Munich part two and gigs of the week

It seems last night's gig went on smoothly, at last. While all the German sites are still rife with furor after the "nazi-hymn" rendition of Saturday night, Peter played a good gig at the Backstage club in Munich.

Setlist by Niobe: the good old days - delivery - last of the english roses - a cover?? (something like nothing ever change) - hooligans on e - can't stand me now - salome - what a whaster - love reign o'er me - bucket shop - sheepskin tearaway - what katie did - fuck forever - music when the lights go out - never never - albion (with alan wass) - hired gun (with alan wass)

And now the gigs of the week:
Monday 30/11 Peter Doherty, Roses Kings Castles, Alan Wass at Essigfabrik, Köln, Germany
Tuesday 01/12 Peter Doherty, Roses Kings Castles at Uebel & Gefährlich, Hamburg, Germany
Wednesday 02/12 Peter Doherty, Roses Kings Castles at Kesselhaus, Berlin, Germany
Friday 04/12 Peter Doherty, Bad Hair Day, Adam Ficek at Debaser Medis, Stockholm, Sweden
Saturday 05/12 Peter Doherty, Bad Hair Day, Adam Ficek at Kulturbolaget, Malmö, Sweden
Sunday 06/12 Peter Doherty, Roses Kings Castles at Rockefeller, Oslo, Norway

The soundtrack of my life

The Guardian asked Peter what his all-time fave songs are and here is the answer:

The first single I bought …

Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers: That's What I Like (1989)
Growing up in an army barracks I remember hearing a lot of army-related songs, mostly about Hitler's genitalia or lack of, the QM's stores and one perennial favourite, that went something along the lines of "left, right, left, right, left" , which I could hear belting out from the parade square even as I put on the turntable my first ever single purchase – Jive Bunny and The Master Mixers, 'Thats What I Like'. Hell seeing days. For me this song was the soundtrack of your second to last enclaves of upwardly mobile underclass muttering disciplined, salute-signalled obedience to the very last enclaves of bona fide [t]officer class 'Ooray 'Enries.

The song that made me smile…

Derek B: Get Down (1987)
It was the 80s, I was eight and I can clearly remember the pool of blood from where one 'army brat summer activity' javelin instructor had carelessly thrust his spike through a pal of mine's head. This song cheered me up and I sat agog for many an hour, listening repetitively to the premiere UK hit pop artistes, Derek B and Easy Q. They spoke of a far-off place called east London. The furthest east I'd been was Tottenham Court Road. They spoke of"sticking sawn-offs up the noses of guards" and more intriguingly to my once innocent ears, some female acquaintance who had "two big things like basket balls and down below was like Niagara Falls". The bloody tape recorder ate my tape, but not before a vision was born.

My awakening to lyrics…

Chas and Dave: Christmas Jamboree Bag (1981)
To the bemusement and amusement of my schoolfriends and probably my family, the 12-year-old junkie rocker in training was an obsessive listener to the Christmas Jamboree Bag. These treasures were the north London duo's mass medleys of music-hall songs, a lot of which had never even been recorded before. They were lyrical, often melancholy, littered with single entendres and always melodic. Even as my eyes were being drawn to the volumes of war poetry in a downstairs closet, I was mesmerised by Harry Was a Champion, A Big Fat Fly Flew by Fat Flo's Flat, and 'Down the Road There was a Bloomin' Riot'. One later partly popped up as a crucial verse in a popular Libertines song: "the other night I goes to a ball and they calls me Cinderella/ and upon my coat I wears a button hole and they calls me a tidy fella/ next to me comes old Mother Brown, pulling up her railway socks/ says to me come and have another dance, cos its ain't quite twelve o'clock/ so off we go, round and round, but there's gonna be some trouble I know/ cos I got no buttons on me trousers/ and me pins ain't none too strong/ hurry up Mrs Brown I can feel it coming down, and it won't take none too long".

My life changing song…

The Smiths: I Started Something I Couldn't Finish (1987)
Somewhere between the pillows and the skies, amidst the stark satanic thrills of adolescent whimsy, there's a second-hand record shop. Lets say it's in Nuneaton. Let's imagine a wonky-fringed 15-year-old striding purposefully towards it with his paper round money in his hand. The week before he'd seen a strange apparition, a call to arms even: some right bramah had paraded out of the same shop, wearing a T-shirt saying 'Shoplifters of the world unite'. Later that day I sat in a room bedecked with QPR memorabilia and stolen library books, a chewed-up Derek B tape and a periscope from an Iraqi tank the old man had brought back from the Gulf... and my life changed for ever. I Started Something I Couldn't Finish cranked into life and something divine occurred to me. Within six months I had officially taken up residence inside Smiths songs 'Well I Wonder', 'Jeanne', 'Real Around the Fountain', 'Nowhere Fast'. I think 'The boy with the thorn in his side' made me want to pick up the guitar. 'This Charming Man' quickly made me put it down again and then 'Rubber Ring' left me in two minds.

My introduction to dance…

The Stone Roses: Fools Gold (1989)
Moving on... It's summer 1997, I'm dossing at my Nan's flat in London NW2 working at Willesden Green cemetery. By now I'm in possession of Benny, a crappy old Spanish guitar that is causing serious rifts in the domestic politics of Nanna Doll's gaff. My cousin Lee Cassidy had a flat in an opposite block. I sat gobsmacked in his kitchen before work one morning as he told me that he'd never listened to guitar music just dance, rave, jungle etc. "Hang on though Pete, hold tight...." and Fools Gold blasted out across the room. Bloody Hell, what the fuck is this? I looked at my cousin and then at my feet. Oh, this must be dancing.

