This is a site dedicated to the Libertines and their offspring. News, interviews, reviews, articles, pictures, videos and exclusives right here from the troubled world of the Babyshambles and Dirty Pretty Things (and, why not, Yeti).
It feels like ages since Dirty Pretty Things split up, but maybe not for them. The two were spotted at Tony Linkin's farewell party last week ("The music industry is losing someone of impeccable taste" said Anthony Thornton), and now they seem to be ready to launch themselves in a new territory. This comes from NME.com:
"Former Dirty Pretty Things members Didz Hammond and Anthony Rossamondo are launching a new club night in London. The inaugural Younger Than Yesterday Sunday session takes place at Camden's Proud Galleries this Sunday (April 5) and boasts DJ sets from Klaxons member Jamie Reynolds and The Big Pink. Additionally, the two hosts will be performing an acoustic covers set of old and new favourites, and the pair promise some 'very very special live guests'. Named after the Byrds' album from 1967, the session is designed to encourage collaboration, with musicians encouraged to bring instruments along. There is also a concessions list for musicians. Hammond describes the night as like "Scotch Of St James, the Crawdaddy Club, Exploding Plastic Inevitable, the Heavenly Social and Sonic Mook Experiment, minced together and flat on their backs, wasted, yet hyper-conscious". For more information go to Proudcamden.com while a Facebook group for the night can be found here".
Besides, Didz and Gary are DJing in Dublin, at JAM @ ThinkTank, Eustace St., Temple Bar on 2 April; and Didz is dj-ing (alone) at Dirty South on Friday 3 April, and at the Old Blue Last (launch party for the Tatianas' new single) on 8 April. Dance, dance, dance!
"I had on the whole a good night. I tried not to focus on very annoying people. But it was hard sometimes. There were a couple of people behind me who were having very loud conversations during the songs. at one point i was so fed up with it that I turned round and said very angrily "this is a concert! If you want to talk like this just go away", which they finally did. But they ruined Salome for me, I was gutted... I also thought the crowd was a bit passive, and was disrespectful of Dot Allison's set. But apart from that, it was great. Nice long set. Adam was on top form, Drew was smiling all the time, Mick played at the end, we sang Happy Birthday to Stephen Street who was dressed as an Indian chief, and as I was standing I could admire Graham Coxon's skills. No dancers this time. There were acoustic moments, others with the whole band (strings and everything) or just BS with Graham or Mick at the end. They played the album, Through the Looking Glass , at the beginning Music when the Lights go out (just Peter), Unstookietitled with Mick, Albion, Time for heroes, Pipe down.I hope other people will have a better memory. Because it really was a long set. I went to 126 after, with very nice tourists from Switzerland. Joe Robinson, Lee Mavers and the keyboardist were there, that's it. It was fun, but from the start, I don't know why, I felt the rest of the band wouldn't come.x"
Besides appearing on the telly, Peter also played one of the last gigs of his UK tour last night, at Edinburgh's Picture House. See report and piccies at David's blog.
"Just back from the picture house gig" said Jill on FDW "he looked great! sounded great! and it was an all round great night best night I've had in ages, loved the mix of Libs/Shambles stuff, the place was bouncing, some throw he has on him tho.........he threw a toilet roll back into the crowd full force (well at me) and I was right up by the back next to the mixing decks, couldnt believe how far he threw it..... was a pitty some TiT threw piss at him but they got a good pile of nose snot and spit back in there face from him! his stage dive was great, personally I'd have just been greedy and not given him back, he accepting the usual load of gifts that were thrown up. made me happy to see him smile and laugh tonight he really done himself proud and I hope him and the boys will return to The Old Picture house".
Plus! Brief report by Beverley Lyons and Laura Sutherland for The Daily Record: IT WAS a new name, a new era for Peter Doherty last night as he celebrated the release of his solo album with a gig in Edinburgh. Grace/Wastelands hit the shops on Monday and Peter was joined by an all-star line-up including album collaborator Graham Coxon, from Blur, at the Picture House. He thrilled the crowd with What A Waster and English Rose before Libertines hit Can't Stand Me Now and Babyshambles' Albion and What Katie Did. Fans littered the stage with gifts throughout, proving Peter hasn't lost his touch.
Tomorrow it's The Troxy guys! And I won't be there. Waaaahhhhh!!!
Oh if somebody's wondering where Carl Barat is bound next... check Venezuela.
My fellow blogger David went to see Peter playing at the Newcastle Academy last night and took some beautiful photos (see his blog). No Lee Mavers but Graham, Drew, Adam (a bit sick, the thingy), Dot (sick too) and Stephen Street were all there. Kieran Leonard opened.
Jude tells us about the night: "Was a cracking night in all...got there early and hung round back for a bit to hear pete and dot sound checking. then straight queuing for ages: but got to the front row! Kieran Leonard was up first. Played about four songs. Very sombre but I liked his voice alot. Sounded like Kurt Cobains at times. Received fairly well but small audience. Then Dot came on and did a few - but she had a sore throat - was good though. Then Adam came on and I could tell he was pissed off straight away with all the Peter chanting going on. Crowd were pretty disrespectful, talking through etc and it showed. He asked for requests - no one did - so i shouted out horses... but he didn't hear me. shame. he played entroubled and sparkling boots... too tired to remember specifics tbh. Tried to encourage him by shouting positive noises between songs but was probably lost under crowd natter... either that or he thinks i'm mad. lol. Drew up next, opened with a class Manu Chao cover (song name escapes me)...Band were on top form and played (almost) if not all of Grace/Wastelands plus Albion. Peter then dedicated Time for Heroes and Fuck Forever to Dan Squires (the local lad who Pete knew) and asked ppl to donate. Crowd was too heavy and gig nearly got scrapped cos people were passing out/being crushed and having to be lifted out".
In the meantime the press is reporting something new about Peter that I'm pretty doubtful about. It comes from the Sun and reminds me a bit of the "musical" Peter had to write with Carl Barat last year:
"Singer Pete Doherty has reportedly met with BBC bosses in relation to penning a pilot for a drama series. According to The Sun, a source said: "Pete was meeting creative chiefs. They've commissioned him to write a Skins-style show on the dark side of the music industry. They want a pilot episode written in the next six weeks which will become a series, if he can come up with the goods."
Take this piece of news as you want, you know I never believe anything, particualrly when it deals with telly (and telly stars) but it wouldn't be too bad if it was true, innit.
