The Raconteurs, a great rock band fronted by Jack White and Brendan Benson, announced their new album will be in stores in seven days.
The surprise news followed a slew of Internet rumors, with RollingStone.com reporting on Monday that White walked into Warner Bros. offices last week, new album in hand, and said he wanted it in stores, quickly.
As the rumor went, the unusual release date was triggered by concerns the album would get leaked. The group sort of addresses the idea on their Web site.
“In the event that the record leaks, we didn’t want this method of release to be seen as a REACTION to such a leak,” the band says, with the emphasis being their own.
The group explains things further, sounding like they just wanted to mix it up:
“The Raconteurs are forgoing the usual months of lead time for press and radio set up, as well as forgoing the all important ‘first week sales.’ We wanted to explore the idea of releasing an album everywhere (ed. note: In all types of record stores and through the Web) at once and THEN marketing and promoting it thereafter.”
The album, “Consolers of the Lonely,” will have 14 songs. It’s first single, “Salute Your Solution,” will also be released on March 25. A video also may be released that day, assuming the editing gets finished.
“We just filmed it the other day!” the band says.
The group is expected to play Neumos in Seattle on April 21. I can’t find information on when tickets go on sale, but once they do, count on them selling out quickly.
On a personal but related side note, my wife and I visited Nashville two weeks ago, home to the Raconteurs. On our last day in town, we went to the Pancake Pantry, a popular breakfast place near my sister’s apartment. While we paid our bill, Jack White was standing at the register, waiting to be seated, with his daughter, wife and friends.
We didn’t ask how the new album was coming, though in retrospect, maybe we should have. Who knows, maybe they were celebrating the finish of recording with pancakes.
The place did have good pancakes.
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