A discovery by 'chance'…

The Skatalites: Marcus Garvey (1965)
One Saturday in the summer of 1997 it was my day off and I wasn't going to sit around at Nanna's being told to shut that bloody row up. I go up west with my little guitar, I play Meet me on the Corner by Lindisfarne. I get moved on. What can you do? You go home with your latest 'purchases', one of which is a Walkman that some careless lad left on a pub bench. You come out of Kilburn tube, because the barriers are being mended, take the 16 up Shoot-up Hill, and you fancy a walk, so you cut through Gladstone Park. There's an old rusting metal railway bridge and daubed upon it for as long as I can remember are the words Dollis Hill Mods with Mods crossed out and replaced with the word Skins and then Skins crossed out again and replaced with the word Mods. You have a look at the Walkman. Quite flash. You put the Walkman on, asteroids destroy Neasden and all the bells in all the churches in London clang like no one's business. I bounce home, trying to walk like a black kid as the Skatalites blow my tiny mind. '007' by Desmond Decker 'Rudy a message to you' by Dandy Livingstone... I felt like Saint Peter just as I passed the junction of Dollis Hill Lane and Damascus Close.

A source of hope…

Billie Holiday: Good Morning Heartache (1946)
Peabody Cottages, Bruce Grove, sometime in 2001. The rain was playing havoc with my attempts to finish my novel. What with the fact that my bedroom roof had just caved in. Aside from that, my girlfriend had ended another vicious row by running down Tottenham High Road in her negligé. The car that I'd bought off a young dole-scrounging, would-be superstar Johnny Borrell didn't fancy the trip (what with it being two hundred and seventy-five quids worth of absolute shite). The phone rang, my Jobseekers Allowance key worker was calling to remind me I needed to come in today as they had concluded their investigations into my false claims and I was to be issued with a demand to repay two years worth of benefit fraud. The phone rang again. It was BT. They were cutting the line. I stubbed my toe on the sideboard and stumbled down the stairs, cracking my head on the record player and spinning it into life. 'Good Morning Heartache' sang Billy Holiday at slightly the wrong speed. I made two promises to myself. I'm gonna have that chord progression one day. And I'm never buying a used car off Johnny Borrell again.

When in Wormwood Scrubs…

The Beatles: Free as a Bird (1977/1995)
There is a corner of some skanky Victorian gaol cell that is forever Billy Bilo's and it was there thatI squashed my ear up against the crack in a cell door and listened to 'Free as a Bird' coming out of the Screw's transistor radio from the landing below. "Turn it up Guv" I begged. He turned it down. "Whats that Doherty?" "Can you turn the radio up please Guv". "Listen to him, will ya, he thinks he's at the Camden Palace, this is Scrubs mate". "It's called Koko's now you fat northern cunt" I muttered under my breath. "No," came a voice from the next cell. "It's definitely Scrubs."
In fairness, the prison guard in question did turn the radio back up, but the song was ending, being followed on the Capital Gold playlist by 'Cool for Cats' by Squeeze. Well, you can't lose them all can you?

Peter being a bit of a dick in Germany

Peter and missus this morning in Munich

Nothing really serious but it seems the secret gig at the Atomic Cafe in Munich scheduled for last night didn't last much. According to Christian76 (.org): "Dohertys surprise gig yesterday night in Munich was aborted by the management of the venue cause Pete was singing "Deutschland Deutschland ueber alles" which was germanys national anthem till 1945. Half of the audience booed him off because of that and the venue did drag him off in the end. He tried to sing another song which wasn't allowed anymore so he threw his microphone at the venue manager". The offence was made even worse by the fact the show was being aired by a Bavarian radio station.

Well I don't think this will affect tonight's official performance, but please Peter... enough with nazi imagery, even if it's a pisstake. Morrissey was slaughtered for much less back in the day.

Two little snippets

Digg reviews Peter's Antwerp gig (rough transalation below):

