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Back a little while ago when I started talking about my favorite guitarists, I picked Jamie Hince of the Kills.  Truth be told, I wouldn’t have known who he was if it wasn’t for the fact that his bandmate, Alison Mosshart, had started a new ’supergroup’ with Jack White.  And if Jack White is up to something, I want to know about it.  Since he broke through with The White Stripes, I’ve been a devotee.  Let’s discuss why.

Quite possibly your third man.

For one, Jack is a new kind of blues guitarist.  I love the blues, and everybody knows that’s the key to great rock and roll.  He has been referred to as the best of his generation [Citation needed] and I don’t really feel like arguing that point.  He takes the basics and runs them through dirty garage rock, creating his own signature style in the same way an Eric Clapton or a B.B. King is instantly recognizable.  I recently watched the documentary It Might Get Loud, in which Jack shares his love of old-timey blues and roots music, and he explains how it makes its way into his sound.  “I want it to be a struggle,” he says.  “You have to pick a fight with the guitar” and win that fight.  For a guy like me, who’s been trying to wrap his head around the instrument on and off for years, this is a refreshing philosophy.  Show that sucker who’s boss.

From that comes his desire to only use old-school equipment and technology.  The liner notes to The White Stripes’ masterpiece, Elephant included his own essay on how he feels modern recording equipment robs the music of its soul.  It certainly is true of his own music… if you were to record a White Stripes album in a pristine, Apple-computer driven studio, it just wouldn’t feel right.  It needs that warm sound and crunch you can only get from analog tubes and whiskey.  Speaking of equipment, his “Triple Jet” custom guitar is an absolute marvel.

Jack’s work ethic is also inspiring.  He is currently involved in three bands (Claptonesque already at a young age), and they’re all covered in his musical fingerprints, despite playing drums in one of the bands.  He also started his own record label and recording studio after producing an album for Loretta Lynn.  He’s 35 and he’s not done yet.  Makes me think I’ve got some catching up to do.

I’ll leave you with this.  I think it just about sums things up.

Hell yes.

I recently started playing guitar again.  It’s always been an on-again, off-again thing for me.

One of the major reasons I pick the instrument back up is hearing someone new and thinking, “What the heck is this guy/gal doing?”  After enough listening, you end up looking up guitar tabs, and before you know it, you’re getting yourself in tune and playing along.  The last guitarist who managed to do this to me was Jamie Hince of The Kills, who I first heard about a year ago.  Googling him will probably bring up more pictures of girlfriend Kate Moss than anything else.

Hince with Ms. Mosshart

The Kills are a duo made up of himself and the smoldering Alison Mosshart, and the dynamic between them seems to be one of one-upmanship.  The obvious contrasts/comparisons to the White Stripes aside, it’s dingy and dirty garage blues with restrained augmentation.  The heart of their sound is shared, snarling vocals and Hince’s furious attack on the guitar.  Over the course of their three-album (so far) career, the use of drum machines and synths have made their way into some furious tunes, but always as an accompaniment and never a distraction.

Jamie doesn’t do much of anything new per se, but his execution is what piques my interest.  What makes him appealing to me is that he seems to be screwing around with his guitar from time to time, looking for what sounds right and plugging away at it, whether it sounds perfect or not.  Healthy doses of distortion fill it out, but like the synthesized instruments they use, even the fuzz box is only an accessory to the instrument.  He’s also fond of drop-tuning, which gives the sound some extra balls.  This is all evidence of a guy who knows how to get what he wants out of his instrument, and I always admire that.

As a result of listening to The Kills, I have been spending more time with my old bootleg Stratocaster.  Sometimes it’s not just what you’re playing, but the way you’re playing it.  Jamie Hince is one guitarist who exemplifies this concept.

Here’s the video for “Last Day of Magic,” which is pretty cool if you ask me.