De Stijl (album)

The White Stripes band members Jack and Meg divorced in March 2000, however, Meg insisted that they continue working together. Despite their divorce, they continued living together. De Stijl was recorded in their living room, exclusively using a Tascam 8-track analog tape machine. Jack later considered recording De Stijl at home a mistake, due to the distractions of domestic life. De Stijl takes its name from the De Stijl ("the style" in English) art movement, which included the painter Mondrian. Jack had been an admirer of the style for some time, especially of furniture designer Gerrit Rietveld, who designed the Rietveld Schröder House which the band had visited. Its cover art sets Jack and Meg against an abstract background of rectangles and lines in red, black and white, and utilizes common elements from the aesthetics of its namesake. De Stijl was dedicated to both Rietveld and Blind Willie McTell. Mixing was done at Ghetto Recorders by Jack and Jim Diamond, and the album would be completed in spring 2000. == Music and lyrics ==

De Stijl features the band's early blues-inspired sound, which was prominent on their self-titled debut album. Tom Breihan of Stereogum said the album showcased delta blues, hard and psychedelic rock influences, and Lizzy Goodman of NPR similarly noted its "camp" blues sound. On February 5, 2008, Canadian media reported that former Radio-Canada host Dominique Payette filed a lawsuit against the White Stripes for using a nine-second clip of her interview with a little girl at the beginning of "Jumble, Jumble". She demanded $70,000 in damages and the removal of the album from store shelves. The dispute was settled out of court. == Songs ==

"You're Pretty Good Looking (For a Girl)", a bubblegum pop song, was inspired by the songwriting process of Michael Jackson, and came about spontaneously while Jack was driving one day; he finished the song when he got home by adding the melody, guitar, and drums. "Hello Operator" was the only single on the album. The song was promoted by influential British radio DJ John Peel, despite not having been released in the United Kingdom at the time. Peel owned his own copy, having purchased it a record store in the Netherlands. The album's third track, "Little Bird" was heavily inspired by Led Zeppelin. "Apple Blossom" debuted on a local Detroit Public Television segment called Backstage Pass and appeared in the Quentin Tarantino film The Hateful Eight (2015). "I'm Bound to Pack It Up" is a country song depicting a break-up in which the narrator moves out of the home. The song does not feature Meg's drums. "Death Letter" is a cover of song by Son House, an artist whom Jack considers to be his idol. House's family earned significant royalty checks and personally thanked him for covering the song. During the recording of the song, a drunken man wandered into the home and interrupted them, petrifying Meg. It was one of the top three most performed songs by The White Stripes during their career, and was performed at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards. "Sister, Do You Know My Name?" and "A Boy's Best Friend" were two songs that Jack particularly liked on the album, but were rarely performed live due to their slow-burning nature ("A Boy's Best Friend" was possibly never performed live). "Sister, Do You Know My Name?" was used as background music during a scene in the band's documentary Under Great White Northern Lights (2009). "Truth Doesn't Make a Noise" was written 1999, and was based on a phrase that kept running through his mind. The theme would also go on to inspire Jack's 2024 solo album No Name. The song was chosen to cover instead of "sweet heartbreak number". Meg sings background vocals on the chorus and it was the first time she sang on a White Stripes track. The song was performed on their first ever American national television appearance (The Late Late Show in 2001) and on Radio New Zealand during the band's first international tour, among other occasions. == Release and reception ==

De Stijl was released on June 20, 2000, through the Sympathy for the Record Industry label. A re-issued vinyl LP version of the record was pressed at United Record Pressing in Nashville, Tennessee and mastered all-analog from the original master tapes. The album was re-issued again for its 20th anniversary. De Stijl earned positive reviews from critics, who noted its simplicity, and fusion of blues and "scuzzy garage rock". Heather Phares of AllMusic said that "As distinctive as it is diverse, De Stijl blends the Stripes' arty leanings with enough rock muscle to back up the band's ambitions." Jenny Eliscu of Rolling Stone called it "feisty and clever" and praised the drumming, guitar and vocal performances, stating that "like everything about the White Stripes, it [De Stijl] proves that you don't need bombast to make a blues explosion." Ann Powers of the New York Times described the album as "what many hip rock fans consider real music." De Stijl was a sleeper hit, earning a following after the White Stripes began to grow popular outside of Detroit and reaching number 38 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart in 2002. It is since considered a cult classic, and NME included it on their "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list in 2013. ==First international tour==

Some time after the release of their eponymous debut album, a New Zealand tour manager named John Baker came across their music at a party in Australia. Interested in booking them for an Oceanic tour, he contacted their San Francisco-based booking agent, Dave Kaplan, who said he only worked with the band in the United States, so Baker would need to handle that tour himself. While Jack and Meg White were at home rehearsing one night, Baker called to discuss the opportunity, but they assumed he was joking. Weeks later, Baker tenaciously managed to track Jack down during a tour stop in Denver, Colorado and called the bar–all the way from Auckland, New Zealand–to speak to him again about touring; although Jack was still incredulous, Baker convinced them by personally offering to pay for the flight. Baker financed the flights with a friend, Amber Easby, who would go on to manage the merch for the band's tours throughout their career. == Diamond lawsuit ==

In October 2004, music producer Jim Diamond sued the White Stripes, alleging, among other things, that he was owed royalties for his work on their first two albums. ==Track listing==

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. The White Stripes • Jack White – vocals, guitar, piano (tracks 4, 8 and 9), double bass (track 5); production, engineering, mixing, cover concept • Meg White – drums, tambourine (track 9), shaker & floor tom (track 5); cover concept Additional personnel • John Szymanski – harmonica (track 2) • Paul Henry Ossy – violin (track 5), electric violin (track 12) • Jim Diamond – mixing • Artes Graficos Por Cholomite! – layout • E Wolf – photography ==Charts==