TRIX, Antwerp, November 27, 2009
"He comes, he comes, he comes good that Pete" ... Apologies, but it was Thursday when a five year old child feverishly waiting for Christmas, waiting for Peter Doherty. Only the five year old child can be sure that Santa Claus and his shots will kick back on the rooftops. But the people in the sold Hof Ter Lo / Trix waiting, but there had to guess whether their very own St. Peter would show up.
In the series with only a guitar, was first Alan Was office to wait just get a break. The wait bearable, however, he did not. Was, an old friend of Doherty, he looked like the courage of desperation trying to scramble back to the '70s, a lot permed hair and a tight, velo hours, red pants. He murmured some to go and behaved like a boy with his first guitar in an Irish pub should be doing his thing at the local open mic. A boy who his musical talents have not quite classified, but all trained hard for the mirror on how the Rock'n Rolla to hang.
"Mary, where did you go"Sang the man. We must hope for her that she was hit far enough ...
Adam Ficek, Doherty's Babyshambles drummers in size, it already did a lot better off. He has toured for a year under the name Roses Kings Castles and even though his album bearing the greatest bells and whistles, but now he was completely rid of extras and just take the guitar.
He immediately kicked off with a cover of The Ramones, "Sheena is a Punk Rocker" and made an almost miraculous intimate number.
Ficek is a man with his charm disarmed his songs have a long way helps. He needs to concentrate on the narratives in his songs when listening "Stupid Little Shut Your Mouth" and dedicated to his dead horse 'Horses for Courses ", but at the end of his set, he still managed to give a funky twist "Entroubled. And so disappeared the last and only sober man of the stage.
Peter Doherty failed to materialize, like a real rock star and as befits his reputation even though he has managed to make diets. There were occasional already slightly nervous shuffling observed when Mr. Doherty for his infamous face fourth ten still had not shown.
But eventually, after some palaver, and under mild constraint, so we may hear later, pushed on stage.
There he stood, like a true but very drunken dandy in the rather dingy stage of TRIX. The gray, perfectly tailored suit stood him very well, but the beige hat and hung with gold arms and neck, gave him more the air of a poshy british lad.
"Feels like being a stand-up comedian. Does any one want to hear a song?". Certainly. The audience hung on the man's lips before he had released only one note, but increasingly on the podium, the more he is a stand-up comedian turned out, one that the humor of the situation must have . If you post any stories of people who pick him earlier that night completely drunk in a restaurant have this condition go beyond, one would think that his drunkenness was a kind of pose that he holds himself to feel less lonely on stage.
But not so, he allows even the Duvel and wine eagerly claim, although he always shares with the first row of neat.
Yet he knows some way to keep songs, thanks to the public that a large part of the lyrics from him know to take over. At the moment they get the chance to course, because he lets his numbers are slipping in a gepluk his guitar under the guise of an inimitable guitar solo. He stretched his number so happy to.
If he was completely sober have assisted, it would have been a piece of stripped down songs from the entire back catalog of The Libertines and Babyshambles.
He took almost no songs from his own solo repertoire, but controlled himself among the public about the Lall gum blowing bubbles, drawing-boards of The Libertines and receive sausige letters to his address, from songs like 'Dilly Boys', 'Shotter Nation' and 'Time for Heroes ".
To fill the stage, he also brought along two ballet dancers, who bluntly skipped across the stage. Even the surrealism of David Lynch had two ladies in a colorful outfit who were dancing like they were auditioning for the Russian State Ballet at the forefront of a zwalpende Doherty, not his films stopped.
His encores were deployed under a light force, but he still conjured "What Katy Did" and especially "Down in Albion The" out of his beige hat. For that last song was his colleague Alan Was (nowadays also nice to look in the Duvel glass) are meetoeteren on his harmonica, but not without occasionally from the spotlight to be pushed away by Peter himself when his position for wanted to claim back the microphone.
Hopefully he can that position behind the microphone far maintained. Up slightly less drunk.

And Carl says his solo album will be "the best thing he's ever made" (video interview here).

Carl to debut on the stage in January

OK Carlos, I think I can give you support for this thing, also because there's Sam Shepard involved. And as long as it doesn't interfere with your musical output I can cope with it.

Read on:
Sadie Frost will return to the stage in the new year to star opposite ex-Libertines musician Carl Barat, making his theatrical debut, in a new production of Sam Shepard’s 1980 play Fool for Love at west London’s Riverside Studios.
Fool for Love, which opens on 28 January 2010 (previews from 25 January), is the first production in a repertory season from theatre company Love&Madness. The season continues until 21 March with two more productions joining the rep: Shakespeare’s Richard III (opening 4 February), featuring Frost as Lady Anne, and a devised piece called Demi Monde, inspired by the designer and socialist William Morris.
Shepard’s 90-minute Fool for Love recounts a painful love story. In a seedy motel room in southern California, May (Frost) and Eddie (Barat) go back beyond their adult lives, back to the legacy of their parents and their parents before. As they challenge each other's versions of events, what emerges through broken images and scraps of remembered colours is a childhood which defines the rest of their lives.
The play was last revived in the West End in 2006 in a Lindsay Posner production led by Hollywood film stars Juliette Lewis (who, like Barat, also has a second career in rock) and Martin Henderson.
Frost returned to the stage earlier this year, for the first time since the beginning of her career, to star in the one-woman play Touched at Trafalgar Studios. Barat is best known as the former co-frontman, with Pete Doherty, and lead guitarist of the Libertines. His subsequent band, Dirty Pretty Things, broke up in 2008.
Commenting on his change of career direction, Barat said: “I have always wanted to act, so when Sadie and Neil (Sheppeck, artistic director of Love&Madness) offered me this I was very much up for it. It's certainly one hell of a challenge, but I'm really enjoying the process of collaboration.”
Frost said: “It has been amazing to have been asked to work with Neil Sheppeck and Love&Madness and I have loved the fact that, as a performer, I have been given the rare opportunity to be an integral part of the company’s creative process.” Sheppeck said that, with Frost and Barat, the company, founded in 2000, hoped to “attract a whole new audience into the theatre for the first time”.

by Terri Paddock

Irish dates rescheduled

Babybear posts to FDW:

It's my pleasure to announce that the Irish shows have been re-scheduled.
January 20: DUBLIN, The Academy
January 21: GALWAY, Heineken Green Spheres show at Roisin Dubh
January 22: BELFAST, Mandela Hall

Vote the Rockstar of the Decade

Oh come on. I know you want to.

Vote Peter
Vote Carlos

Rotterdam and Eindhoven

See Peter playing pool and hanging on the streets of Eindhoven (here)!

The man is currently wowing Dutch fans, with the only support of the faithful Ficek and the Superinnas.