And finally, Peter is playing Edinburgh tonight but don't forget he's on Jonathan Ross too!
Rave review by Chris Henwood for The Birmingham Mail:
YES, before you ask, he did turn up. And yes, Pete Doherty was on this planet. Suited and booted, and donning his trademark trilby hat, he skipped on to the stage and had the audience eating out of his hands with a faultless, energetic and an engaging show from the off. Though he was mid-tour on the back of his first solo album, Grace/Wastelands, it was the old Libertines track Music When The Lights Go Out that got things under way. Having introduced Blur guitarist Graham Coxon and the rest of his band to the stage, Peter, as his album names him nowadays, moved on to Arcady, then most recent single Last of the English Roses, followed by 1939 Returning and A Little Death Around The Eyes. Every song seemed to keep the fans in raptures as Mr Doherty flitted between the back catalogues of his old bands to knock out Can’t Stand Me Now, What Katie Did and Albion – these last two courtesy of his Babyshambles days, of course. There was even a treat for fans of professional Scouse band The La’s, as Mr Doherty performed Son of A Gun. But an even greater treat was in store as he left the stage during the encore to allow Lee Mavers to put the gig into the realms of the six-out-of-five category with There She Goes. Verdict: 5/5
Setlist by exploding dim-wit: MWTLGO, arcady, LOTER, 1939, a little death..., salome, palace of bone, what a waster, cant stand me, what katie did, I am the rain, broken love song, new love grows, lady dont fall, son of a gun (avec mavers), sweet by and by, albion--bucket shop, there she goes (as in la's. not ALH), time for heroes, beg steal, fuck forever.
Peter is on the cover of French mag "Les inrockuptibles". Inside, a long interview (in French of course). Charva Chapter has just started tranlasting it...
"It's mostly about music" Charva says "how he discovered it, his childhood, his relationships with his friends, litterature, a bit about drugs, gigs, paris...everything really".
Q: You'll be 30 in a few days, does it scare you? you said a couple years ago that you didnt like future.
Peter: It scares me a bit, yes... since a couple of weeks, my friends are joking about this, so there must be something funny. 30 is old, isnt it?
Q: What did you feel the need to make a solo album ?
Peter: I had too many songs waiting, songs that worked perfectly without band. The atmosphere is more relaxed, more slow, less agressive. Leaving them behind would have been waste. It was time to work them.
Q: You worked again woth Stephen Street, and for the first time with Graham Coxon, the Blur guitarist. What did they bring to your music?
Peter: Street is a professional in his way to work with things. He's someone I can trust. He had worked a lot with Graham Coxon, for Blur. I remember the first time I heard this band. Someone at school had lend me a cassette, and there were the songs Bank Holiday and Chemical World. Graham Coxon was like a hero. And then we met, we got along, he's a pretty shy man. He's really quiet, reserved, a bit like me. He was born March 12th.
Q: There is not a year where we dont hear about your new projects. You're always composing, playing. What do you like when you're on stage ?
Peter : The kids' faces (laughs).. and the money. But I dont really feel comfortable on the stage. It's not a part of pleasure, because I'm shy, paranoid and stressed. Most of the time, I have this terrible feeling like if, like that, I was trapped. Trapped by things that I should have done and that I didnt do. Repeating, for example. I hate these moments when I'm stuck backstage knowing that I cant leave because I have to play. Most of the time I dont WANT to go on stage, I HAVE to.
Q: Is it with music that you had the impression to have a space for the first time ?
Peter: No, that's probably when I went to school. I used to watch my sister, who is a year older than me, going to kindergarden, and I really wanted to go with her. I felt left out. I remember that for my first day at school, I ate rice crispies at breakfast. It was snowing, it was in Germany. It was the first time that I had the impression to be part of something. I really liked school at the begining. Mostly for drawings. But it's my mother whotaught me to read and write, at home".
More to come (of course a huge thank you to Charva).
The new issue of Q magazine is out today (Green Day on the cover) with another Peter-interview. The title of the interview is "Who the hell does Pete Doherty think he is?". The preview says: "The Libertine and Babyshambler lets Q inside his lovely home for a full frontal encounter, a viewing of the delightful artworks on his walls and a tour round his collection of cigarette lighters, cat litter and Chas & Dave badges. Just don’t mention “tough love”."
Setlist by oldgrayfan: delaney - mwtlgo - arcady - LOTER - Killimangiro - 1939 returning - Palace of Bone - Broken Love song - Sweet by and by - New love grows on trees - Salome - Lady dont fall backwards - tell the king - time for heroes - Through the looking glass - Fuck Forever - Beg, Steal or Borrow - A Little Death - I am the Rain
"Most excellent gig!" says Mrs Jones "I especially loved the songs that were played with the full 'combo'. LOTER and Broken Love Song sounded massive. I hope there'll be more like this in the future, not just this tour".
"Brilliant night" says Charred Heart "So good to have Peter back in the land of the living. Life is much better with him present - hope he feels the same way. Songs sounded immense. Peter sang beautifully. My personal fav was Tell the King. loved I am the rain and sweet by and by, salome etc etc. Amazing to see Coxon and Street in the band. Drew & double bass...".
Warning: tonight's gig (Grimsby) has been postponed. Peter is recording Jonathan Ross, fellas!
In the meantime, the very honorable Washington Post reviews G/W.
Musicians including Carl Barat, Babyshambles' Drew McConnell and John 'The Reverend' McClure are teaming up to play a unique gig in aid of Instigate Debate. The trio ("And anyone we can rope in," according to McClure) will be holding a debate at London's Boogaloo pub on Wednesday (March 25), to be followed by a gig at a fan's house. In a statement, McClure explained that the debate would focus on the ethics of modern day shopping, and that the person who asks the best question will be rewarded with a gig in their home that night. He said: "The idea [of Instigate Debate] is that no one discusses anything that really means anything in this country anymore - so we are forcing the issue. The first night is called 'Your country needs you to go shopping'.
"The guests are mind-blowing and the best questions get a free gig around their house that night from me, Carl Barat, Drew McConnell and anyone else we can rope in."
Alongside live music, McClure said the night will also feature poetry and "Lots of debating". It will be filmed for Channel 4.
Tickets for the event are on sale now. See Instigatedebate.com for more information.
