The hoopla surrounding Jack White’s performance at The Sound began outside the Del Mar Fairgrounds concert hall.
The Detroit-based guitar virtuoso, formerly one-half of The White Stripes, offered local students $20 all-in tickets at the box office two hours before the doors opened.
He also surprised some concertgoers by requiring everyone to lock their phones in a Yondr pouch before entering the venue on Sept. 30, encouraging them to experience the show firsthand rather than fixating on their screens.
White is clearly an artist who deeply respects his craft and appreciates his audience.
That was equally evident during his relentless, high-energy, 20-song set, featuring a blend of The White Stripes, his solo catalog and material from his time with the super-group The Raconteurs.
Dressed head to toe in black, White opened with “That’s How I’m Feeling,” which kicks into high gear after the first verse, then kept the pace going with a blistering rendition of “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground.”
With the packed crowd sufficiently fired up, White surprisingly shifted gears for a more acoustic interlude that included “Love Interruption,” featuring keyboardist Bobby Emmett’s hypnotic strain, and “Temporary Ground.”
With a nod to longtime bassist Dominic Davis, the thick groove of “Lazaretto” ensued. Rapping the lyrics while prowling the stage, White coaxed mind-bending sounds from his guitar while serving as the band’s conductor. The foursome moved in complete lockstep, delivering a tour de force that showcased each member’s prodigious talents.
This wouldn’t be the only time the band’s improvisational instincts were on full display. All eyes remained on White as he unleashed fiery, seemingly unrestrained guitar solos or passed the baton for impromptu jams, as on “What’s the Trick?,” when drummer Patrick Keeler brought the sonic train roaring to a fast and furious finish.
White said little between songs, limiting his comments to thank-yous and tour-stop shout outs. Instead, the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee delivered a master class in shredding worthy of his legendary status.
Known for changing up his setlist from night to night, White leaned heavily on The White Stripes and solo material at The Sound. He skipped crowd favorite “The Hardest Button to Button,” however, and played just one song from The Raconteurs, opting for “Broken Boy Soldier” over the better-known “Steady, as She Goes.”
He also didn’t perform any blues covers, as he’s often done on this tour. Still, the genre’s influence on his sound was prevalent throughout the night, from the rousing climax of “Little Bird” to “Ball and Biscuit” and “Old Scratch Blues,” off his 2024 album “No Name.”
The setlist also featured songs from his recently released seventh solo album, “Frozen Charlotte,” including “Derecho Demonico” and “G.O.D. And The Broken Ribs,” a stompy romp saved for the encore, which included “Icky Thump” and the Grammy-winning “Seven Nation Army,” transforming The Sound into a chant-filled stadium.
Even if you weren’t already a big Jack White fan, it would have been hard to leave this show without newfound respect for his dazzling talent and unwavering commitment to his craft. He asked the audience to put their phones away, then gave them every reason to forget they ever had one.
Donovan Roche is a longtime music writer and regular contributor to Times of San Diego.
