best Buy is offering an exclusive version which comes with both the CD and DVD bundled together for one price.)
-Sam
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