Playing live cures allergies, heartbreaks and the housewife's knee. So... Carl Barat is back! The Mighty Carlos manifested his finely wrought figure last night at the Gaslight club together with the other hunk of the bunch, i.e. the lovely Drusillo. Thanks to Nearerdark for providing four videos of the event:
Peter is playing Leeds tonight. For more info see the GIGS OF THE WEEK section below.
Of course we all know Grace/Wastelands entered the UK's album chart at no. 17. He couldn't win against some degenerated ex-boy band member releasing a record for his mommy (on mommy's day!!! Vomit vomit vomit). Well I think the glorious British nation in the last days has been stricken by some serious virus attacking brain cells. It worries me just a little...
Who cares about mommy's days and other idiocies! We are libertines and we reject idiocies.
Speaking of idiocies, Q magazine has an interview with Peter in the new issue, where the man threatens to headbutt poor Jamie Hince because he's shagging his ex. Of course he'll be talking about many other things. I think. I hope. I.
GIGS OF THE WEEK!!! Peter 23 Mar 2009 20:00 - Leeds 02 Academy 24 Mar 2009 20:00 - Grimsby Auditorium 25 Mar 2009 20:00 - Birmingham 02 Academy 26 Mar 2009 20:00 - Newcastle 02 Academy 27 Mar 2009 20:00 - Edinburgh Picture House
The Observer came out today with an interview with Peter (made in Paris) entitled "A rake's progress" by Craig McLean: "In an emotional interview, Peter Doherty - as he now calls himself - comes clean about his estrangement from his father, his fall out with Kate Moss and why, at last, it's great to be straight".
Not the best Peter if you ask me. Not the Peter I use to love, not at all. But somebody might appreciate it. So, enjoy.
Setlist by McFearless: what a waster - new love grows on trees - arcady - killamangiro - for lovers - palace of bone (with hello at the end) - last of the english roses - unstookie titled (with mik) - fuck forever (with mik) - back from the dead (with mik) - i wish (mik solo) - baddie's boogie (with mik) - music when the lights go out - tell the king - delaney - death on the stairs - needles & pins - salome - what katie did - never never - lady don't you fall backwards - love reign o'er me - ballad of grimaldi (instrumental) - dont look back into the sun - time for heroes - wolfman (with wolfman) - can't stand me now - albion.
People complain of being "heavy handed" at Peter's Southampton gig of last week (from NME.com).
High appraisal for Peter's last night gig at the Brighton Dome. "Just back from the Brighton Dome, where Peter and crew played a scorcher" said pk! "I've not seem him as many times as others here, but I've seen enough to get an impression, and tonight he was on top form. Not so much banter as the smaller gigs but only to be expected. Stephen Street is now my hero, he looked so damn cool all evening. I've never been a critic of Mik, but even I was pleasantly surprised: he was very very good tonight, did his wonderful solo I Wish. He seems to be settling well into the Ronnie Wood niche in the band. Peter looked so clean he might have been scrubbed (with Bilo Pads), like a teenager told to look smart for Granma. Bless him. Gig ended promptly at 11.00 (unless I missed an encore - but I don't think so - it's all over when the AC-30's are switched off?). Beautiful evening. Thanks to all involved".
Setlist by Carmine:
1. Music When the lights go out 2. Arcady 3 Last of the English Roses 4 1939 Returning 5 A Little Death Around The Eyes 6. Salome 7. Through the Looking Glass 8 Palace of Bone 9 'Peter Solo Section' (actually THE MOST BEAUTIFUL Unstookietitled, Mik doing I Wish and Fuck Forever) 10 I Am the Rain 11 Sheepskin Tearaway with Dot 12. Lady Don't Fall Backwards (about 10 people knew it - meh!) 13. Sweet By and By Drew (Drew played double bass) 14 New Love Grows on Trees - For my mate No Judy Garland - '35.' 15 Broken Love Song 16. Albion - Pete tantalised me by playing the first few chords of 'Waterloo' and believe me I DID holler - but he then told us about an interview with a stupid journo and then went into Albion. 17. Encore - only there wasn't one because there was no time left.
... the NME came out with a poster featuring Bilo and Biggles at the recent NME Awards. And more: "Pete Doherty has revealed that the duet he recorded with Amy Winehouse had been destined to appear on his solo album 'Grace/Wastelands' – until producer Stephen Street had other ideas. In this week's issue of NME, the former Libertine guides us through his latest offering and explains how he and Winehouse recorded '1939 Returning' on his mobile ahead of a potential recording session".
Well this time I'm grateful to Stephen Street and his "other ideas". 1939 is one of my fave songs on the album and frankly I think Miss Winehouse and her voice would have made a total disaster. Grace/Wastelands has been on my stereo in the last two weeks (errr yes) with alternate fortune, depending on my mood I think. Yes it's true, I once fell asleep while listening to I Am The Rain. But it was half past midnight and I had flown back from London a few hours earlier. I absolutely love Broken Love Song and New Love Grows On Trees (still puzzled about the production Stephen otherwise you've done a great work in most of the songs). I also adore 1939 Returning and Palace of Bone, and A Little Death Around the Eyes sounds good. Sometimes the tone of the album drops a bit though, and I Am The Rain is maybe the biggest responsible but I'm not too convinced by the single either, and maybe I'm one of the few people who don't like Salome. The NME wonders where the new songs are (in Carl Barat's drawer?). I wonder where rock'n'roll is. Peter has shown his most delicate, sensitive side with this record, and it sounds great. But I know he has also another side, and if he'd combined the two he might have sounded even greater. Three stars and half.
Peter played at the Lincoln Engine Shed last night, but I couldn't find anything on the show anywhere, apart from the photo above, which is by James Arnold.
Anyway, whereas LOTER was an undeniable flop last week, it seems the album won't. As I write G/W is at n. 7 in the midweek chart (yesterday it was at n. 5). Maybe a top 10 entry is in the cards after all.
As for my yesterday's post, it came out it wasn't Peter who's moved to Chiseldon but his manager Andy Boyd. Peter is still in his "24 hours" mansion.
And to the guy who asks what Bilo means, I'm not too sure but I think Mr. Peter Doherty senior renamed his son "Billy Bilo" after the character from a comedy they both loved. Maybe my Brit mates might give you a more detailed answer on the matter.
