Remembering The White Stripes
Jack and Meg White have gone their separate ways after 14 years together. Rock critics recall their finest moments

The White Stripes are no more. The seminal alt-rock band, formed by Jack and Meg White in 1997, has officially split up. The duo recorded six albums together, scoring hits with "Fell in Love with a Girl" and "Seven Nation Army," and their raw, stripped-down, guitar-heavy sound inspired a host of millennial bands. Here, a selection of rock critics weigh in on the duo's legacy:
They brought back the guitar: At their best, says Luke Lewis at the New Musical Express, The White Stripes "channelled the pure, feel-it-in-your-chest power of rock 'n' roll better than any band." At a time when "guitar music was in the doldrums," they made a generation of "fey indie types fall in love with proper old-fashioned hollering blues" and "memorable guitar riffs."
"The White Stripes - Why they'll be missed"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
They wedded blues, garage, and country rock: The end of The White Stripes "also brings to a close a fruitfully nostalgic and fun period of American rock," says Ian S. Port at San Francisco Weekly. The band took the "building blocks of classic rock" — blues, country, and garage — and gave them a "post-grunge era" spin. The result was a "strikingly unique apple pie" of influences and sounds.
"RIP The White Stripes, 1997-2011: An appreciation"
They never lost their underground spirit: The White Stripes "never lost that sense of being a people's band, a bedroom collector's outfit," says Marc Spitz at Vanity Fair. Even when they were selling out Madison Square Garden, "it was okay to still believe that the White Stripes were still 'our' band." Picking up the vinyl edition of Elephant, their fourth album, it was like "you could smell the must of the record shop shelf in the grooves."
"In memoriam: The White Stripes, 1997 to 2011"
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
They never sold out: At a time when "rock took itself too seriously," says Chris Coplin at Consequence of Sound, The White Stripes were defiantly theatrical. From the "secretive," totally made-up back story ("no, they aren't siblings"), to their "black, white, and red clothing," they showed that "being true to yourself is the most rock star thing you could ever do."
-
Music reviews: Bon Iver, Valerie June, and The Waterboys
Feature "Sable, Fable," "Owls, Omens, and Oracles," "Life, Death, and Dennis Hopper"
By The Week US
-
Are bonds worth investing in?
the explainer They can diversify your portfolio and tend to be a safer investment than stocks
By Becca Stanek, The Week US
-
Elon has his 'Legion.' How will Republicans encourage other Americans to have babies?
Today's Big Question The pronatalist movement finds itself in power
By Joel Mathis, The Week US