Jack White said that he would never start working on a solo album until ‘The White Stripes’ were to ever break up. When they did in 2011, White did just that with ‘Blunderbuss’.

The theme around the whole of ‘Blunderbuss’ is love and how it can tear you to pieces and leave you empty. It consists of 13 songs that explore this theme from different angles. Some songs that stand out to me include the gorgeous ‘Sixteen Saltines’ with it’s addictive guitar riff and clever vocals from White relating how you can be jealous of what a girl you love does when you’re not doing anything, but when you are, how you couldn’t care less.  Other songs that are highlights include ‘Love Interruption’ with the soft vocals from White and Ruby Amanfu that compliment each other in telling the story of the song which explains what love can do to a person. Lyrics like “I want love to/change my friends to enemies/change my friends to enemies/and show me how it’s all my fault” really explain this well.

The title track ‘Blunderbuss’ stands out for me because of its lovely acoustic guitar and piano playing, it’s one of the songs from the album where White’s vocals are at their best. The song talks about a dream of a woman who you love and being with her. Lyrics like “I had my dream/I held your hand/On that broad avenue/We crossed the road and never spoke/To another as we flew” show this well. “I’m Shakin'” is another of those stand out tracks with its catchy guitar riff that plays throughout with acappella from his all-female backing band which really goes well with White’s vocals. The song talks about liking a girl and feeling nervous when you are around her.

When you listen to ‘Blunderbuss’, expect to be impressed with White’s unique voice and monstrous guitar-playing. You will also be blown away with the originality of all the tracks and instrumentation and vocals that blend so well together. I had never really listened to White in his previous band ‘The White Stripes’ apart from that iconic song ‘Seven Nation Army’ so I didn’t really know what to expect from this album. When I heard the first track ‘Missing Pieces’ I could tell it was going to be something special and it turned out just to be that.

If you are after some uniqueness, then I definitely recommend Jack White’s first solo album because it is a breath of fresh air that will have you coming back for more with repeated listens like it has with me. I am going to give this album a rating of 5/5 because of the originality of each of the tracks from White and his backing band. Pick this album up today and experience something new, you won’t regret it!