Peter played Norwich last night. "Pete was on from 9-11 30 and was more than happy to play whatever requests were shouted" says Ricky Foley "After DLBITTS the order gets blurred....New One "I haven't finished that one yet"/ Can't Stand Me Now - Palace Of Bone -Merry Go Round - Unbilotitled - A Fool There Was - Lost Art Of Murder - Breck Road Lover - Killamangiro - Don't Look Back Into The Sun - East Of Eden - Love Reign O'er Me - Ballad Of Grimaldi (instrumental) - Tell The King (intro only) - What Katie Did - Gang Of Gin - Arcadie (with Chris Rotter, I think that was he's surname) - Sheepskin Terraway (with Dot Alison) - Death On The Stairs - Salome - Beg, Steal or Borrow - Fuck Forever/The Blinding/Fuck Forever - Time For Heroes - Albion (dedicated to Johnny Rythmn who died last night RIP) - I Wish - What A Waster - Music When The Lights Go Out - Up The Bracket. He played a few that seemed to be covers requested as well and or perhaps new ones I haven't heard., I remember some ska number and a funky one with a lyric "I don't know what the future may be/bring". It was a good performance with Pete having a lot of banter with the crowd and as I say willing yo play songs when shouted to him in the usual way. There seemed to be times when people didn't know the song he was playing and would just talk which was frustrating. I think at one point he said "well if your bored the door is over so piss off". I sooooooo glad to hear Breck Road Lover as that's my favourite and was good to hear Merry Go Round and A Fool There Was, which took me by surprise. He started off playing and singing brilliantly, however the more alcohol he drunk and the long he play the shitter he's playing got and he forgot lines. Ironically I think he played best on the songs fewer people knew and when it came to the likes of What A Waster, Up The Bracket and Albion he played some shockingly bad guitar lines but people didn't seem to care as long as it was one of the old hits they could sing along to".
There's an appearance on Jonathan Ross scheduled at the end of the month. From NME.com:
"Pete Doherty will finish his current solo tour by playing London's Troxy on March 29. It is currently unclear whether Doherty will be joined for the gig by his solo band, who include Graham Coxon, members of Babyshambles, producer Stephen Street and a string section.In other Doherty news, the former Libertine has confirmed he will appear on BBC1's 'Friday Night With Jonathan Ross' on March 27. It is the third time Doherty has appeared on the show, although this time he will primarily appear as a performer rather than an interviewee. Doherty is midway through a UK solo tour".
Last night Zane Lowe aired an interview with Peter where he talks Libertines reunion (see photo above). The interview was done before the NME awards shenanigans so it's a bit old (you can dowload it here), but according to Peter John Hassall is "up for it" and Gary Powell "will do as he's told". Carl is still pictured as the naysayer. So much comedy in all this. Who wants to bet the famous 1 million pound (or was it 2?) is already inside their pockets?
Speaking of which, Peter has left his Marlborough cottage and moved to a farmhouse in Chiseldon, near Swindon, Wilts.
Peter played a very long show last night at the Southampton Guildhall. "WOW that was amazing" says Blue Eyes "Peter was on great form".
"Wasn't a memorable night" says Lookandy "but he did play some old Libs rarities like 'Hooray for the 21st Century', 'Gang of Gin', 'Bucket Stop', 'All At Sea' and a couple more I can't remember now which was nice but nobody knew what they were. Then there were the predictable singalongs. It wasn't really shit but it wasn't that good at all. Loads of songs tripping over each other with Pete stopping halfway through, missing key lines, not playing guitar sometimes and incoherently playing his harmonica. Did a nice rendition of 'For Lovers' though".
Setlist (not in the right order): Can't stand me now, Gang of gin, She is far, Music when the lights go out, Arcadie, All at sea, East of edan, Salome, New love grows on trees, The Ha Ha wall, The blinding, Death on the stairs, Lust of the libertines, Hooray for the 21st century, The delaney, The man who would be king, Bucket shop, Don't look back into the sun, Fuck forever, Sheepskin tearaway, Tell the king, Time for heroes, For lovers, Albion, Campaign of hate, I wish.
Back to my island it's all sunny beaches and blooming flowers, and suddenly I wonder why when I'm in London I miss this place so much and when I'm here I just can't wait to go back to Blighty. But, c'est la vie.
What happened to the boys in these days?
Peter kicked off his UK tour with a gig in Cardiff, where he played all alone. The setlist was slightly different from the other nights (thanks to exploding dim-wit): music when the lights go out, fuck forever, dilly boys, ballad of grimaldi, time for heroes, ha ha wall, lady don't fall backwards, salome, love reign o'er me, albion, new love grows on trees, lost art of murder, killamangiro, merry go round, arcady, what a waster, sheepskin tearaway. Photos by Deadyankee.
Last of the English Roses didn't make it to the Top 40. Apparently it stalled at n. 67. I don't know why I'm having a hazy deja-vu feeling.
And now something about Drew. Alison LMHR wrote this to FDW:
"Hi guys, this is Drew's new login and he's asked me to let you know that he'll be playing at Kieran Leonard's Gaslight night tomorrow (Sunday), and will be joined by Kyle Falconer of The View fame. It''s at The Hideaway, 114 Junction Road, N19 5LB. Near Archway tube. It's £2 to get in and it kicks off at 8 and goes on until 1. No idea what time Drew's on sorry. Drew will be back on tour with Peter in Brighton on the 19th".
Grace/Wastelands has the curious status of offering the most convincing account of Pete Doherty's talents, yet at the same time conveying the limited parameters of his artistic reach. It's when he's at his best that one can most clearly gauge his limitations, and they don't leave him much room to move here. Too many of these songs are slim ideas polished to an almost respectable lustre by arrangements which try to add colour to Doherty's monochrome presence without trampling over his anomie.
It works reasonably well on "A Little Death around the Eyes", where creepy organ and strings lend the song a touch of Bond-theme glamour; and on "Arcadie", where acoustic guitar and brushed snare astutely capture the singer's blithe spirit. But elsewhere, things fall badly apart, particularly the ghastly jazz pastiche of "Sweet By and By" and "Palace of Bone", a song about "times together winding on that snaky road". But the weakest aspect of the album is its predictability, from the Tony Hancock reference ("Lady, Don't Fall Backwards") to the self-reflective tone of "I Am the Rain". Sooner or later, even Pete's dwindling band of acolytes is going to grow bored with his slim volume of conceits, and the Libertines reunion had better be well in hand when they do. Pick of the album:'A Little Death around the Eyes', 'Arcadie', 'Last of the English Roses' .
