Making Flippy Floppy

I only discovered the original Tegan & Sara version of this track a few months back when they showed the ultra-glam video on Logo (see post below). I was immediately enraptured by the girls' angular detatchment and Pat Benatar School of Eye Makeup-isms. The song is incuded on thier brilliant must-own 2004 album So Jealous, which has been on repeat around here for weeks. I was a bit miffed to learn it came out late in 2004 and not 2005, so I can't include it an my forthcoming year-end list, where it surely would have placed near the top.

So, I was delighted to discover that the White Stripes had recently done a cover of the song apparently for the A-side of a new single release. Jack and Meg don't mess with altering the perfection of the original too much, the angular chunkiness is still there, but I rather do miss the icy synth lines. Here, instead we get a backwards interlude, adding to the ghostiness of it all. The Stripes' version is more urgent. Where the Tegan and Sara sounded if they were being haunted in a distant dream, Jack White makes his ghost very real and very scary indeed.

The White Stripes - Walking With A Ghost

MP3 4.29MB, 198kbps, 44kHz