Jack White at Hammersmith Apollo

Jack White

Anna Calvi

Hammersmith Apollo, 26 August 2026

I was back again to the Hammersmith Apollo (or the Eventim Apollo as it's known now) for the second time in a week, this time for a no-phones show by the always entertaining Jack White promoting his new album Frozen Charlotte, and it really was a properly rowdy rock n' roll show. 

I didn't get any photos because my poor phone was locked away in a Yondr pouch once again but at least White kindly provides photos and videos on his website for each show (by David James Swanson), which is pretty cool (and means I can still post a couple of pictures on my blog).

I actually didn't realise this was a phones-free show until the day of the concert. Only last week I wrote that White had abandoned this practice because for his last couple of tours he hadn't used Yondr pouches at all, but it turns out I was completely wrong about this, as they were back in full force tonight (the second of two shows he was playing at the Apollo). It was much more bearable this time though, as there weren't demands to check in Kindles and the like, or even turn off phones before you put them in the pouches, so it definitely was overkill at the Phoebe Bridgers show. 

White also has different support acts at every show and doesn't seem to announce them until the day of the show so I wasn't aware until just before that Anna Calvi was opening for him tonight (the night before it had been RIP Magic). I've seen Calvi before playing a headline show at the Troxy back in 2014 (which I wrote about on this blog) and supporting Stevie Nicks at Hyde Park a couple of years ago.  

It does feel like I'm always arriving late to see Calvi and walking in as she plays, as at the Nicks show she was singing up on stage and I was watching her on the big screens as we arrived and walked through the crowded field. Tonight we also arrived as Calvi was halfway through her set and took our seats as she was belting out Desire from her debut album. 

She looked incredibly striking in a red suit, with a slash of matching red lipstick over her mouth and her blonde hair with dark roots crowning the look. Her voice was loud and clear and she was wielding her guitar like a weapon. She then sang Don't Beat The Girl Out Of My Boy and followed it with a cover of Suicide's Ghost Rider, pretty much following the exact same setlist it seems as the Hyde Park show. Ghost Rider seemed much more suitable for the Jack White gig though, as she wailed on her guitar, getting to her knees and making lots of distorted feedback as she ended her set. 

I was surprised that all these years on there doesn't seem to be much deviation in her set but then she hasn't had a new album out in quite a while, eight years to be exact (her third record Hunter came out in 2018), probably due to her becoming a mother in that time. Her last release was an EP that came out earlier this year that had two covers and two original songs, so I guess there's not too much new to pull from, but it seems a shame that we didn't get anything new at all. That said it was cool to see her live again and she sounded as impressive as ever.

Next of course was the man himself and all eyes were on his bouncing head of curly hair as he ran on to the stage with his band around him. The stage set up was pretty much the same as last year when I saw him at Troxy, with the band raised behind White on platforms: drummer Patrick Keeler on one side, Bobby Emmett on keyboards on the other and bassist Dominic Davis in the middle, flanked by one of White's huge Frozen Charlotte sculptures (an old-fashioned sailor boy doll body topped with a huge blue skull for a head). White took his place in the middle on the floor and with the band all on platforms behind him, it pretty much gave the run of the rest of the stage to him, which he made full use of, walking back and forth throughout the whole show, even as he soloed on his guitar.

Once again, the band warmed up by jamming a little, with plenty of bluesy sounds before they suddenly launched into the old White Stripes song Black Math and quickly following it with Fell In Love With A Girl. Of course the crowd went wild hearing these old classic tracks. It took until the third track until we got a solo number, the catchy and punchy Sixteen Saltines (which to be honest sounds as classic as the White Stripes material). 

It's interesting just how much White Stripes material he plays as it always takes up at least half the set but there's no doubt it goes down well live and is exciting to hear. White did write all these songs so it makes sense he continues to play them: we even get a rare outing of The Raconteurs track Carolina Drama which gets a huge response from the crowd (although apparently he played Steady As She Goes the night before which I would have loved to have heard too). 

It was a good way into the set before we got anything from the new album, Frozen Charlotte (named after the sculpture of course), starting with the bluesy Dollar Bill, but while he played about four more songs from the record, the best of these was definitely G.O.D. And The Broken Ribs, near the end, which I had been waiting to hear (and he really did make me wait for it!).

This show felt a lot more bluesy than last year, with quite a few jams going on throughout and even a couple of blues covers, including the old Robert Johnson classic Phonograph Blues and Otis Rush's All Your Love (I Miss Loving), showcasing his prowess on the guitar (he seemed to swap between his signature "Triplecaster" Telecaster and the vintage Kay hollowbody guitar from his White Stripes days). I must admit I wasn't as keen on all the jamming this time and the overall show didn't feel as punchy and direct as the Troxy gig, which I loved. It also felt a lot longer too which puzzled me given his statements last year that he felt concerts should be shorter (a sentiment I actually agree with). This one was around two hours, including a seven song encore, so he definitely gave people their money's worth that's for sure.

The highlights for me  were the fantastic Archbishop Harold Holmes, with White on full-on rock n' roll preacher mode, and the old White Stripes classic, We're Going To Be Friends, which gave a lovely softer moment in the show. I would actually love to see White do a full acoustic set in fact.

White's band is raw and dirty in the best possible way and he definitely seems to have a lot of chemistry with them, often climbing up on the platforms to perform close to them although I do wonder if the stage set-up on the whole kind of cuts him off from them, even though it does highlight him as the charismatic star of the show.

When he introduced the band members though at the end of the show, even member's name came up in lights above where they were standing, which was pretty cool and showed his respect for them, wanting each to have a moment. I did wonder if Jack White's name might also appear in lights above them all but, thankfully he didn't do anything so naff. 

Not surprisingly the whole thing ended on Seven Nation Army with White encouraging everyone to sing along, humming that famous riff that has become so famous at sports events around the world. Part of me would respect White if he didn't play it but I suppose it must be incredible to have written a song that has made such a huge cultural impact, I guess I would want to play it too and it certainly is a joyous way to end every show, getting even those in seats up on their seats.

We were actually upstairs seated for this show which is definitely a different experience. I did enjoy it and it's always refreshing going to a gig knowing you have a reserved spot and not having to queue but the atmosphere upstairs is very different to being in the heart of the crowd or at the front. There was a lot of people constantly getting up and missing whole songs to get beers and an argument even broke out next to me because a group of lads were talking loudly throughout leading to a couple of members of staff having to come over and talk to them. Two girls even turned up and sat near us just before the encore, having missed nearly all the show, which was bizarre.  

So there was a different feel tonight, maybe because of where we were sitting, but there was no doubt that White was as energetic as ever and sounded on top form, despite all the blues jams. Part of me did regret not seeing him the night before though, as in tribute to Dolly Parton, whose death had just been announced, White played his cover of Jolene for the first time in twenty years, which must have been incredibly moving (that said, a friend who attended the show said that because they didn't have their phones, they didn't know Parton had died and didn't know the meaning behind him playing the song, which may well have lessened the impact). 

All in all I wasn't quite as blown away this time but it's always good to see Jack White play and hopefully I'll get to see him again in the future. I'm sure it will be a different experience yet again!

All Jack White photos by David James Swanson.