Alexis Petridis (The Guardian): ****
Pete Doherty is famously a fan of the traditional British sitcom: he has referenced The Likely Lads, taken the stage to Steptoe and Son's theme tune and this, his debut solo album, concludes with a song named after Lady Don't Fall Backwards, the unfinished whodunnit that drove the Lad Himself to distraction in Hancock's Half Hour. So perhaps it's fitting that Doherty's own career now bears a resemblance to the most traditional British sitcom: Last of the Summer Wine. Given the climate, you might have expected it to have been axed years ago, but against all odds it still seems to be trudging on. The audience is dwindling, the cast keeps changing and it's getting difficult to find anyone with a memory long enough to recall why it was thought to be workable in the first place. At some point in the past, people must have laughed along with it, although every time you catch a glimpse of it now, you're struck by how depressing it all is: it's meant to conjure up a charmingly romantic image of a lost England, but something about it makes you think of lethargy and boredom, of homework not done. Yet someone keeps bankrolling it, so that another rickety contraption can be built and optimistically pushed down a hill, with messy yet thumpingly predictable consequences. So it is that Grace/Wastelands arrives with a sigh of "Are you still here?" rather than the excitement it might once have engendered: not even the news that Blur's Graham Coxon is on hand to help haul Doherty's bath on wheels up the slope has caused much of a ripple. He was recruited by producer Stephen Street, whose continued presence suggests a laudable generosity of spirit, given the shoddy goods he was expected to work with on the last Babyshambles album. He did his best, but failed, in much the same way as Heston Blumenthal might struggle to create a Michelin-starred meal entirely from oven chips and Reggae Reggae Sauce. Perhaps Street returned on condition that Doherty came up with some decent songs. Certainly something set him scouring his unreleased stockpile for gems. There are tracks here that date back five years, before the tabloids turned up and Pete became Potty. That might account for the album's frankly astonishing surfeit of memorable tunes; it would certainly explain the lack of smirking references to heroin and crack and of the snivelling self-pity that makes junkies such reliably delightful company. Admittedly, neither are entirely absent. Arcadie comes with a nudge-nudge line about "seraphic pipes", while Sheepskin Tearaway and Sweet By and By return to the perennially winning themes of how it was everyone else's fault that he got chucked by Kate Moss and how it was everyone else's fault that he got kicked out of the Libertines. He squanders one of the album's loveliest melodies on the former, even reverting to that terrible spare-any-change-please whine he kept using on Babyshambles' catastrophic Down in Albion. But for the first time in a long time, smack and solipsism don't seem to be the whole point. Instead there are songs like the genuinely brilliant 1939 Returning, on which the lyric shifts from an ambiguous portrait of an Englishman in Germany during the second world war - he could be a spy or traitor - to a pensioner recalling her years as an evacuee. Midway through its chorus, there's a beautiful, unexpected chord change, subtly highlighted with strings and a single, tremolo-heavy guitar note. Like the echoing guitar that weaves eerily in and out of the vocals on New Love Grows on Trees, and the lovely, seamless segue between A Little Death Around the Eyes and Salome, it demonstrates the delicacy with which Street and Coxon add shade to Doherty's songs, lending the album a unifying air of understated, small-hours melancholy. The result isn't perfect, but it's the first album Doherty has been involved with since the Libertines' debut not to require any special pleading. Whether it's enough to arrest his downward slide is an interesting question: there's a distinct possibility that it's now too late, that he's still doomed to see out his days in Last of the Summer Wine style, beloved of a shrinking cabal of dutiful diehard fans, ignored or mocked by virtually everyone else. Listening to Grace/Wastelands, it's hard not to feel that would be a shame. There might still be more to Pete Doherty than an interminable, unutterably depressing comedy of errors.
Ok. So: Peter concluded his Parisian sojourn last night with a private show which saw the participation of the full Babyshambles line up. "They played at the Neoclub" says Oli "a small night club near the Champs Elysées. Almost accurate order: baddie's, there she goes (a littl h), fuck forever, unstookie, I wish, Killamangiro, Beg steal borrow, Back from the dead, Sedative, Pipedown, Side of the road, and in the middle a bit of Alone Again Or and two songs i didn't recognize (probably two covers). One hour of a pretty shambolic set, the kind which ends with destroyed mics, crowd surfing, and now there's a big hole in neoclub's ceiling. But no real violence nor aggressivity. Peter was really smily, but just terribly exhausted at the very end of the gig. Impressive drumming, and Drew did really the job too. Peter's guitar was less subtle than the previous nights... it was like playtime after the acoustic sets! Surprisingly the crowd was rather good (well, acceptable) - most of people around me were actually there for the music, and many people left the place right after the gig".
"This was an absolute blinder of a set" says the omnipresent Anjali "Great setlist, great chemistry in the band, no cunts in the audience (only the most hardcore french fans and the fashion week crowd), everyone was in good spirits... Peter made a point of destroying pretty much everything around him, micstands, drumkit (while Adam was playing), amps, lightbulbs on the ceiling... he almost hurt himself at one point, kicking his own nose with a guitar the club was a very low-ceilinged cave-like affair but he still managed to crowd-surf and climb onto sofas and speakers at the side of the stage. all in all an extremely enjoyable performance, great closer to the Parisian Shambles week".
Peter is also interviewed by The Sun for the Something For The Weekend section. The interview is out tomorrow but the rag is giving some hints today.
The man should be back to Blighty today where he's supposed to celebrate his 24th birthday. Oh I wish a huge happy birthday to Coxie too, who's turning 40 (and this is for real).
Tomorrow Peter is kicking off his UK tour. Stay tuned for more and more stuff!
Last night Peter played his second show at the Bataclan, Paris. The most complete report of the night comes from RockerParis.
We also have another beautiful set of photos by Emelineuh on Flickr.
And by nFabula.
RockerParis has also a report of the famous bus ride before the show.
