Icky Thump
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CRITIC REVIEWS
100
Despite all the distortion and teeth-shivering riffs, Icky Thump rivals White Blood Cells in accessibility.
91
If nothing else, this record is fun.
10y
90
It’s eccentric, it’s exhilarating, it is, in parts, absolutely insane. Yet it’s never less than absolutely compelling, which is what makes The White Stripes one of the greatest bands of modern times.
12y
90
In short, with just one listen of any of the tracks on ‘Icky Thump’, you’ll be under the impression you’ve heard them a million times before.
90
The title’s Northern, the songs are Scottish, the cover’s Cockney… the result is incredible.
10y
90
Jack and Meg circle back to riveting classic rock and carny-bark.
84
Confused? You probably will be. Thrilled? You definitely will be. Jack ’n’ Meg just wouldn’t have it any other way.
80
Icky Thump positively swarms out of the speakers.
80
Heavy riffage! Mariachi blues! Meg and Jack are back.
80
After the straightforward radio-rock trappings of the Raconteurs, the back-to-basics Icky Thump packs an unexpected freshness, resulting in the best White Stripes album in years.
12y
80
Six albums in and they're still refusing to make rock by numbers.
80
With its fuller sound and relaxed flights of fancy, Icky Thump is a mature, but far from stodgy, album -- and, as is usually the case, it's just great fun to hear the band play.
12y
80
The new album manages to hone the at-points-aimless progressive aspirations of Get Behind Me Satan into sharp, clear-cut musical growth
12y
80
If you’re fond of the curious, Icky Thump is the choice White Stripes album.
12y
72
The White Stripes, at the same moment they claim to have finally overcome your entanglements, have provided you the ammunition of a hit-or-miss album.
70
There is enough vitality in both composition and instrumentality to suggest that continued praise is warranted for this decade-long duo.
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4mo
70
It almost entirely ignores what it is that gives the duo its claim as perhaps the greatest rock act of its generation.
70
Like his sometime heroes Led Zeppelin, Jack White builds monuments. They’re suitable for awestruck visits. But they’re no place to settle down.
70
A successful return to the band's roots after the self-indulgent Get Behind Me Satan. Just don't mention Jack's Scottish heritage.
10y
70
This is by far The White Stripes’ most peculiar record.
12y
50
Icky Thump is an anti-climatic, vaguely appealing record that unfortunately feels like a retreat from the ballsy piano-based pop eccentricity of Get Behind Me Satan. And that's a shame because going back to basics - at least in this case - feels like surrender.
10y
40
Most of Icky Thump’s songs sound half-assed, with keyboard parts thrown in ad hoc, but at least they had the good sense to trim the piano bar balladry.
Meg, look at this place this place is like a mansion look at all this stuff look I see something over there woooooooooahhhhh
This is the final release from The White Stripes and I’m glad they went out on a good note. Get Behind Me Satan was slow and boring, and this picks It back up a little bit. They stick with catchy riffs and melodies while also bringing in some different elements. The best example of this is Conquest, which was a really weird song when I first heard it years ago but ... read more
The final project from the White Stripes is a mostly satisfying conclusion to their career. Working to build on strengths and rectify past failures, the music presented on the project is some of their best yet. While perhaps not exceeding what was put out on Elephant, the band still brings some solid hooks, dependable drum work from Meg, and Jack’s ear catching vocals. A nice note to go out on, and a band I won’t soon forget.
Highlights:
Icky Thump
You Don’t Know What Love Is ... read more
What a great way to end off the Stripes' discography! "Icky Thump" is their most diverse album yet featuring some of Jack White's best songwriting, performances and, of course, riffs yet! Not every idea works, but it's still a solid closer overall.
Fav Tracks: Icky Thump, You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told), Effect and Cause, A Martyr for My Love for You, Rag and Bone, Conquest, Little Cream Soda, 300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues
Least Fav Track: Prickly ... read more
Icky Thump is just confusing. The production on this album is what really weakens this album by miles. It sounds very from the ground but almost bitcrushed? It gives me similair vibes to some of the tracks on Four by Bloc Party and it only works on Little Cream Soda which is a more noise oriented track. This is the weakest one for me however.
This is the culmination of Jack White’s songwriting for the White Stripes.
I love De Stijl & all their albums (GBMS is the weakest by far), but this one is above all the others. I suspect the cause of their lower score on AOTY is two-fold:
-hipsters were angry that the WS were now as mainstream as Pearl Jam
&
-critics sick of the White Stripes fever that had been rampant the previous years (you couldn’t go a day without Seven Nation Army popping up on the radio - or even ... read more
Contributions By
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Track List
| 1 | Icky Thump 4:14 | 96 |
| 2 | You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told) 3:54 | 90 |
| 3 | 300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues 5:28 | 84 |
| 4 | Conquest 2:48 | 89 |
| 5 | Bone Broke 3:14 | 84 |
| 6 | Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn 3:05 | 78 |
| 7 | St. Andrew (This Battle Is In the Air) 1:49 | 69 |
| 8 | Little Cream Soda 3:45 | 90 |
| 9 | Rag and Bone 3:48 | 84 |
| 10 | I'm Slowly Turning Into You 4:34 | 84 |
| 11 | A Martyr for My Love for You 4:19 | 83 |
| 12 | Catch Hell Blues 4:18 | 83 |
| 13 | Effect and Cause 3:00 | 81 |
Total Length: 48 minutes
Year End Lists
| #2 | / | Q Magazine |
| #4 | / | Paste |
| #6 | / | Consequence of Sound |
| #7 | / | MOJO |
| #10 | / | musicOMH |
| #10 | / | SPIN |
| #15 | / | NME |
| #16 | / | A.V. Club |
| #17 | / | Rolling Stone |
| #26 | / | Gigwise |
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Comments (4)
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3mo
It's crazy how well they were able to come back from the steaming pile of mooseshit that gbms was
