Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello is the latest rock luminary to come to Meg White’s defense after music journalist Lachlan Markay called her “terrible.”
Markay’s criticism has faced a surmounting chorus of backlash led by Jack White, Questlove, Nandi Bushell, and many more. It all started when Markay replied to a tweet about the 20th anniversary of The White Stripes’ iconic song “Seven Nation Army.” In the reply, Markay unapologetically dragged Meg’s drumming ability while adding that “no band is better for having shitty percussion.”
Now Morello has weighed in with a passionate pro-Meg take on Instagram: “I hear there’s some controversy on this matter lately so let me set fools straight: #MegWhite is one of the greatest drummers in the history of rock n roll.”
He continued: “There are a HANDFUL of drummers EVER who are INSTANTLY recognizable rocking their MANY HIT SONGS with Flavor, Fire & Flair. She’s on that list, bruh. Does she do a lot a complicated tom tom fills? No, THANK GOD. She has style and swag and personality and oomph and taste and awesomeness that’s off the charts and a vibe that’s untouchable by all you boring-ass skin beaters who think we care about your ‘tight’ syncopated para-diddles. She is a FORCE and her records are forever step-stones on how to do it your own way while rocking the damn planet.”
Meg White’s minimal drumming has been a tiring and largely pointless source of debate since The White Stripes came to prominence in the late ’90s and throughout the early aughts. While some, like Markay, have criticized her simplified bash-it-out style, many others have praised Meg’s metronome-like precision and un-fussy percussion, which is a core element of The White Stripes’ recognizable sound.
You can see Morello’s Instagram post defending Meg White below.