Even before he formed Third Man Records, Jack White had perfected the art of the guerilla record drop – he once hid a bunch of seven inches inside re-upholstered sofas. But he’ll have to go some way to top the release strategy for his surprise sixth album – his first new music since 2022’s Fear Of The Dawn and Entering Heaven Alive. An anonymous white label, No Name was given away free with any purchase at White’s Third Man stores on Friday while a very limited number of copies were also sent to customers at random in the mail. Its mysterious grooves contained 14 tracks of raw, fresh, fierce garage blues – seven on each side. There were no official song titles, no hint at the artist – but there was no doubt that this was the work of Jack White himself.
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Although the opening song, a menacing “Killing Floor” style blues, includes the tongue-in-cheek line that “nothing is this world is free”, customers who got a copy of No Name were encouraged by Third Man to “rip it” and the album is now freely available on You Tube. Any thoughts that this might be a gimmick are dispelled before the end of the first side, with the psych rattle of “Side One, Track Six”. By the time you reach the majestic “Side Two, Track Five”, with cool Hammond and an amazing R&B Graham Bond Organisation groove, it’s clear that this is one of the best albums of the year.
No Name has some of White’s most memorable riffs since Blunderbuss and is his most red-blooded rock record since Elephant. White has released great solo records since then and his live shows are a blast, but he’s never sounded quite as unshackled and delirious as he does here, pounding out the sort of wild garage blues that made his name. “I’m on a mission baby,” he roars on “Side Two, Track Six” – and suddenly it’s 2001 all over again.
As well as referencing his beloved number seven on the brilliant “Side One, Track Five”, a song that manages to combine spoken word, Sabbath, Hendrix and Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, White has rifled through the White Stripes equipment warehouse. Here are some of the greatest guitar sounds heard on any record in 2024, from the new wave solo of “Side One, Track Two”, the frantic Cream-style riffs of “Side One, Track Four” and the distorted slide guitar of “Side Two, Track Two”.
Several tracks have a hard rock feel. “Side Two, Track One”, which starts like Dr Feelgood before building into a speaker-thrashing AC/DC-inspired crescendo, or the Miller’s Crossing-referencing “Side One, Track Seven”. Led Zeppelin are a major reference point, but always filtered through a punk-garage lens. The closing number, “Side Two, Track Seven”, sees White and his band (perhaps Dominic Davis on bass and Daru Jones on drums?) explore “Kashmir”-style Zep territory, while dogs howl and bark, enjoying the show. Like all great artists, White has a fear of repetition, but looking back doesn’t have to mean regression. On No Name, he’s done something special on his own terms, delighted and surprised his audience, and provided one of the great rock moments of the year.