The minute it was announced that The White Stripes would come to Chile to give a single concert at the Víctor Jara Stadium on Wednesday, May 24, 2005, it immediately became the event that all of us had to be at.
Why did it have to be there? Simply because many of us believed that, in those days, they were the saviors of rock and roll. The kind of people who are sorely needed on the scene. Those who seek the most essential of emotions to create magic and catharsis. People who are capable of making a place explode with just their energy.
Until the night of the great event arrived. Shortly before the lights went out, we could see how the curious roadies moved around, elegantly dressed and preparing all the details (testing the guitars, looking at the piano, drums and amplifiers) so that, when the clock struck 9 the night with 15 minutes, the show will begin. Only then did the lights in the venue go out, and the special spotlights for the event came on.
Immediately afterwards, we see Meg White arrive, dressed in black and white, to sit at the drums. Jack White appeared on stage with a puppet of himself, which he left on the piano. He took the guitar from him and, together with Meg’s drums and almost without words, kicked off the show with the powerful “Black Math”. At this point, the people on the court jumped and shouted at the top of their lungs, responding to such a stimulus. They continued with several songs taken from almost all their albums.
This is how “Little Room” and the wonderful “Dead Leaves & The Dirty Ground” went by. In addition, we were lucky enough to hear, as a preview of their new album “Get Behind Me Satan”, a couple of songs, “Blue Orchid” and “My Doorbell”. Another notable moment was seen and heard with Little Bird, where Jack White showed off nods to Led Zeppelin. “Let’s Build A Home” was also very enjoyable. The powerful version of “Hotel Yorba” only crowned the moment.
The White Stripes concert in Chile reached unsuspected levels of intensity and time flew by. One of them came from the version that the band made at that time of “Jolene.” So much power also gave way to relaxed passages in an “acoustic” tone and with the piano. “We’re Going To Be Friends” and “The Same Boy You’ve Always Known” showed a more relaxed side, but not lacking in intensity.
Of course, the inherent power of the White Stripes had its collateral victims. On two occasions Jack White cut strings on his guitars. First, in the middle of the energetic delivery for “Dead Letter”, where he demonstrated his ability to master the slide guitar. The string got in the way when he played. He pulled her out of the way and continued blasting the guitar. The second time occurred during one of the most intense moments of the show: his delivery of “I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself.” The people chanted and Jack White let the entire stadium chant, while he put in his very strong strums, which cut a string. He continued playing, perhaps overwhelmed by that unique moment that occurred with the audience.
Already during the show’s breaks, the audience responded in the most sublime way in which a well-known guitar riff can be followed: by singing it like a stadium chant. Jack White stopped playing for a few moments and sang dryly, while that great “human guitar” played the majestic riff of “Seven Nation Army.” The farewell came with “Boll Weevil” and the grateful audience applauded resoundingly, putting a finishing touch to The White Stripes’ spectacular day in Chile exactly 19 years ago.
