The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion: Meat + Bone – review

Before the White Stripes , before the Black Keys , there was the Blues Explosion – a roiling New York three-piece who played the music of wizened Delta men with the zeal of urban punks, repackaging it for hipsters. You might argue that the two latter-day outfits are in Jon Spencer's debt. But then, the blues is the most ripped-off genre extant, so all bets are off. After an absence of eight years, Spencer, Russell Simins and Judah Bauer aren't exactly reinvigorated; this trio have never, ever lacked zest. If anything, they seem to have gained funkiness on workouts such as Get Your Pants Off and the loose, classy closing instrumental, Zimgar.