In February 2025, Jack White is back in Utrecht, for the first time since 2002. Back then, he performed with The White Stripes at Tivoli; now, it’s two shows at TivoliVredenburg. Jack White has a special connection to Utrecht, as it is the city of Gerrit Rietveld, and The White Stripes’ album De Stijl was dedicated to this Utrecht-based architect/designer.

This is the translation of an article in Dutch for VPRO 3voor12: https://3voor12.vpro.nl/update~8ee71ab9-c790-4a8d-9ca9-0c24b2576079~jack-white-in-utrecht-een-meeslepende-ode-aan-rietveld~.html

Source: Jack White on Instagram, photo by David James Swanson

By the middle of the first song, the tone is already set: A roadie slides a classic red and blue Rietveld chair onto the stage, and Jack takes a seat to deliver a fiery guitar solo. That afternoon, he was given a tour by a team from the Centraal Museum at the Rietveld depot and the Rietveld Schröder House, which he had also visited with Meg White back in 2002.

It has clearly inspired him, as after three songs from his new album No Name, he performs no less than five tracks from De Stijl. People nudge each other. Is this really happening? He even sits down at the piano for the cheerful vaudeville track ‘Apple Blossom’, before bursting into the stomper ‘You’re Pretty Good Looking (For A Girl)’ and the blues-punk of ‘Hello Operator’. The songs fly by at breakneck speed, seamlessly transitioning without pause. Jack White has the audience firmly in his grip.

At the first concert, the focus was on his excellent new album No Name. Tonight, we are treated to the greatest hits. Classics like ‘Hotel Yorba’ and ‘Sixteen Saltines’ are interspersed with highlights from more recent work. White has now been active for over 25 years, and his body of work is so diverse that he can take his setlist in many directions. Admittedly, in recent years there have been some weaker songs, but tonight he picks a golden selection from the candy jar. And not once does he give off the impression that we are dealing with a rock veteran. He keeps it fresh until the very last note.

And what a grand finale it is. Suddenly, you remember just how great ‘Icky Thump’ is. Then, the explosive ‘Fell In Love With A Girl’ and ‘Steady As She Goes’ by The Raconteurs, a song that fans had desperately missed the night before. Of course, ‘Seven Nation Army’ is the last song, leading to a joyful mosh pit with a high average age. Jack White said little to nothing between songs, but did take a moment at the end to thank the Utrecht audience for two incredible nights.

The photo of the Rietveld chair soon appears on his Instagram page, with the caption: “The 2nd show in Utrecht is dedicated to Gerrit Rietveld.”

In 2014 I wrote this article about Jack White’s special relationship with Gerrit Rietveld: https://willemvanzeeland.com/2025/03/23/jack-white-a-modernist-who-converted-to-baroque/