Back to G/W, Q magazine gives 4 stars to the album, with this beautiful review by Rob Fearn (thanks to Onibarker for writing it down):
Peter Doherty - Grace/Wastelands.****Just when all hope seemed lost, rock’s most hopeless case pulls himself together. With a little help from that nice Graham Coxon from Blur. It’s a long time since Peter Doherty’s music was the story, rather than the chaos that surrounds him. Take the example of Shotter’s Nation, the second Babyshambles album, released in October 2007. The veteran Smiths/Blur producer Stephen Street deserved praise for bringing the band’s haphazard garage rock into focus. A handful of songs (Delivery, UnBiloTitled) stood out. Yet the big Doherty news of that month concerned one of the singer’s kittens, which, according to the Sun had been taught to use a miniature crack pipe. “Sickened” associates of the singer apparently told the tabloid that the moggie suffered from mood swings and the delusion that it could fly. Since then, Doherty has exchanged London’s druggy underworld for the relative calm of Paris and rural Wiltshire. But while the media glare might be less intense, Doherty still finds himself with a mountain to climb: can this first solo album - sandwiched in before a third Babyshambles record later this year - possibly feel like anything more than a sideshow? For the first time since The Libertines imploded, the answer may be yes. Once again Stephen Street handles the production and recruited at his suggestion is Blur guitarist Graham Coxon, who plays on most of the songs, alongside Doherty’s Babyshambles bandmates. It’s possible that the experience was not 100 per cent positive for Coxon - he recently described Doherty as “a scumbag magnet” - but it still feels like an inspired move. Coxon is not called on to reprise the show-stealing guitar heroics of the Blur glory days. Rather, he’s a restrained presence throughout, adding jagged rhythms or classy acoustic support. But it’s likely that Coxon helped in more subtle ways too. The guitarist has battled his own demons in the past, and can presumably empathise with Doherty’s self-destructive tendencies; more importantly, he must have brought a degree of professionalism to the project. The result is an album that, for once, does justice to Doherty’s song writing talent. More than a few of these songs will be familiar to seasoned Doherty-watchers, from bootlegs, YouTube clips and live performances. Grace/Wastelands opens in trademark Dylan-esque style with Arcadie, a deceptively sweet acoustic sketch exploring the themes that have obsessed him since The Libertines, with a utopian paradise of “seraphic pipes” dissolving to a twisted sexual power play. Before long, though, the single The Last Of The English Roses serves notice that something new and pretty special is afoot here. It’s an epic affair that takes its cues from early-90s trip-hop (thunderous dub bass, squawking melodica) and ends up in similar melancholic territory to Damon Albarn’s London concept album The Good, The Bad & The Queen. Lyrically, we’re transported to a nostalgic world of playground fumbles with a girl who “could charm the bees knees off the bees”.From here on in there’s a sense that anything goes, as long as it isn’t guttersnipe indie rock. It can be no accident that the sole example of the latter, a stroppy Libertines-era relic titled Through The Looking Glass, was dropped at the 11th hour. In its place comes I Am The Rain, an engaging collaboration with The Bandits’ John Robinson, one of a number of queasy, acoustic selections that owe a debt to The La’s and The Coral. Broken Love Song, which Doherty co-wrote with his shady mate Wolfman, is a worthy sequel to their 2004 hit For Lovers, flecked with piano teardrops, like an indie rock Massive Attack. Elsewhere, snatches of ‘40s newsreel music and strings befitting a John Barry score add to the sense of adventure. Of course, Peter Doherty being Peter Doherty, he doesn’t know when to stop. How else to explain Sweet By and By, a regrettable exercise in pastiche - part music hall knees-up, part jazz-age whimsy - tied to one of those lyrics about an ex-lover’s betrayal that invariably reads like a comment on Carl Barat.
In the main, though, Doherty the lyricist is firing. The last Babyshambles album suffered from a wearying focus on drugs, dodgy mates and more drugs. Grace/Wastelands probably does contain one too many portraits of smack-addled-romance - try the listless Dot Allison duet Sheepskin Tearaway, with its description of a lover who’s “covered in scars and full of heroin”. But, perhaps because many of these songs predate the tabloid years, there is a broader canvas here. New Love Grows On Trees is a deft skewering of youthful folly as anything by Morrissey. And it’s hard to think of another contemporary songwriter with the confidence to jump from wartime vignettes of “London urchins playing in dust” (on the stripped down 1939 Returning) to the black humour of Salome. The Biblical temptress of the title appears to Doherty on the “coldest of nights” and, accompanied by the supernatural shimmer of strings and cymbals, demands the head of John the Baptist, followed by that of dancer Isadora Duncan, and finally “any bastard on a plate”.
So much, then, for Doherty the busted flush, who succeeded only in fulfilling the prediction of The Libertines’ debut single What A Waster in having “pissed it all up the wall”. Grace/Wastelands isn’t quite the defining statement of his genius that his cheerleaders always insisted was just around the corner, but it demolishes the charge that his talent has been fatally squandered. As the sage-like Coxon wrote on his blog recently, when Doherty “sees through the murk…he can really come up with the goods”. Rob Fearn
As for the NME review, it's positive enough (remember, the rating is 7/10), but the conclusion a bit cold (if righteous): "Where are the new songs, Peter?".
Carl Barat has been reviewed too, by The Guardian's Dave Simpson. Of course we are talking of one of his last Northern dates, not a new record (sigh):
Carl Barat - Escobar, Wakefield ***
Carl Barât has a dilemma: accept the reported £2m on the table to reform the Libertines with his old mucker Peter Doherty, or bide his time with friendly gigs such as this. "It's my first time," he grins sheepishly after picking up the wrong guitar. If he looks a trifle nervous easing into the first of two shows at this tiny venue (his first UK solo appearances since splitting his post-Libertines outfit Dirty Pretty Things), the crowd soon make him feel at home. Barât's career is at something of a crossroads since the demise of DPT, and while some of their songs feature in the set, he is in a Libertine mood. The lyrics of the wistful opener Music When the Lights Go Out - "the memories of the pubs and the clubs ... and the drugs we shared together, will stay with me forever" - gain poignancy in the stripped-down format. There's no Doherty, of course, but supporting guitarist Kieran Leonard joins for Can't Stand Me Now and subtly reminds us how - like Strummer and Jones, or Jagger and Richards - Barât is most effective when he has a foil.Elsewhere, Barât spars with the audience as they trade banter and vocals, the Libertine's special bond with his public undimmed. The atmosphere is special even when the songs are barely audible, and bodies fly as What a Waster crashes into I Get Along. With Doherty cleaning up his act, a Libertines reunion seems somehow closer at the end of this raggedly heroic show.