Thanks to Frits for the review of last night's gig:

"I went to the Eindhoven gig yesterday, it was fantastic! The atmosphere was good, the crowd was not too bad and Peter was in great condition.
After 3 opening acts: a female rapper (awful), Alan Wass (drunk, but good) and Roses Kings Castles, it was time for Peter and the ballerinas. He played for almost 2 hours, talked to the crowd between songs and gave some kisses to some girls who stormed the stage. It was a great evening!
Here is some sort of setlist(songs I remember him playing, not in the right order):
Hooligans on E
East of Eden
The Modern Age(The Strokes cover)(he began with the intro of Unstookie Titled, but it seemed like he couldn't remember all of the chords)
Gang Of Gin
Delivery
Can't Stand Me Now
Forever Blowing Bubbles
What Katie Did
There She Goes
Music When The Lights Go Out
Love Reign O'er Me
Smashing
For Lovers
Don't Look Back Into The Sun
What a Waster
Arcady(dedicated to Graham Coxon)
Salome
Sheepskin Tearaway
Psycho Killer
Needle and Damage
Hired Gun (with Alan Wass on guitar)
Albion (with Alan Wass on the harmonica)"

We also have a review of the Rotterdam gig (here) in Dutch, but easily convertible in English with a google translator, and two videos: Billie Jean and Last of the English Roses.

Today is off and next stop is tomorrow in Antwerp (Belgium).

Stay tuned.

Rotterdam and the new NME

photo by William Veerbeek

"Well here we are in rotterdam" Adam twittered yesterday "it's raining, my hair's too fluffy but I'm dealing with it". Whatever, I can't find any review of the Rotterdam gig, neither in the press neither in forums. The only thing I found is the photo above, taken by William Veerbeek. There are also beautiful photos of the Utrecht gig on Flickr, by Rianne Groen (here) and Bellerebelle (here).
But! The new issue of the NME is out tomorrow and features an interview with Peter (boasting the rather sensationalist headline "Pete Doherty on life support!") where he tells us about his recent visit at the Swindon hospital and the upcoming Babyshambles tour.

That's all for now.

Gigopoulos

PETER
Nov 23 2009 8:00P - Watt Rotterdam, Netherlands
Nov 24 2009 8:00P - Effenaar Eindhoven, Netherlands
Nov 26 2009 8:00P - Trix Hall Antwerp, Belgium
Nov 29 2009 8:00P - Backstage Werk Munich, Germany

CARLOS (dj set)
Friday 27th November - Northern Lights CLUB NIRVANA, Clarence Yard, Wigan
Doors 10.00pm
£5 entry

Utrecht, 22/11/09

Norbert Pek doesn't talk about the gig but tells us of Peter's dj set (here, with video).

Rough transaltion:

For being Pete Doherty he looks pretty good. A blooming face. Meaning in life. When I walk past his locker room with my CD-case he's on the couch with a beautiful girl. In the large Tivoli room I put the first tracks for the approximately two hundred people who come immediately. Then walk a great figure in the dj-hutch. Pete Doherty. He scans the CD-carrying case, while everyone in the room to the loft stand and take photos and movies. Pete quickly turns into: Blue of Elastica. Someone put us down for beer. Then Pete has an idea. He does throw his hat and fifty euro. Pete: "We're doing a game, man. Who the first person to win the dancing gets fifty dollars. "I'll throw in fifty million, including cash Pete puts hat back on, and the match began. Pete runs No More Heroes by The Stranglers. Nobody dances. I turn This Charming Man by The Smiths. The hall continued to breathlessly to see Pete. He puts Stoned Love by The Supremes and someone starts to dance. That is a friend of Pete. That does not count.
Only when I All Day And All Of The Night The Kinks front design of a girl begins to move. "You know what they doing?" I tell Pete. I get a smile, a handshake, and all crumpled euro banknotes. At the end of his act Pete announces to me from the stage: "That's a good dj. Come on, save me. "I turn Set Me Free of, again, The Kinks. And what does Pete do? Dance.

Other videos:

DLBITTS + For Lovers

Last of the English Roses

What Katie did

A message to you Rudi

A crush on Peter

From This is local London:

Pete Doherty causes crush at Kingston's McClusky's
9:20am Saturday 21st November 2009

By Louise Robertson

Pete Doherty reminded fans of his rock star credentials by lighting a cigarette on stage at McClusky’s on Thursday night.
The troubled star created a storm when he rocked up to the Kingston club with Babyshambles, after a previous gig there was cancelled through illness.
Fans reported being crushed against the stage barrier as clubbers went wild for the act. One girl was spotted shouting she could not breathe and begging security to help.
Despite the pushing and shoving, and someone trying to throw a shoe on to the stage, the mood was positive and Pete took time to shake hands with those dedicated enough to push their way to the front.
At one point he tried to light a cigarette with a fan’s mobile phone, before realising it was not a lighter.
Queues to the gig snaked around TK Maxx, as there were only 100 tickets available on the door for the night, organised by New Slang.
Superfans Francesca Galluzzo, both 24, got there at 6pm to secure their place at the front of the queue, despite Babyshambles being scheduled for a 10.30pm start.
Miss Galluzzo said: “I can’t explain how excited we are. It’s not even a situation where we’re fans, it’s beyond that. I’ve lost count of how many gigs we’ve been to.”
Richmond teenager Sam Fryer also got there early and said he was “freaked out” when he heard his hero was playing so close to his home.
The 19-year-old said: “I just love the romance of it all. At first it was all about the Libertines before the Pete and Carl Barat bust up. I just love the poetry of it all and how they so loved each other but hated each other at the same time.
“When I was younger I was literally addicted, I just could not stop listening to them.”

Francesca, if you're there speak up! We want to hear from you!

Shambles in Kingston

NME.com has a short review of last night's gig:

"Babyshambles played a club gig at the Kingston McClusky's venue last night (November 19) – playing a cover of Happy Mondays' 'Kinky Afro' to open their set.
As well as the cover, Pete Doherty and his band included new songs 'Fireman' and 'Stranger In My Own Skin' in the setlist, plus another untitled new number later.
The four-piece also played crowd favourites including 'Delivery', 'Killamangiro' and set-closer 'Fuck Forever' – with fans crowd-surfing towards the stage as the set ended.
Doherty now heads to Europe for a solo tour".

