The Dead Weather

The Dead Weather Artistfacts

  • 2009-
    Alison MosshartLead vocals, guitar
    Jack WhiteLead vocals, drums, guitar
    Dean FertitaGuitar, keyboards
    Jack LawrenceBass
  • The band formed after Alison Mosshart's group The Kills opened some shows for Jack White's group The Raconteurs on their 2008 tour. They got on well and, as soon as the tour was over, went into White's new studio in Nashville (Third Man) to record a single - a cover of Gary Numan's "Are 'Friends' Electric?" - with fellow Raconteur Jack Lawrence. They ended up adding Dean Fertita and turning the project into a full band.
  • All of the members of the Dead Weather first rose to prominence in other bands: The Kills (Alison Mosshart), Queens of the Stone Age (Dean Fertita), The Greenhornes (Jack Lawrence), and The White Stripes (Jack White).
  • The group's 2009 EP, Live at Third Man Records West, opens with the tune "Forever My Queen," which was originally done by Doom Metal trailblazers Pentagram.
  • Jack White produced the first two Dead Weather studio albums, Horehound and Sea of Cowards.
  • A little more than a week before their sophomore full-length, Sea of Cowards, was released, The Dead Weather premiered the album at Jack White's Third Man Records in Nashville - by performing the entire album front to back.
  • Although more and more bands nowadays seem to create music with their members in different states (or even different parts of the world), Jack White explained to Rolling Stone that this is hardly the case with The Dead Weather. "All The Raconteurs and all The Dead Weather live in Nashville now, so we often go on trips together, because we're all just good pals. We've recorded some things, too."
  • Alison Mosshart has enjoyed painting since she was a kid. She told American Songwriter: "My mother was a high school art teacher, so I grew up around it. She just put paints, paper, markers and crayons and everything in front of me from the time I could sit up, so it's always been a huge part of my life. I went to school for it for a little bit but I was never kinda sure of what I wanted to be or do. By the time I was 14 I was on tour, and I never stopped doing that."
  • The Dead Weather didn't kill The Kills, or The Raconteurs for that matter. Both bands remained active, although White's other band, The White Stripes, came to an end soon after The Dead Weather formed and officially retired in 2011.
  • Alison Mosshart told Uncut magazine about working with Jack White: "Making those Dead Weather records with Jack, bouncing ideas back and forth and moving at perilous speed, I know firsthand how fast his mind works. Musical literally jumps out of him with ease and precision as if he's made of it. Nothing slows his train. Being on stage with him it's like flying."
  • Mosshart's brother, Matthew Mosshart, is a chef. He was engaged to Ozzy Osbourne's daughter, Kelly Osbourne, until they announced their split in early 2014.
  • The group had a burst of activity in 2009 and 2010 when they released two albums and toured behind them, but they didn't put out another album until 2015 and didn't tour for that one. Their last performance was on Stephen Colbert's late-night show that year.
  • White and Mosshart were both in boy/girl duos when the band formed. White's partner in The White Stripes was Meg White (they were married when they started the group but separated before releasing their first album), and with The Kills, Mosshart teamed with Jamie Hince.

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