Pete popped in to see Xfm’s Steve Harris before the release of his debut album ‘Grace/Wastelands’. Among the subjects discussed were Johnny Borrell, Stephen Street and getting stitched up. Peter Doherty came in for a chat at Xfm. It was days before the release of his first album ‘Grace/Wastelands’ and the notorious hell-raiser was in spectacular form. Steve Harris was serenaded with bizarre tunes, treated to a frank conversation about his album and witnessed a few sideswipes at Johnny Borrell and Coldplay. Among the subjects discussed by the lucid frontman was the production of his debut album, how he’d been conned into making the MTV ‘documentary’ and how EMI refused to let him “die on a khazi”. You can listen to the spectacular interview again right here.
Many positive comments on Peter's first show in Paris last night (tonight there's a repeat, plus the bus thing). "A mental gig" Tenia says "with sometimes 9 people on stage: a trio of strings, Adam, Graham Coxon, Drew, a melodica player, a keyboard player (Stephen Street?) and Pete. With Dot Allison and Jack Robinson. 2 pre-show gigs: adam solo; alan wass + another guy. Then Pete & Co with a "classic setlist" (id est: like the other solo shows). Alan Wass went on stage not ONE but TWO times! Completly pissed and screaming on the mic! Then he was pushed in the audience by the security! And at the very end, Pete stagedived! Really funny!". "This gig was trulymagical" says Anjali "Broken Love Song was definite highlight, as well as Time For Heroes. If you've seen Graham Coxon play the solo to T4H then you can die. Peter was so together and played so well i could hardly believe it was him. Must have been an impostor. I've got so many images now in my head, it's hard to make sense. Drew being his usual adorable self and doing a little dance with his double bass, Adam giving it his all, Graham laughing at Peter's silliness, or pretending to kick him in the butt when he was taking too long preparing to start a song... there was such a great atmosphere, and the performance was immaculate".
First of all, Last of the English Roses is out today. So move you delicate littles arses and get down to the store. We want a high entry right? Yeah a high entry is surely better than a high Peter.
Apparently Peter was in Reading last night, where he popped up at a karaoke bar and had some fun singing old songs.
Of course today Peter is in Paris (see below)!
Peter also spoke to BBC6's Lauren Laverne and told her the Libertines will be back next year.
Actually the Libertines seem to be back already in Carl Barat's "solo" shows. This is the setlist of last night's gig at the Ku Bar, Stockton-on-Tees:
What a Waster. Music when the lights go out. Up the bracket. Ballad of grimaldi. Can’t stand me now. Deadwood. Bloodthirsty bastards. Time for heroes. France. Come closer. Man who would be king. Bang bang. I get along. (from Anjali, who took it from Ruth).
GIGS OF THE WEEK!!!
9 March - Peter Doherty, Paris "Le Bataclan" (starts at 20.00)
10 March - Ditto (not Beth)
13 March - Peter Doherty, Cardiff University (starts 19.30)
15 March - Peter Doherty Southampton Guild Hall (starts 19.30)
Carl Barat played his debut UK solo headline show in the Wakefield Escobar last night (March 6). Barat, formerly of The Libertines and Dirty Pretty Things. played songs by both bands as part of the set. The frontman had played a secret solo show at Glastonbury last summer and had supported Glasvegas in the USA in January, but last night's show was the first time he had topped the bill on his own anywhere. Songs Barat played as part of his set included 'I Get Along', 'What A Waster', 'Deadwood', 'Bucket Shop' and 'Time For Heroes'.
He plays again at the same venue tonight. See Escobarwakefield.co.uk for more information.
Setlist by Jimbob and Lucifer:
MWTLGO, Can't Stand me now, France, Up the bracket, Time for Heroes, Man who would be king, Come closer, Blood Thirsty Bastards, Deadwood, Grimaldi, Bucket Shop, I Get Along, Plastic Hearts, What a Waster.
"Great night" says Lucifer "venue was very small but great atmosphere".
There's a nice little message from Babybear on FDW today:
Hello folks, a couple of small but significant things to let you guys know about. We have just cemented a new deal with Teenage Cancer Trust today. This means that everyone who comes to our gigs pays.Now I know that sounds normal but what I mean is ..... everyone. From now on guest list places are no longer free for bigger shows and money goes straight to Teenage Cancer Trust https://www.teenagecancertrust.org/ collected by The Cato Trust http://www.catotrust.com/ in the memory of our friend Dan Squires who sadly passed away last year. Also, I'd like you to be nice if you see someone outside the flyering for TCT / Cato and if they have a bucket .... well time to get rid of that loose change that's been bothering you.Next up .... we are working as closely as we can with Love Music Hate Racism and they'll have activists and stalls at as many events we are involved with as we can. As most of you know we've supported this organisation for some time and Drew is highly active in the organisation. We do try and do as much as we can for this organisation so I hope it filters down and you guys get active too. We may be preaching to the converted to a certain extent here as most of you guys seem to abhor racism as much as the band and management but these guys will be able to keep you updated with the latest news in the fight against racism / fascism. So make sure you stop by and say hello to them and hear what they have to say in the millisecond it takes before a bouncer moves you on for blocking the stairs etc ....
bb
Speaking of which, LMHR has announced the venue for the 2009 Carnival:
"We are delighted to announce that LMHR's national 2009 Carnival will take in Stoke-on-Trent's Britannia Stadium, on Saturday 30th May. The 30,000-capacity event, organised in partnership with Premier League football club Stoke City and Stoke City Council, will be officially launched at the stadium on Saturday 21st March before the club's match with Middlesbrough - with tickets going on sale the same day. The LMHR Carnival 2009 website, with more details of the event including this year's exciting line-up, local transport information and much more goes live in the next two weeks - watch this space for more news".
Of course we'll be waiting anxiously for the exciting line-up!
Today The Independent gives away Mongrel's album and has an interesting article about this band. I was a bit puzzled after reading the NME review (4/10) but, as a funky music addict, I think I can say that I like it. I know, it's not original. I know, it's all already said and done. So? When talking about grooves does it really matter? No, of course. Up the Mongrel.
You can download it here (thanks to Half Cocked Girl for the tip) It's a long and emotional interview and Peter seems to speak straight from his heart. The past is past, but the present looks bright and the future even brighter. Topics addressed were: Michael Jackson and his blouses His 30th birthday "Pete" and "Peter" LOTER The gay kiss in the video His relationship with Carl Barat Marianne Faithfull Celebrity traps Regrets Salome Oscar Wilde (and jail) Wrong perception of his personality More celebrity traps A little death around the eyes The upcoming tour Wolfman Friendship Drugs Growing up Watchmen (the movie) Future plans More Carl Libertines reunion
The NME has also an article on The Road To Albion (the Libertines film) with some footage we already saw. But, enjoy!