Khalim12 says: "Was a great gig, crowd was ok, some pricks though. Pete looked really disheartened when no one reacted to stranger in my own skin, I really like it. Fireman is really good as well. Sometimes I get the impression pete gets bored by it all. Fuck Forever was amazing... Overall I thought it was really good".

Shambles freshman Buk tells us about his experience: "Last night at Kingston was the second gig I've managed to get to so far, although I have tickets for upcoming ones already booked. The first time was at The Roundhouse in Camden and I was mesmerised. I thought he had absolute control of the songs, the band and the audience. Last night was a very different experience - at times both he and the band were superb and his rapport with the audience is really good, but the venue was truly awful. The security procedures to get in were a real pain, the majority of the audience seemed more interested in getting pissed and the sightlines were frankly shit. It was just hard to hear or see anything. I think Pete did his best - throwing in some of the great songs to keep us happy and the momentum going, as well as testing new material. Overall I enjoyed it, but I hope the next time I see him and Babyshambles, they've sorted the technical stuff out and that the audience are there for the music, not the cheap booze".

Setlist:
'Kinky Afro'
'Carry On Up The Morning'
'Delivery'
'Beg, Steal Or Borrow'
'Fireman'
'Side Of The Road'
'There She Goes (A Little Heartbreak)'
'Stranger In My Own Skin'
'Pipedown'
'I Wish'
'Pipey Magraw'
'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles'
'UnBilotitled'
'Killamangiro'
'Time For Heroes'
'Unstookietitled'
Untitled new song
'Baddie's Boogie'
'Albion'
'Fuck Forever'

Now YOU vote!

Normally I don't do these things, I know these charts are generally useless and after all it's only a matter of taste, but I'm totally fucked with the idiot comments I've read yesterday in the press about the NME "Best album of the decade" chart. You know, the "Up the Bracket of the Libertines, former band of the junkie rocker Pete Doherty...", the "Pete Doherty has 3 best albums of the decade!" (excuse me???), the "Arthritic Monkeys are the best band ever, not those drugged losers!" (yeah I read that too).

So please guys, get voting.

Here for Up The Bracket
Here for The Libertines

Vote for the junkies, for the losers, for the tossers! Whatever. But vote!

Carl comments the NME chart

Lack of sleep??? Mmmmm...

Thanks a lot to Carmine for the (witty) transcription!

NME 'The Libertines emerged at the start of the decade - hazy days?'
CBeebies (haha): 'I just remember the excitement of the routine of recording 'Up the Bracket.' Fallinmg asleep recording 'Radio America' - banging my head on the microphone because i was that battered. Mick [Jones, producer] stopping the sessions to watch Eastenders and us all sitting around the dinner table every night.'
NME 'Then it all got a bit more intense...'
Crazy Bat: 'Later all our lives changed and everyone got a bit wilder, in a bad way. The second album was a blur. It was an intense time, all sorts of emotions going round I didn't understand at the time - now i can look back and maybe think that it might just have been due to lack of sleep, some of the...Spinal Tappings.'
NME 'What Do you remember from that time?'
Carlos Whisper: 'Having a bodyguard each was a bit weird. When we first went in on the first day we almost had a massive ruck. We managed to break away from our guardians and flew at each other.'
NME: 'What do you think of the album now?'
Chewable Bottom: 'I didn't feel this at the time, but... you write lyrics and you only realise what you're writing about afterwards. If we'd set out to write honestly what was going on at the time I don't think it would have had the same effect. It's like the Velvet's album, some people say they heard it and then started a band - I couldn't ask for anything more.'

The printed interview is traceable in the new issue of the New Musical Express, out today.

Up the Bracket is the best British album of the decade

At last the truth has been restored! The NME's chart of the 50 best album of the last decade is out, and the Strokes' "Is This It" tops the chart, followed by the Libertines' first album at number 2. "The Libertines" is also in the chart (at number 24) and so is "Down in Albion", Babyshambles' first effort, at number 35.

You can see the whole chart here.

It's a great achievement for the guys, and maybe it will help to give them a little perspective of their real value.

Peter, Carl, John, Gary, you were the best musical thing of the last 10 years.

We want you back.

Together.

Gigs of the week

BABYSHAMBLES
Thursday 19 November
New Slang at McCluskys, Bishops Hall, Kingston upon Thames, United Kingdom

PETER
Sunday 22 November
Tivoli Oudegracht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (Roses Kings Castles supporting)

And now a tip: MatteoAlbion (Pete Doherty Italia Forum) met The Ficek in Italy last week and he said a new Shambles EP will be probably released in February, with the full CD expected in Spring.

Last days recap

Been easyjetting again, so I think I need a quick recap of the last things:
1. The Ashton-under-Lyme gig. Totally ignored by the Lancashire press, Peter's last gig at the Underground Live (sans Babyshambles) was mildly appreciated by the buffs. The only review comes from the old libertines.org, particularly a guy who calls himself "skagskagskag". Read on:
"was actualluy a really great gig.
turned up early on time and was totally with it.
played for the best part of two hours, me and my mates put together a setlist of what we can remember, no particluar order:
cant stand me now
delivery
man who would be king
tell the king
death on the stairs
last of the english roses
albion
fuck forever
beg steal borrow
dont look back into the sun
time for heroes
what a waster
ha ha wall
hooligans on e
for lovers
gang of gin!!!!!!!
whole world is our playground
music when the lights go out
and a shit load of covers:
someday - strokes
half the world away - oasis
ask - smiths
only fools and horses theme tune
mr postman
i wanna be adored - stone roses
waterfall stone roses
another girl another planet
sure ive missed a few but he was great. grabbed a spliff from someone in the crowd aswell which was quite funny.
was also a incident where he punched some kid for trying to steal his hat, the guy was being a twat though. some kid from the first band on, The Fayre, came and played drums on the last few songs also. he was insanely good, absolutely nailed fuck forever. pete was buzzin of him. his own band were pretty ace aswell when they played earlier on. didnt rate the other two".

