Speaking to Music Radar, Jack said that the band was trying to do too much around the release of Icky Thump. There wasn't enough rehearsal time before the tour and "my son was being born, so we didn't have a lot of time left. We were trying to cram everything into a short time span, and we were just plowin', man!"

He continued, "We were playing two shows a day in Canada, then we'd fly to France and do a TV show there, then we were back in England on tour, and we were just killin' it, man. The train was out of control. I just came from a Raconteurs tour and went right into that, so I was already full-speed. Meg had come from a dead-halt for a year and went right back into that madness. Meg is a very shy girl, a very quiet and shy person. To go full-speed from a dead-halt is overwhelming, and we had to take a break."

White added, "We just needed to stop for a while. When it comes down to your health... It's hard; people don't really understand. They think you go up on stage and you're having a blast, like you're partying or some shit. That's not the case. It's hard work to go on tour."

He told Music Radar that the Stripes should begin recording new material later this year, as White is devoting his summer to his newest project, The Dead Weather. A new White Stripes album "won't be too far off. Maybe next year."

The Dead Weather's debut album, Horehound, is due out on June 9 and the band is expected to tour throughout the summer.