Under Great White Northern Lights (Limited Edition Box Set) Review

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(More customer reviews)Approximately 59 minutes in length. The sound is very good,especially for a live recording. All the tracks are from a 2007 tour of Canada. The booklet has several atmospheric b&w and color photos of the band,audience,and related subjects. There's a DVD that's also for sale of this event,sold separately.
For fans of THE WHITE STRIPES,especially the intensity of the first few albums,this will be of great interest. This is the band,stripped bare to it's core elements of Jack and Meg,doing what they do best-Meg pounding out a primal,visceral beat,along with Jack's in-you-face distorted acoustic and electric guitar (along with keyboards and other instruments in places) in all it's glory. His vocals are a throwback to the group's formative years-very intense and immediate. The intensity of the live tracks on the earlier released "Walking With A Ghost",are only a hint of this set's power.
As an example,the first two tracks set the stage (no pun intended),and are pure WHITE STRIPES-these two tracks grab hold of you and don't let go,and are a glimpse of whats in store. Track three has Jack playing acoustic,but playing for all it's worth,with some great vocals. Then it's back to the fired-up sound they are known for. The tracks vary from there,from his trademark distorted electric guitar,to his intense acoustic sound,which help with the pacing,and add interest This concert series was an attempt to get back to what they originally became known for. Most (if not all) the venues were small,out of the way stops,and often times the group was unknown to the residents. This fact pushed the band to focus on what they do best,no frills-straight-ahead-rock. Tracks range from all through the band's albums,and all are given a no holds barred treatment.
From "Blue Orchid",to "Jolene",to "Seven Nation Army",through"Icky Thump",to other familiar (and not so familiar) tracks,this is a good example of THE WHITE STRIPES in all their glory-out to prove to an audience,that's not familiar with them,just what they're famous for doing in a live setting. The power that's only hinted at on several of these studio tracks,is unleashed in a loud,in-your-face-assault. At times,the sound,the excitement,is so immediate,that you feel you can reach out and almost touch it-such is the intensity of these performances. The only thing I don't like is the audience "participation"-there's to much of it,and intrudes on the performances. This is one of those albums that has to be played loud in order to get the full effect of what this two-person band is capable of. And with two musicians,who know how to play their instruments to maximum effect,and who want to prove themselves (again) for listeners-this is the real-deal. Be prepared to be knocked back by their intensity,as they take each tune and make it their own (again),and re-define not only their own songs,but rock music itself. This is honest music-the likes of which we don't get to experience to much today.

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Limited Edition Box set contains:Overbox - Sturdy box wrapped in black with red lining and adorned with UGWNL penguin emblem. Double LP in Gatefold Jacket - Pressed on 180 gram vinyl, contains 16 live songs from various shows in Canada during the tour, as well as artwork unique to the box and an exclusive 6 panel insert. Hardcover Photography Book - 208 page hardcover book containing photographs shot by Autumn de Wilde on the Canadian tour.CD/DVD Slipcase, Folder & Booklet - 7 inch, 3 panel disc folder and 24 page bound book housed in a sturdy black slipcase. Under Great White Northern Lights DVD- 92 minute documentary directed by Emmett Malloy containing footage from the Canadian tour. Under Nova Scotian Lights DVD - 135 minute 10th anniversary show in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia directed by Emmett Malloy. Under Great White Northern Lights CD- First ever White Stripes live album available containing 16 live songs from various shows from the Canadian tour in 2007. 7 inch Colored Vinyl Single - Region specific art.Side A - Icky Thump (Live)Side B - The Wheels On The Bus (Live)Silkscreened Print- 1 of 6 silk screened designs by Rob Jones based on a photograph by Autumn de Wilde.

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The White Stripes: Under Great White Northern Lights (2010) Review

