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The Greenhornes' Jack Lawrence 'Sure' Dead Weather Will Return in Due Time

The GreenhornesThird Man Records

In 20 whirlwind months with blues-punk side project the Dead Weather, Greenhornes bassist Jack Lawrence played on and toured behind two full-length records. That's half as many as his primary band -- back in action after an extended hiatus -- has managed over the last 14 years.

The differences don't stop there. Unlike the Dead Weather -- which features menacing organ and guitar sounds and the delightfully warped vocal interplay of Jack White and Alison Mosshart -- the Greenhornes make simple, straight-up music, the kind heard on their long-awaited fourth album, '****,' out now on White's Third Man label.

Harking back to such '60s greats as the Yardbirds and Kinks, the Cincinnati trio is what some would call "a regular rock 'n' roll band," a tag Lawrence doesn't mind.

"I'm fine with it, but sometimes when someone says it to you, you get a little defensive about it, maybe," he tells Spinner. "Maybe it's more than that. But it's good to be a rock 'n' roll band. The world needs that. I don't think we're trying to trick anyone. We're not trying to fool anybody, so maybe the honesty of it comes out more."

Indeed, garage-rock bands come in many shapes and styles, and while some compensate for lack of musicianship or songwriting ability with '60s costumes and equipment, Lawrence, singer-guitarist Craig Fox and drummer Patrick Keeler have never relied on such gimmickry.

"We never wore go-go boots and had Farfisas and everything," he said, referring to the Italian-made organ used by groups more slavishly devoted to recreating the psychedelic sounds of a bygone era. "When we started the band, we didn't know there was garage rock. We weren't familiar with that term. We were just playing the music that we listened to, pretty much -- mainly, like, '60s-influenced records. The first song we played, I think, was an Association song. It wasn't until we started touring that [we realized], 'Wow, they're calling us garage rock, and there's a whole garage scene and these bands.' I wouldn't consider the White Stripes garage rock. But you get thrown in there and whatever."

While Lawrence insists the world hasn't seen the last of the Dead Weather, he has no designs on making that high-profile band his main gig.

"I never think that way about it," he says. "Right now, it's the Greenhornes, and it feels good, and we'll take this as far as we can. There's always a time, and there's always a place for everything, and the Dead Weather stuff -- I'm sure that'll come back around soon enough. Right now, Alison is doing the Kills record, and they're probably going to release that early next year. And [guitarist] Dean [Fertita] is working on Queens of the Stone Age. And Jack is doing all the stuff here at Third Man. Right now, it feels like time for the Greenhornes."

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