Jack White has never been an artist to rest on his laurels. Having only just released his seventh solo album, Frozen Charlotte, in July, White immediately hit the road with a schedule of shows that makes any hungry young band sweat.
Jack White
Eventim Apollo, London – 26 August 2026
Words: Kahmel Farahani
Photography: David James Swanson
Tonight’s gig at the Eventim Apollo is sold out, and the lines of fans snaking around the venue are facing tighter security checks than they would face at most international airports.
This show is a totally phone-free zone, and this means three separate bag checks, pat-downs and phones in pouches before reaching your seat.
However, the hassle to get inside is soon forgotten as everyone finds their seat, the house lights go dim, and Jack White’s band makes their raucous entrance. The man himself struts to the centre of the stage, plugs in and launches into That’s How I’m Feeling. It is followed by The White Stripes Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground.
The sad news of Dolly Parton’s passing was announced a few hours before the show time this evening, and Jack White provides the most fitting of tributes early on by playing his starkly beautiful version of Parton’s Jolene.
This is the first time he’s played it live since 2007, and it is a most fitting tribute to the queen of country music.
Tonight, Jack White seems to be in a mean mood, in the best possible sense. There are very few words spoken to the crowd, but the music does all the talking needed. The moody Old Scratch Blues melts into a brilliant cover of the Hank Williams classic My Bucket’s Got A Hole In It.
Tonight White is pushing his three-piece band for all its worth. They follow his lead through countless noisy and muscular jams as White hurtles from riff to riff. His sound is still inimitable, but if anything, it has developed from its overdriven delta blues roots into something like The MC5’s Wayne Kramer on steroids.
It is mesmerising to watch and listen to White and his band move from new songs like Neighbors Blues. This is followed by the upbeat shuffle of Underground before the doomy, Sabbath-esque riff of The White Stripes’ Canon. We get another White Stripes song, The Union Forever, before the psycho blues G.O.D. And The Broken Ribs, another great song from an outstanding album.
Rather than smoothing anything out, White’s music is all about the rough edges. If they are not there, he practically hacks them out of the air. The feedback is massive and the treble dialled up to 11.
Tonight’s encore starts with a jam that leads into The White Stripes’ Icky Thump. This is still one of White’s very best songs and lyrically more relevant than ever on top.
Another rare White Stripes number follows: the positively evil-sounding blues slide of I Fought Piranhas. Jack White takes a moment to introduce his band before launching into another anthem that moves the crowd to start moshing.
The Raconteurs Steady As She Goes is probably the catchiest chorus White has ever written, and it is a real highlight, even at such an impressive gig.
At this point the gig is pushing two hours and there is only one riff left to let rip. White teases by changing guitars several times before plucking the opening notes of Seven Nation Army. The entire Evetim Apollo responds by bouncing and singing along to the iconic riff.
Like Neil Young doing Tonight’s the Night or Dylan during his first electric tour, Jack White is at a creative and musical peak, doing exactly what he wants to do, as he wants to do it. The audience will come to him.
Tonight’s show proved without question that not only does Jack White still have the hunger, but he most certainly still has the fire and the commitment to pull it all off.
