By Max Stewart

Seeing a massive artist in a small room is an electrifying experience. Fans almost boil over in anticipation of watching a musician that has packed thousand-seater venues in the intimacy of an up-and-close environment. And when you couple that with the magnetism of a musician like Jack White, you have true concert alchemy.

Before flying out of Atlanta to Korea’s Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival, the Third Man Records founder and his band played three (always that number with Jack) sold out gigs in Georgia, including Atlanta‘s The Earl and Terminal West, and Athens‘ 40 Watt Club. The shows were sweaty and cathartic, and felt like White stepping back into his White Stripes, club-roots days. His latest strong release, No Name, made up a good chunk of the setlist on each night, but the shows also featured staples like “Little Bird”, “Ball & Biscuit”, “Icky Thump”, and “Lazaretto” for some familiarity. His band for this record includes Raconteurs drummer Patrick Keeler, bassist Dominic Davis, and keys player Bobby Emmett, who all were in lock step with White at every thrashing sonic turn.

White brings the same raw and emotive captivating spirit to a small gig that he does to an overwhelmingly-massive festival show. After the Terminal West set wrapped just after 11:00 pm (the band flew out the following morning at 5:30 am), it took a few minutes for me to come down from the elation and awe of the spectacle I just witnessed. As the crew swiftly broke down the stage, friends and I stood in amazement but all in agreement that the performance was one of our favorites of all time.

Most artists who have a #1 record on the charts and play a small gig for fans would have likely phoned it in, but not Jack. Kudos to him for keeping the rock ethos and spirit alive in 2024, and more importantly, allowing these special moments for his fans.