In the moment with Jack White at Stage AE
PITTSBURGH -- Concertgoers are so busy trying to photographically capture the moment that they end up missing out on the moment they're trying to capture.
Or so says Jack White, who prior to taking the stage Sunday at his sold-out Pittsburgh show asked a member of his musical entourage to deliver to fans a message: Give your cellphone camera the night off, and let your eyes absorb the action of an 100 percent live concert.
Surprisingly, most Stage AE spectators heeded that wisdom, keeping their phones down and living in the raw, exhilarating, and at times trippy moments afforded by one of rock's most acclaimed and vital artists.
Once the stage curtain peeled back, White immediately grabbed the audience's attention, squeezing out the spiky, noisy notes to "Fell in Love With a Girl," his 2001 breakthrough single with the White Stripes.
White lurched and hurled himself around the center part of the stage, slashing and grinding his guitar as his dark hair flopped in his eyes. He was lost in his own moments of musical bliss, as his garage-rock onslaught continued onward through thrilling workouts like the instrumental "High Ball Stepper" from his new solo album, and the frenetic "Hotel Yorba," also from 2001.
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Another new song, "Temporary Ground," presented a nice change of pace, with its country-folk feel boosted by vocal harmonies and violin swipes from bandmate Lillie Mae Risch. White played organ on back-to-back songs, mustering up a spaciness befitting the electric blue lighting that bathed the stage all night.
The lighting was dark and shadowy enough to have prevented good smartphone photos anyway, and with the pre-show announcement advising fans they could download free pictures snapped throughout the night by White's on-stage photographer, the crowd settled in and grooved along to a set that re-intensified with another ragged, jagged White Stripes oldie, "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground".
Pedal steel player Fats Kaplin, who rocked as much as twanged, added cool textures, as White performed "Top Yourself" from his days with the Racounteurs. Then the curtain closed, leading to what was either a short second set, or a long encore (five songs).
With no desire to dampen the intensity, White kept his stage banter brief. He said he and some bandmates were amused to have learned that Pittsburgh is the pirogi capital of the world. And while some people might have recommended he save energy for his Monday tour stop in his native Detroit, White insisted he was giving Pittsburgh everything he had, especially since he hadn't played here since 2007.
He seemed sincere, as his five-song finale was pure explosiveness, including the White Stripes' bluesy-rocker "Ball and Biscuit" and "Sixteen Saltines" from his 2012 solo album.
The show wrapped up just as a cloudburst and lightning blasts had begun. All that was missing was "Seven Nation Army," though fans exiting the premises did their best to fill that void, loudly humming the beat to White's sports stadium anthem.
White hand-picked his opening act, 20s-ish New Orleans singer-guitarist Benjamin Booker, who held the crowd's attention, too, as they tried to figure out what he was all about. He was mostly a blues-rocker, with a few of his solos climaxing enticingly in squelchy feedback. Though his final selection was more country-folk, with fiddle and mandolin. His opening words to the crowd were refreshing: "Nice to meet you."