The man knows how to do good promotion doesn't he? He should teach something to... Yeah Bilo is on NME radio tomorrow and confirms the Libertines will be back before you can say "What became of the likely lads".
Nearly.
Apparently he also fell out with Wolfie... sorry about that, but this looks like serious business.
Pete Doherty has declared that The Libertines reunion will definitely happen. The singer outlines his plans for his former band with Carl Barat in an interview with NME Radio which will broadcast tomorrow (March 6) at noon (GMT).
"Well, its going to happen," he told presenter Neil Cole. "Its unfinished business, isn't it?”. In the interview Doherty also discusses his plans to bring Graham Coxon on the road with him for his solo tour, though revealed that old friend and collaborator Wolfman would not be coming as the pair recently fell out.
Listen to the full interview tomorrow at noon (and repeated again on Saturday, March 7) via Sky 0184, Virgin Media 975, Freesat 727 and NME.COM/radio. You can also listen to NME Radio in London on 87.7fm.
So, excitment was building all day today as we awaited for Peter Doherty to arrive at NME Radio. Would he show? Would he be late? Would he confirm those rumours of a Libertines reunion which he let slip to Neil Cole when he grabbed Pete and Carl for their only joint interview after last week's NME Awards? Well, first up - Pete's on time. Actually, scrub that - he's early! Twenty minutes early, to be precise. He saunters into the studios, still wearing the rather dapper hat he was sporting at the awards, and is keen to get the interview under way. You'll have to listen to Neil's show on NME Radio tomorrow for the entire thing, but I can reveal that the subject of the Libertines reunion WAS discussed (of course!) and....well, it looks like it's on. The interview covered a wide range of topics - as you might expect, and pulled no punches. By far the most intense moment came when Pete was shown a copy of this week's NME, and reacted to Marianne Faithful saying that Pete had done smack "...to get attention and make him feel special". Pete reaction seemed saddened,angry and exasperated, and his response was equally forthright, calling Marianne Faithfull "..a despicable old hag"(!), and denying that heroin use was all about attention, rather that it was all about hiding away. Amazing stuff - make sure you catch the whole thing with Neil tomorrow on NME Radio.
Ce jeudi 5 mars entre 21h00 et 00h00, MIKL et l’équipe de l’Emission Sans Interdit recevront l'enfant terrible du rock, Pete Doherty dans le studio live d’NRJ. A quelques jours de ses concerts du Bataclan, Pete offrira aux auditeurs de NRJ une version acoustique de son 1er single, Last of English Roses. L’ex-chanteur des Babyshambles répondra ensuite aux questions de MIKL sur Grace/Wastelands, son premier album solo (sortie le 16/03).L'interview, les photos et vidéos de cette rencontre seront disponibles sur www.mikl.fr
Ahem: "Thursday 5 march from 9 pm to 12 pm (CET) MIKL and the staff of "Emission Sans Interdit" will host the bad boy of rock (eyeroll) Pete Doherty in the live studio of NRJ radio. Babyshambles' ex vocalist (did I miss something???) will answer MIKL's questions on G/W, his first solo album (out on 16/3). The interview, plus photos and videos, will be available at www.mikl.fr".
What you see above is the cover of the new NME. Of course there's a huge coverage of the Awards. But also:
a rave review of Peter's Glasgow gig entitled Reborn in Albion (the show is described as "his best live performance in years")
a poor review of the Mongrel's album (4/10). Sorry Drew, you'd better concentrate on Helsinki at the moment.
Peter was spotted (and blogged) while buying books in Paris yesterday.
Then he recorded a TV showcase for L'album de la semaine on Canal Plus (to be aired next week). Anjali was there and tells us: "cela dit, je reviens de l'Album de la Semaine et c'était très sympa je pensais qu'il ferait que les chansons de G/W, mais il a trouvé le temps de mettre What a Waster, Grimaldi, Fuck Forver, et d'autres anciennes". Translation: "He was very nice, I thought he'd only played songs from G/W but actually he found some time to do also What a waster, Grimaldi, Fuck Forever and other oldies".
Peter also went to the radio show Le Fou du Roi on France Inter (see video). "He just played LOTER" says Kmil "At the end, they all talked about how great he was dressed. And one of the guest said there was a huge gap between the agitated character created by the media and the person they had just seen".
PETER - He's supposedly in Paris recording TV shows (L'album de la semaine etc) but no gigs are officially scheduled until March 9 (i.e. next Monday).
CARLOS - The Barat-engine is warming up. This week we have:
Fri 6 Mar - Carl Barat + Kieran Leonard + Johnnythefirth at the Escobar, Wakefield
Sat 7 Mar - Carl Barat + Kieran Leonard + Last Gang + Danny Allison at the Escobar, Wakefield
Sun 8 Mar - Carl Barat at Ku Bar, Stockton-On-Tees
And since we've been talking about Helsinki, check this out:
Thursday 5 March 7.00pm – 2.00am at Proud Camden, The Horse Hospital, Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road, Camden, London NW1, we have a gig organized by http://www.peaceoneday.org/ with:
I Blame Coco
Helsinki
Akayzia
Plus Special Guest Appearances from:
Lowkey
Drew McConnell
The Eraserheads
Mattafix
And DJ sets from: DJ LIXO (GET ME), DJ TOM MURRY, DJ YEO
Helsinki, one of the musical side-projects of Babyshambles bassist Drew McConnell, are planning to release a full-length album before the end of 2009. The band, which features a rotating group of musicians including members of The Strokes' Albert Hammond, Jr., Fionn Regan and Kid Harpoon among others, are planning a 12-track album – with ten of the songs already recorded. The video for one of the songs, 'Ribtickling', which features McConnell as well as members of The View, can be watched exclusively on NME.COM(my ass. The video was "exclusively" posted on Breck Road Lovers on 2 Dec 2008, note by EZ). McConnell told NME.COM, "Helsinki is an entity that came into being unwittingly, a cloud of friends who at many points over the last two years found ourselves gigging and recording a handful of my songs for disparate reasons, ranging from charity endeavours to just finding ourselves in the same city with a few days to kill with itchy fingers. "We've now cut 10 studio tracks and plan to record two more and release a Helsinki record before the end of the year."
Photo by Ritskayaph
