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.