First Raconteurs LP since 2008, Help Us Stranger moves garage-punk polymath Jack White from the Sixties to the Seventies. And from the sounds of things, he, Brendan Benson, Jack Lawrence, and Patrick Keeler did it in Z/28 with an 8-track player and a hash pipe. Opening the Detroiters’ third LP, “Bored and Razed” echoes Cheap Trick, while “Live a Lie” channels New York Dolls-like proto-punk. In between, everyone’s pastiched, from Queen (“Don’t Bother Me,” “Shine the Light on Me”) to Badfinger (“Somedays [I Don’t Feel Like Trying],” “Sunday Driver”). Plus, field-hand funk motors the sole cover, Donovan’s Bo Diddley-like “Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness).” (Friday, 5:30pm, American Express stage)

****

This article appears in October 4 • 2019.

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

SUPPORT US

Tim Stegall contributed to The Austin Chronicle 1991-1995, and was a staff writer 1995-1997. He returned as a contributor in 2013. He has also freelanced for publications ranging from Flipside to Alternative Press to Guitar World. He plays punk rock guitar and sings in the Hormones.