Skip to content
Premieres

White Stripes’ Rock’n’Roll ‘Conquest’

With all the red, white, and black colored garb, the White Stripes‘venture into the bull-fighting ring appeared imminent. And with thebrand new music video for “Conquest,” the Detroit-bred duo’s latestsingle — set to arrive with three fresh B-sides and contributions from Beck — from new LP Icky Thump, Jack and Meg Whitefulfill their fashion wet dreams, donning traditional Spanish pants,jackets, and naturally, characteristic black hats opposite a hornedopponent. Jack, entering the crowded arena on horseback as the tune’ssouth-of-the-border brass introduction blares, soon dismounts andprepares to duel the beast. Meg, standing idly and indifferent nearby(possibly due to her acute anxiety…of bulls…?) observes as Jack executes his calculated, fancy moves,taming the bull and winning over the swashbuckling crowd. But, as thelyrics warn, the “rolls were reversed,” and soon the “hunter became theprey.”

As you can probably guess, the raging bull then turnson Mr. White when his killer conviction falters. The rocker is tossedacross the ring, and pulverized in the dirt and manure as fans’ disgusttakes a turn for the worse. Sure, the aesthetic simply remedies thetune’s narration, and Jack looks the matador part in every detail, butthat’s the problem; the storyline is too convenient, even if Jackprepped with bullfighting lessons for effect.

On the Web:
The White Stripes at MySpace
whitestripes.com

Talk: Jack White: talented bullfighter or poser?