- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080i/60 (29.970Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (96kHz/24-bit); LPCM 2.0 Stereo (96kHz/24-bit), Dolby Digital 5.1
- Subtitles: N/A
- Subtitles Color: N/A
- Region: ABC (Region-Free)
- Rating: N/R
- Run Time: 100 Mins.
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray)
- Studio: Eagle Rock Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: June 19, 2012
- List Price: $19.98
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Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Performance
[Rating:4.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(All TheaterByte screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG at 100% quality setting and are meant as a general representation of the content. They do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
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The Performance
[Rating:4.5/5]
Many will recognize The Raconteurs as White Stripes frontman Jack White’s side project, but they are much more than that. This bluesy band is actually a modern supergroup consisting of not only Jack White, but solo artist Brendan Benson on co-lead vocals and guitar, The Greenhornes’ Jack Lawrence on bass and drummer Patrick Keeler. A tight knit group of friends who knew each other variably from jamming together, gigging around, and, most notably, working together on the critically acclaimed Loretta Lynn album, Van Lear Rose, these guys are, frankly, the best supergroup the music industry has seen since the days of Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominoes, and that’s not hyperbole.
With two hit albums behind them, Broken Boy Soldiers and its follow up Consolers of the Lonely, The Raconteurs finally hit the road to tour in support of their second release, which is what this 2008 Montreux performance captures. The setlist covers songs from their two albums and includes covers of Terry Reid’s “Rich Kid Blues” and old St. Louis bluesman Charley Jordan’s “Keep it Clean.”
Packed with riffs, this rough and tumble rock and roll show from The Raconteurs is roots rock and garage soul reborn, cranked up to 15, and played with a nonstop reservoir of energy. The tag team lead vocals of White and Benson blend seamlessly. Standout tracks include the recognizable radio hit “Steady, As She Goes,” the mid-tempo juke joint rock of “You Don’t Understand Me,” and a low-down dirty version of “Keep it Clean.”
Track Listing:
- Consoler Of The Lonely
- Hold Up
- You Don’t Understand Me
- Top Yourself
- Old Enough
- Keep It Clean
- Intimate Secretary
- Level
- Steady, As She Goes
- The Switch And The Spur
- Rich Kid Blues
- Blue Veins
- Many Shades Of Black
- Broken Boy Soldier
- Salute Your Solution
- Carolina Drama
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
An original high definition production, The Raconteurs: Live at Montreux 2008 comes to Blu-ray in a 1080i/60 AVC/MPEG-4 encodement from Eagle Rock. I can’t complain too much about the image, being a live show in 1080i, it’s difficult to get a consistent image. There seems to be a sufficient amount of detail in close-ups, although there are definitely noticeable motion artifacts and the constant flashing of yellow stage lights has a bad effect on contrast and color saturation at times.
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
This band and this show are all about the twin guitar assault of Jack White and Brendan Benson, and both the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (96kHz/24-bit) and LPCM 2.0 Stereo (96kHz/24-bit) mixes capture that flawlessly. Jack White’s guitar panned off to the front-right and Brendan Benson’s guitar to the front-left, with drummer Patrick Keeler offering a solid thump in the middle with Jack Lawrence’s bass. Admittedly, some of the other instruments tend to get lost, the piano and organ, for example, are difficult to hear above the rush of guitars and screeching vocals of White and wail of Benson, but the engineers do a good job nonetheless to make this life-like and to separate the two guitars. The 5.1 mix has good room ambience in the surround channels with little crowd noise to interfere, while the stereo mix is equally enjoyable with strong stereo separation.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
There’s a thin booklet with liner notes that offers up info on how The Raconteurs got together along with band and disc credits, but that’s all you’ll get in the area of supplements for this release.
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4/5]
A raucous, riff-laden, bluesy, and high energy rock show, The Raconteurs do rock and roll as it should be done, leaving lots of other modern bands in the dust. This release from Eagle Rock with its hi-res, 96/24 audio is a must. Highly recommended.
Additional Screen Captures
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Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Performance
[Rating:4.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0.5/5]
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