2. Saturday night. Peter kindly turned up at the tribute for Dale Massey (the unforgettable ProperBo of FDW who died a few months ago) scheduled at 126 on Saturday night. Unfortunately, and certainly not by his fault, his semi-announced presence attracted a lot of people who had never known Dale and clearly didn't care for him, but went there only to see Peter (who in any case didn't perform). That's fame innit.

3. Adam was dj-ing in Italy last week, namely in Arezzo (Tuscany). He easyjetted back too on Saturday (not in my same plane).

4. I don't know if I should talk about Carl Barat's latest bizarre activities. This is a blog strictly related to music so stage acting is not contemplated. oooooo. Jokes aside, since I know many people also care for him in general, I'll try to give some shallow updates:

Carl has apparently suspended work on his solo album to dedicate himself to acting. He's got two things going on at the moment: one is a movie directed by his pal Jon McClure, taken from the latter's recent book, a "big rant" entitled "Lies". "It'll have Howard Marks in it" said McClure "a wrestler, some other friends. Carl Barat has said he wants to be in it. I'm beating them off now, I tell you. Brad Pitt will be next..." (for Jon's complete interview, featuring other Carlos-related rants) go here.

Carl has also been working with actress and producer (and professional ligger) Sadie Frost on a mysterious play which probably will premiere in some West End theatre early next year. The only thing I know is that last week a poster has been shot for the play by the legendary snapper Roger Sargent. So, good luck to Barat for this new adventure, with the hope he will get back to rock'n'roll as soon as he can.

The Dirty South gig

Beautiful photos by Silentalibi.

"Brilliant gig" said Kutschi "band was on form and the crowd was mental".

pat_fish86 wrote instead: "The performance could've been worse but the set was pure shit". Pat didn't like the new songs.

And Decembers didn't like the crowd:
"I'm truly disappointed by some of Babyshambles' "fans" though" he wrote "I could hear that Sunderland girl shouting "I LOVE PETE, HE GAVE ME HIS BOTTLE! HE SPOKE TO ME!!! AAHHHH!!! THERE'S ADAM!!!!!" (it was drew) from the bus stop. They were running around barefoot from door to door looking through the windows to see who they could hassle next. i felt rather sorry for the guys...I would have stayed in there all night if I saw that outside!
But then i was stupid to think it would be another Halo gig, y'know, where I could stand somewhere other than the stage without getting elbowed in the face".

Rutherina has the setlist:
"Was v. good tonight. Crowd were a bit unfortunate in patches but nevertheless lively and good humoured. Boys on good form and I reckon the new stuff sounded better tonight than it did at proud or halo.

They played:
Delivery
Fireman
Forever blowing bubbles
Baddies
Back from the dead
Barbarians/Natives at the gates of thingy
There she goes - featuring some of the lyrics from Love Cats
Beg steal
Happy Birthday
I Wish
Pipedown
Sedative
Then shambles went off and we had the skuzzies for a bit. Then they came back and we had:
Georgia on my mind
The 'I'll take the former' one... don't know what it's called. I've got all muddled with the new ones and their titles.
Albion
She loves you
Fuck forever

Oh and NME.com reviewed the gig too.

Babyshambles thrill Cricklade fans

Photo by Marcus Bond

Report of last night's gig from Swindon Advertiser:

FANS of Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty packed Cricklade’s Vale Hotel Inn for a glimpse of their hero as he made his way onto the stage.
The modest venue was packed to its 110 capacity with excited punters who travelled from all over the country, queued for hours and stumped up the £15 entrance fee for the gig, which was not announced until Monday evening.
Two support acts, Napoleon in Rags and 15-year-old Theo Altieri, warmed the crowd up to near hysteria. And the main attraction took to the stage at shortly before 11pm sporting his trademark trilby, complete with cigarettes in the hatband – yelling “Hello Cricklade!”
Fan Ben Brown, 21, a business studies student from West Swindon said: “I would have travelled any distance to see Pete and I’m ready for an epic night.”
And Zoe Mead, 21, a local musician from Grange Park, Swindon said: “This is a huge encouragement for local musicians. I can’t believe they’re here.”
Pub owner, Mike Ingle said: “It’s a great thing for the local community in Cricklade and for the music scene.”

Shalco (FDW) said: "Fantastic gig. Great new songs. Played for about an hour and a half, in excellent form".
Shalco also took a bunch of excellent pictures (here).

And Adam twittered: "just got back from cricklade, very messy and far too much sweat. next stop - London...am knackered".

Peter duetting with Anto

Peter was in Paris yesterday, and he popped up at the show of Italian singer Anto Dust at the Motel, duetting with her for a couple of songs, including Can't Stand Me Now and She Loves You.
(thanks to Anjali for the info and the pic).

