The Dead Weather: Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY 8/3/10

The Dead Weather’s final stop on their summer tour was Tuesday night under threatening skies in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park.  Thankfully the rain held off, but the thunder and lightning were in full effect on the stage.  Openers Harlem from Austin, TX played a nervous opening set of their stripped down fifties style surf/garage pop.  Focusing on their newest album, Hippies, they seemed to mumble and act a bit jittery until things picked up for final few tunes. This could be traced to Curtis O’Mara coming out from behind the drums to sing and play guitar on “Friendly Ghost” and “Faces”.

After a long break that found the venue filling up, but not selling out, The Dead Weather strolled confidently onto the darkened stage in front of the all-seeing-eye backdrop.  Clad in full black they opened with the sparse blues of “60 Feet Tall” and used the beginning of their hour long set to play cuts off their first release, Horehound.  “So Far From Your Weapon” warbled while “Hang You From The Heavens” had a psychedelic twist and strut.  The awkward dark grooves and perversely funky keys of “I Cut Like A Buffalo” got the crowd shaking and throwing up their hands to the beats and fuzz drenched bass; the sound overall was loud as all hell and must have rung out halfway across the borough.

Jack White grabbed the microphone mid set to introduce the band, pump fake a Jay-Z appearance, insult some bloggy Vegans and rag on the sultry Alison Mosshart calling her “Baby Ruthless” stating she was, “White as fuck; we are talking trucker hats, smoking Parliaments with star tattoos on her wrists.” 

The newer tunes flowed towards the end with the warped keys of Dean Fertita mingling aggressively with the Detroit sludge low-end and commanding S&M vocals of Mosshart on “The Difference Between Us”, “I’m Mad” and “Die By The Drop”.  Their cover of Dylan’s “New Pony” blasted eardrums with its power as did Jack’s axe on the set closing “Will There Be Enough Water?” which saw him pull out his own cord mid solo only to plug into another amp, barely missing a beat. 

The triple encore of “Blue Blood Blues”, “I Can’t Hear You” and “Treat Me Like Your Mother” showcased the best of this band; the burned out building style funk with inventive distorted grooves, White’s immense talent on guitar/drums, and Mosshart’s front woman sexual energy.  Hopefully they will tour again soon…but maybe we could get some live Raconteurs before then Mr. White?             

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