Much like movies, concerts have gotten very long in recent years — and it's caused some debate about three-hour-plus concerts, as Paul McCartney blamed the trend on Bruce Springsteen, while Billie Eilish called the trend "literally psychotic" (a comment that some interpreted as a dig against Taylor Swift). Now, Jack White has weighed in.
White just wrapped up a three-night stand in Toronto, where he played sets that were under an hour and a half (with an hour-long main set followed by an encore of roughly 20 minutes). On Saturday (February 8), he wrote on Instagram that he wished the shows could be even shorter.
"The Beatles and Ramones played 30 minute (ish) sets, and If I could, I would do the same at this moment in my performing life," he wrote. "That's actually the kind of show I'd like to put on right now. But there becomes this chatter that the cost of a ticket 'entitles' people to some kind of extra long show...uh...ok (hahaha)."
He added, "I've seen a plethora of rock and roll gigs that lasted 45 minutes and blew my mind and inspired me beyond belief. Read the room, leave everyone exhausted and inspired (hopefully) and most of all wanting more, without needing 3 hours to do it."
He noted that, even though his sets are relatively short by modern standards, it's not because of a lack of passion. "Love to all of our fans, I see your faces every night and you can be assured I've never phoned it in in my life, whether it's 20 minutes or 2 hours," he promised. "There's no setlist, and it's not a marvel movie, or a Vegas residency, it's rock and roll and it's a living breathing organism. See you in the hall tonight friends, love you all so much and thank you for coming to these shows, standing in line and paying your hard earned money to help this train keep rolling."
There's no question that White's latest tour delivers urgent, no-fills rock 'n' roll that left Toronto fans eager for more. Read our review of his excellent show last week (February 6), and watch him play a Neil Young cover on Friday (February 7).
See his full statement on show lengths below.