Preview of the Swindon gig

From Swindon Advertiser:

Pete Doherty to perform in Cricklade pub
10:00am Wednesday 11th November 2009

ROCK wildman Pete Doherty is set to perform in Cricklade tonight.
The Babyshambles frontman is due to appear with his entire band at the Vale Hotel in Cricklade High Street.
The band will be supported by Fred Hot Chilli Peppers (who????).
Vale Hotel owner Mark Ingle said: “It is the biggest thing to hit Cricklade. It is fantastic and incredible to get such a celebrity.
“Pete is a very talented guy and I have a lot of time for him. I can’t wait.
“The support from the Cricklade community has been great. A guy rang from London and wanted to buy 100 tickets. But it is first come first served.”
Gig organiser Robert Baker arranged the performance in 48 hours. He said: “I think it will be mostly local people from Cricklade and Swindon there. It will be a chilled out affair with some good music. Babyshambles gigs happen quite often at the last minute in London.”
Mr Baker said Babyshambles is expected to perform new tracks from an upcoming album next year as well as old classics.
Doors open at 7.30pm and entry is £15.

Gigs: Update

BABYSHAMBLES SHOW CONFIRMED THURSDAY - DIRTY SOUTH - LONDON - LEWISHAM.
expect more new songs and the chance to drink liquid.
(twittered by Adam)

Dirty South
162 Lee High Road
Lewisham
London SE13 5PR
Tel: 020 8852 1267
website: http://dirtysouthlondon.com/
Tickets here
£12.50 advance or £15.00 on the door.

Plus! There's still this to be clarified (but unlikely to happen at the mo).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Babybear's recap:

Swindon 100%
The Dirty South 100%
London show .... not 100% until they explain their shoddy advertisement and apologise profusely for it.
Ashton Under Lyme 100%
Babyshambles working their socks off 100%

Later!

Can't Stand Me Now song of the decade?

Yeah, for Russell Brand.

Read on (from Xfm.com):
Russell Brand has taken a stand in our search for Song Of The Decade. The comedian, broadcaster and squeeze of Katy Perry has nominated ‘Can’t Stand Me Now’ as the best song of the last ten years.
Brand was effusive in his praise of one of The Libertines’ best known songs.
“I like it because of the romance of The Libertines as a group”, he said. “This song is like the zenith and nadir of [Karl and Pete’s] relationship. It’s perhaps their best creative achievement and also a beautiful hymn to the demise of their friendship”.
You can hear Russell’s full comments here.

Well, I would have said Time for Heroes. But it's ok somebody still remembers how great the Libertines were. All you seem to get in these "decade" charts nowadays is that Muse are the greatest band ever and Alex Turner the hottest hearthrob (ew).

Gigs of the week

Wednesday 11th November
The Vale, Cricklade, Swindon
Babyshambles gig
Doors at 7.30
£15 on the door.

Friday 13 November 2009 at 8:00pm
Underground Live
Ashton-Under-Lyne, Manchester
United Kingdom
Live sets from Pete Doherty plus support from Rum Diamond, Mutineers + The Fayrewith DJ sets taking you through to the early hours!
18+ only

Plus, some knees up for Mik's birthday on Thursday!
Stay tuned!!!

Babyshambles - Black Boy Lane @ The Halo, 06/11/2009

Thanks to Silentalibi!

The Halo gig

photo by Silentalibi

Babyshambles in full (plus exes) for The Halo gig last night, though it was initially credited to Peter only. According to many people the show was much better than Thursday night's, and the crowd was better too.

Word to Mrs Cravat (FDW): "Not sure where to start with this really. The night got off to a slightly ropey start with he who must not be named opening the gig with some poetry. He also filmed the entire gig on his laptop. I think lipstick melodies were next who can be a bit hit and miss sometimes but I really enjoyed their set last night. Scuzzies were next and peter joined them for a couple of songs. Then the general and aoc who were joined by members of both the other support bands and peter popped on stage again for a couple of songs. Again really enjoyed that. Finally shambles were on spectacular form joined by pat for pipedown and blackboy lane and a'rebours. Mik then joined them and played I wish, stone me what a life (always a surreal experience for me since it inspired my username ), delivery, back from the dead, beg steal or borrow, pipey mcgraw, bollywood to battersea, albion, dlbits and a good few new ones with perhaps a cover or two. The entire band was on amazing form from start to finish. Peter was in a very mischievious mood. One of the bouncers was clearly not impressed and peter pretended to collape so he rushed over and as he did peter strummed the guitar. He was also extremely reluctant to leave the stage when they tried to impose the curfew and I the bouncer seemed a bit intimidated by the resounding rendition of albion from the crowd when he got hold of an acoustic at the end. I was absolutely blown away by this gig. I love woodberry gigs anyway and it was like a giant woodberry gig. It reminded me why I love this band so much and what better than to share all this with some of the best mates anyone could have who loved it just as much as I did. Now for the bad news. Phone battery let me down again but I might just break my own rule and upload incomplete snippets so that you can see how truly immense this night really was. So worth 20 quid the debate over the admission was almost laughable".

The beautiful photo above comes from this gallery. Other pictures and a brief review can be found here.

Setlist:

Pipedown (with Pat)
Black boy lane (with Pat)
Arebours (with Pat)
I wish
Stone me
Stranger in my own skin
Back from the dead
Delivery
Fireman
BNP blues
Monkey casino
New song
Beg, steal or borrow
New song
Billie jean
Bollywood to Battersea
Dont look back ito the sun
Im forever blowing bubbles
Albion

Shambles at Proud

Reports from last night gig are controversial. Ronnie Joice twittered as soon as the show was over: "Babyshambles just went off. A terrific show. Absolute mayhem here now. Pete-mania at it's best".
Other people weren't so sure. Sampy (Pete Doherty Italia Forum) said: "I didn't understand a fucking thing tonight".
And Pat-fish86 (FDW) said: "Disappointing. I didn't think this was a very good show at all. I think they've run out of ideas when it comes to songwriting and the performance wasn't anything to write home about! It wasn't a 'great old shambolic gig' at all! and people who use Ronnie Joice's opinion as an indication of what's going on need to get a grip!"

