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See a Blue-Haired Jack White Celebrate Third Man’s London Opening With Balcony Gig

Rocker also “baptises” U.K. outpost’s “Blue Basement” with set of White Stripes, solo tracks

Jack White celebrated the opening of the London outpost of his Third Man Records with a surprise set from both the store’s basement venue and a neighboring balcony.

The rocker first “baptized” the basement “Blue Basement” — fittingly with a new blue-haired look to mark the occasion — with a six-song set of White Stripes tracks and solo cuts.

White then moved the festivities outdoors, loading his band onto a neighboring balcony — owned by the artist Damian Hurst — for an additional five songs, including “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” “Seven Nation Army” and “Lazaretto.”

Third Man Records’ London branch — the Nashville-based label’s first outpost outside the U.S. — boasts a record store, the White-designed small venue, a book vending machine and more. 

“London feels really personal to me and to Jack,” Third Man co-founder and co-owner Ben Swank told Rolling Stone earlier this week. “It’s where the White Stripes really first were appreciated in a wider way. They broke over here first. I lived here for a little while and we just love this city… It’s always been kind of understood that if we did a third location, this would make the most sense. It’s just felt very personal to [Jack] and I think he wanted to do something to show that respect to the city.”

From Rolling Stone US