The White Stripes: Under The Blackpool Lights Review

Jack and Meg White’s determinedly enigmatic demeanour aside, they undoubtedly cut an impressive swathe through identikit bubblegum pop with their rambunctious, back-to-basics, bass-free rock. Granted a brief theatrical showcase before release on DVD, Dick Carruthers’ concert film captures the duo at Blackpool’s Empress Ballroom in January this year, whipping through 26 songs drawn from their four albums in a scant 77 minutes, while serving up a strangely great cover of Dolly Parton’s Jolene. Stripped of the suffocating hype and purely focused on the music, the pair become an altogether more enjoyable proposition for the wary, while fans will obviously lap this up. As a concert film, it’s nothing special, with Carruthers plying a deliberately shaky, amateur-like shooting style on grainy video, which, of course, probably makes it all exceedingly hip.