The White Stripes @ the Greek Theater

12:52 am. I should be sleeping because I have to open the cafe in the morning at the buttcrack of dawn. But I had to put a word in about the concert I went to tonight. Pretty damn amazing. The duo of Jack and Meg White in the outside stadium of UC Berkeley's campus. Meg has this way of looking really delicate and really savage at the same time. She has a power in her drumming, and her passion is displayed in a frenzy of wailing on the drums. She has this cute position she sits in as she rocks out.

Jack runs about the stage playing several guitars, a baby grand piano, a marimba, and other instruments. He has this strut about him, and his hat amplifies his head movements in time to his furiously fast guitar riffs he flies through. Of all the types of songs from ballads, to straight up rock, to blues, and even moving towards folk, my favorite byfar was the blues. He plays them with such a stark edgy attitude, and his unique voice rings out clear. His lyricism has always captured me, but his ability to belt out the songs live with such command of tone and heartfelt dynamism makes his musicianship a completely exhilirating experience. What is even more amazing is their ability to synchronize themselves, with a mere look or slight hand suggestion, and then they are both rocking together in perfect time.

The White Stripes draws a crowd of all kinds, from hippies, to yuppies, to yuppy hippies, to punks, to rockers, to straight-edged, and even technoheads like me. Their range of sound is so varied it is hard to pinpoint a single demographic, and it is this (plus their unreal talent) that has allowed them to carry such a following. Their sound is both pure and simple, yet still has a rich and full sound. While some songs are sweet and playful, others are downright wicked. Beautiful music, pulling together ever element you need from a band.

Bad news on the way home though... first of all we got lost. I hate Berkeley for its one-way streets and hard to read signs. When we finally made it on the freeway, my friend Kyle turns to me and says, "I'm getting pulled over."

He was going 85 in a 65 mph zone. Luckily the cop had met his quota for tickets and let us go. Whew.

Overall a good night though!