Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007...2:27 pm
modern zeppelin
I love good music. So much that I am becoming a music snob if you will. All types of music, different genre’s, styles and decades for sure. My all time favorite band bar none is Led Zeppelin. I will argue all day long that they are the best rock and roll band ever….no questions asked. However, I know people will debate that till the cows come home….and this post is NOT about that. Especially you Beatles fans….
Anyway, my brother Todd and I have been talking a lot about music this past month. Todd is a VERY talented guy, and great musician. So talented that I can say he got all the brains and I got stuck with just the good looks. 
Anyway…we have been talking A LOT about The White Stripes. I love The White Stripes and have been following them for a long time….
So, the other day I dropped a bomb on Todd and said, “In my opinion, The White Stripes are a modern Led Zeppelin.” Well, the musician in my brother freaked out. Totally called me out, and laughed at my statement. I am just the little brother you know…. But, just a few days later I got an email from Todd, and here are some highlights:
I’m just amazed how fluid, complex, yet simplistic the song compositions are; at least until you get to Get Behind Me Satan, and things take a complex, multi-dimision turn.
Man, I love this band. I understand your Led Zeppllin comparison and I’m close to saying the White Stripe are a modern version of that band…..insert Eat Crow here……
Jack White is an amazingly talented songwriter and composer.
That little brother pride pops up and says….see, I told you so!
Anyway, The White Stripes totally rock! If you are an old school Leppelin fan like myself pick up a few of there albums and give them a spin, you won’t be disappointed!
Snobby music guy out!
I lead the digerati team at
9 Comments
July 3rd, 2007 at 2:43 pm
I gotta check those guys out, I’ve heard some other great things about them other places as well. I just downloaded the Mute Math album off of iTunes. I thought that their Typical video was really cool, of course, but I hadn’t realized how good these guys were until just now. They really remind me of some earlier Police/Peter Gabriel stuff.
But yeah, at 40, it’s getting harder and harder to impress me every year. These guys have done it, though.
July 3rd, 2007 at 2:47 pm
Bro,
Good job on calling me out from calling you out!
For the record, here is the entire email I composed to you while on a plane from Chicago to Dallas late last night:
“I’ve downloaded every album they have out and have been listening exclusively for a number of days while traveling.
I have to admit this band has catapulted into one of my favorite bands extremely fast. I’m listening to their music with an appetite like I did when I found out about Dream Theater.
I’m just amazed how fluid, complex, yet simplistic the song compositions are; at least until you get to Get Behind Me Satan, and things take a complex, multi-dimision turn.
Man, I love this band. I understand your Led Zeppellin comparison and I’m close to saying the White Stripe are a modern version of that band…..insert Eat Crow here……
Jack White is an amazingly talented songwriter and composer.
He should write a concept album aka Dream Theater’s Scenes From a Memory, or Queensryche’s Operation Mind Crime or Pink Floyd’s The Wall.
Dang…can you tell I’m really blown away? I’ve got to see this band live.”
For the record, I never saw this as a Big Bro, Little Bro thing, I just didn’t understand the depth of this band and the talent and depth that truly is behind the simplistic “front” that radio plays. I also freaked out because I thought you originally said that they were THE Modern Led Zeppellin, vs. that they were A Modern Led Zeppellin (it made a difference to me when we had the IM war!).
I’m glad we had that discussion because this band is amazing. Let’s go see them live soon.
For the record, but is this what people talked about when they first discovered or listened to Zep or Hendrix or songwriters like Dylan?
Crow eating Big Bro,
Todd
July 3rd, 2007 at 5:50 pm
My all-time favorite rock band is Josie and the Pussycats followed closely by Pink Slip (Freaky Friday) and the Wonders (That Thing You Do).
July 3rd, 2007 at 8:03 pm
It’s funny that you compared The White Stripes to Zeppelin because I said the very same thing the other day. This album is the first I’ve heard and I’m a fan already. Oh and by the way Zepplin is the best band of all time!
July 3rd, 2007 at 8:35 pm
There is no band better than The White Stripes! Except maybe two.
July 3rd, 2007 at 9:32 pm
ok ok ok…
I LOVE the White Stripes. But I’m feeling a little bit of a stretch on the Zep comparison. I mean YES Jack White is phenomenal. An amazing songwriter, a master of the understated riff. Jack and Meg together create a perfectly balanced rock duo…
BUT
To me the reason Zep is in the top bands of all time is their ability to take you to another place through their music. I mean to me the White Stripes create great songs, Zep created a great experience. You can turn on Babe I’m Gonna Leave You, Tangerine, Achilles Last Stand, What Is and What Should Never Be… I mean I know what these songs FEEL like, compared to what the White Stripes SOUND like…
but you can discount all this if you want because I believe Pink Floyd is the greatest band of all time…
(followed by Zep…)
July 3rd, 2007 at 10:57 pm
Interesting mix Tom.
Wade…you Rock bro!
Ashley…great to hear from you bro. Love LastFM.
Nick, lets not over think this bro. I think you are in the camp that Todd was in when I dropped the bomb on him. Focus on the work “A” Modern version, not “The” Modern version. I agree, Zep freakin rocks, and there is some distance or a gap between Zep and TWS…but IMHO the are “a” modern version.
But Dude, you totally lost me with the Floyd pick. Wow, we have to talk about that. #1…..wow, I just can not get my head around that!
July 4th, 2007 at 11:39 am
Terry I appreciate you helping take my musical interests from the ’70s into 07. Zeppelin did take people to another place but they were usually aided and abbeded by some other artificial means. Led Zeppelin is good to have in until you can find your Springsteen albums.
July 6th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
It’s really hard to break it down into an “all-time” category because each period is so different. So … so I’ll just lump my top 3 in no particular order.
(Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Eagles)
And it’s always been hard for me to consider The Beatles as “rock”… but they’re great nonetheless, just not in my top 3.
I am going to have to go with Nick on this one though, if I were stuck on an island and could only choose one artist/band’s collection, it would probably be PF’s over LZ’s, but it’d be close.
J
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