Anyway... From NME.com:
Babyshambles played six new songs at a London club show last night (November 5) – including a new anti-British National Party song, 'The BNP Blues'.
Pete Doherty's band were headlining the Smash And Grab clubnight at Camden Proud Gallery. However, their set was almost shut down due to fans surging forward, with the crowd eventually spilling onto the stage near the end of the show.
They opened with new song 'Fireman', which Doherty introduced as, "About a junkie in Portugal – the only country England have never been at war with. Unless you count Australia".
'The BNP Blues', played later in the set, showcased a frenetic Sex Pistols-esque direction that typified the new material.
The set also included covers of two UK Number One singles from the '80s - Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean' and Pet Shop Boys' 'West End Girls'.
The show ended with a mass crowd invasion as the band ended with 'Time For Heroes' and 'Fuck Forever', following pleas from venue staff for fans to move backwards – Doherty instead urging them to surge forwards.

Babyshambles played:
'Fireman'
'Delivery'
'Beg, Steal Or Borrow'
'The BNP Blues'
Untitled new song
'I Wish'
'Billie Jean'
'West End Girls'
Untitled new song
'Baddie's Boogie'
'Unstookietitled'
Untitled new song
'Killamangiro'
Untitled new song
'Time For Heroes'
'Fuck Forever'

For the gossip mongers there's a mildly amusing gallery of piccies showing Peter (who stole Carl's last year coat) with the lovely Celine at Holy Moly.

And for the MJ nostalgic, here's a video of Billie Jean:

Preview of tonight's gig

Wow wow things are warming up quickly!
Adam twittered: We, meaning Babyshambles are playing in Camden tomorrow evening, look out for 6 new songs. don't wear red jeans or big trainers.
And then: full day today, rehearsals then camden giggle this evening.

Program of the night:
Support bands: The Old Romantic Killer Band, The Cheetahs
DJ set by the Queens Of Noize.
Babyshambles are expected at 11 pm

Babybear said: Proud have requested a stage time of 11 pm for Babyshambles. I have been dealing with the owner so I assume he knows what he wants and pehaps the person you spoke to hasn't been updated yet. As it stands nominal stagetime is 11pm and is unlikely to be before that.

Back to Adam, these are the dates of RKC November-December tour:
Weds 18th November - Nottingham - The Maze
Sunday 22nd November - Netherlands with Peter - Utrecht - Tivoli
Monday 23rd November - Netherlands with Peter - Rotterdam - Watt
Tuesday 24th November - Netherlands with Peter - Eindhoven - Effenaar
Thursday 26th November - Belgium with Peter - Antwerp - Trix Hall
Sunday 29th November - Germany - Munich - Backstage Werk
Monday 30th November – Germany - with Peter - Cologne - Essigfabrik
Tuesday 1st December - Germany - with Peter - Hamburg - Uebel & Gefaehrlich
Wednesday 2nd December - Berlin - Kesselhaus
Friday 4th December – Sweden - with Peter - Stockholm - Debaser Medis
Saturday 5th December - Sweden - with Peter - Malmo - KB
Sunday 6th December – Norway - with Peter - Oslo - Rockefeller
Wednesday 23rd December - Betsey Trotwood - London (not announced yet - only to you lot)

Happy Bonfire night to everyone!

Babyshambles gig tomorrow

Babyshambles Live at Smash and Grab
When: 05 November 2009 19:30:00 - 02:30:00
Where: Proud Camden, Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road, Camden Town, London
Cost: £8.00 per person + booking fee
Tickets here

The Invasion Of... (The Invasion Of ... Venice)

The first performance of The Invasion Of ...., Gary Powell's new band live from the Water Rats Kings Cross London 2009 (thanks to OneEyed MonsterTV)

The 50 Best Albums of the Decade

The first decade of the millennium is coming to an end, and people are starting to make lists of what was best and what was worst. When it comes to music of course the lists are about the best music produced in these last 10 years. To me, the best musical thing of this decade were the Libertines and their two albums, but it seems many people, and particularly the (Bristish) music press, are slowly forgetting them. "Uncut" has already published their list of the 25 best albums of the decade, with the White Stripes' first CD "White Blood Cells" topping the chart. "Up the Bracket" and "The Libertines" are nowhere to be seen. Of course there's no mention of Peter and Carl's other projects either. We might have a long discussion on this, but for the moment I'm showing you this other chart from Paste magazine, which sees Up The Bracket at n. 49:

49. Libertines: Up The Bracket [Rough Trade] (2002)
As the baffling boyband/poptart craze was finally fading into oblivion, this vile, filth-ridden, substance-addled masterpiece of a rock record was projectile-vomited onto the U.K. charts by brilliant but reckless London band The Libertines. Following in the footsteps of their classic-punk heroes (The Clash’s Mick Jones produced the record), the Libertines preferred their sound raw and their subject matter depraved. Sadly prophetic, the band’s name was derived from the Marquis de Sade’s Lusts of the Libertines. But before Pete Doherty’s infamous binges derailed what might’ve been one of the greatest bands of the modern era, he and co-frontman/songwriting partner Carl Barat (along with drummer Gary Powell and bassist John Hassall) cut this simultaneously apathetic and adrenaline-jacked speedball of a classic. Steve LaBate.

I think we'll see many other charts like that. For the record, Paste has Sufjan Stevens' Illinois topping the chart.