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(More customer reviews)This video is an adventure. It's the second White Stripes live DVD, following the concert-only Under Blackpool Lights. This DVD, however, is more of a documentary with live shows thrown in, rather than a concert DVD.
For those unfamiliar with the Stripes, they are a Detroit-based duo of Jack and Meg White (whom Jack presents as brother/sister though they were actually married AND divorced before their second album was released). Jack loves novelties and is obsessed with the number 3, and the band's motif of red, white, and black. If you are a fan of most types of rock, you will love them (or at least some of their assorted songs, there's at least one for everyone). I watched this with my parents (my mom loves Elvis and my dad is a Zeppelin fan), and immediately afterward they wanted me to add the White Stripes to their computers/iPods.
The movie follows the band as they tour each Canadian province and play shows, not only in concert halls, but in parks, on boats, on buses, in schools, and with native Canadians. It gives you a look into the day-to-day of Jack and Meg, and what their ambitions for the band and themselves are as far as the tour goes; Jack also gives great insight into what direction he follows and what creative process he uses for the band. Meg even talks, and they talk about why she never talks, to some laughs for those of us who know Meg as a shy, rarely-interviewed introvert. Interspersed as well are the novelty concerts that are paired with each major show, which show really not the novelty of each show but of Jack and Meg themselves, two oddballs with an idea that a band can be creative within the confines of an idea and a motif, and to explore this motif to its limit.
Now, on to the concerts themselves: blown away. Jack's live shows are heartfelt performances, and he plays to each different audience as if it were a group of his closest friends, knowing exactly what songs to play, including the fa- favorite B-Side cover version of Dolly Parton's "Jolene," which always seems so passionate (even though it's told from the point of view of a woman). Each song is a concert-ready version of its album counterpart, generally not played the same way ("Fell In Love With A Girl" uses chords strummed individually with little distortion, as opposed to the ever-popular studio version), and you can see that they work to make each show special. They play without a set list, and so it's more of a jam session of your favorite White Stripes songs. When Jack plays the B-Side Black Jack Davey in a park with Meg on the tambourine, giving very little or no notice that they were playing there, it conjures images of Bob Dylan and Joan Baez. It's those small town where maybe they've never even heard anything the Stripes have done, only in name do they know them, maybe a rumor of their tour of Canada, but you can tell the people know something special is happening, and in each town a crowd gathers that is very substantial for how small the town itself is.
By the end of the tour, you can see why they canceled their U.S. tour: they seem very weary and stressed out. And when the video ends with Meg crying as Jack plays piano and sings "White Moon", you can tell they've been stretched thin, but it seems like they loved the journey, and you will, too.

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92 minute documentary film containing footage from the 2007 Canadian tour shot and directed by Emmett Malloy.In the summer of 2007, shortly after the release of their 6th album 'Icky Thump', The White Stripes headed north of their hometown of Detroit to embark on an ambitious journey across Canada. The plan was to play a show in every province and territory in Canada, from B.C. to Newfoundland to Nunavut. 'Having never done a tour of Canada, Meg and I thought it was high time to go whole hog... from the ocean to the permafrost' says Jack White. 'We wanted to play out of the way towns that don't usually get shows... the shows are better, it's better for the people, it's a better experience, it's way more unique, something interesting is going to happen... hopefully.'White called upon filmmaker Emmett Malloy to come and document this trek for the band. Malloy had directed videos forthe band in the past, and seemed eager to hit the road with them. Equipped with a couple of 16mm cameras, and a few other documenting devices, the band and crew all headed north. The end result was 'Under Great White Northern Lights'. 'Under Great White Northern Lights' is a visual and emotional feature length film documenting The White Stripes making their way through Canada and culminating with their 10th anniversary show in Nova Scotia. The film documents the band playing shows all over Canada; from local bowling alleys, to city buses, and onward to the legendary Savoy Theater for the10th Anniversary show. A show that turned out to be the longest show the band had ever done on stage together.The film captures intimate moments of Jack and Meg both on and off stage as they travel through some of the mostremote parts of the northern Yukon Territory. Along the way, they have some nice casual conversations about their ten years together, fire cannons, play some of their biggest songs together on stage, and even play a 'one note show.' The cameras were there to capture every waking moment.What 'Northern Lights' does best, is document one of the biggest bands in the world, playing to local crowds in small towns. Some of these towns were so small that many of the locals had no idea who The White Stripes were - they just knew something big was going on in their town. This forced a band that had been together for a decade to go back to a place reminiscent of the first shows they ever played together. For the first time in a long time, no one knew who they were and they had to make a first impression with their music. The live footage captured in this film shows that Jack and Meg were clearly ready for this.Beyond the live footage, some of the films most memorable moments happen off-stage - offering an insightful look into the very private and complex world that is The White Stripes. It was shortly after this tour that The White Stripes canceledtheir fall tour of the United States - making the ten year anniversary a truly pivotal milestone for this legendary band.Blu-Ray track-listing:1. Let's Shake Hands2. Black Jack Davey3. Black Math4. Little Ghost5. Blue Orchid6. The Union Forever7. Icky Thump [Version from Film]8. Apple Blossom9. Wheels On The Bus10. We Are Going To Be Friends11. Let's Build A Home12. Catfish Blues13. Hello Operator14. Screwdriver15. Cold Cold Night16. Slowly Turning Into You17. Lord Send Me An Angel18. Jolene19. I Want To Be The Boy To Warm Your Mother's Heart20. Catch Hell Blues21. I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself22. Death Letter23. Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn24. Fell In Love With A Girl25. When I Hear My Name26. Wasting My Time27. My Doorbell28. Seven Nation Army29. White Moon

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