There is something about the Libertines that inspires devotion. Something that encourages people to travel to the ends of their country and beyond to experience their music live. Which maybe why so many were left aghast when joint front man / songwriter Peter Doherty became estranged from the band this summer. The idea that this band could possibly be taken away from us so soon felt like such a cruel twist of fate.
After all, how often does a band come along with such fire in their souls? That can take a three song tuneless stumble and turn it into a more enjoyable set that most bands can manage in their entire careers. Both sides continued to play however, Carl Barat taking on the full front man role in the Libertines, and honouring their touring commitments across the globe, whilst Peter played at tiny pubs and squats across London. Although the Peter-less Libertines were still a great live band, they missed the interplay between the two front men that made them so compelling. Peter�s gigs became so very difficult to watch. Each time, he looked more and more tired and worn, his usual cherubic face gaunt. His beautiful acoustically played songs seemed to be filled with loneliness and heartbreak.
So for those of us dreaming of when the two sides could reunite, who would have thought it would be on the day Peter was released from prison, for the burglary of Carl no less. A night billed as the Freedom gig, all any of the crowd really expected was an acoustic jaunt from Peter, and a couple of great supports in the shape of the Bandits and Cherubs. Until Libertines kept showing up around the building. First Carl fell through the door, well oiled from his day celebrating with Peter after meeting him from the prison gates. Soon after which Gary arrived, and then John (complete with Bernard Butler) so we had a full set. For the first time in months, all four members of the band were in the same room at the same time. And then on the stage hugging before surprising us all by starting an emotionally charged set with the ever beautiful �Seven Deadly Sins�.
It is then when it truly dawned on me what we had been missing. Here before us was a band that hadn�t as much as spoken to each other in months, and were stood in front of us playing like they had never been away. �Death on The Stairs� ushered in the familiarity of chaos, both on stage and in the crowd, with Pete and Carl back to using the same half working microphone and the crowd lurching forward to get closer to scene being played out in front of us. Sharing the vocals on �Don�t Look Back in to the Sun� for the first time since it became their biggest commercial success to date was something close to a revelation. As was hearing Peter scream the intro to �The Boy Looked at Johnny�. And �The Good Old Days�? Well, if there was a dry eye in the house it was only from adolescent boys trying to look tough in front of their girlfriends. Never had it sounded quite so life affirming.
The Libertines were truly back and what is even more exciting than what has passed, is that which is to come. A taster of which we received in the beautiful �Albion�, and the perfectly pop sing along of �What Katy Did�, with the entire room supplying the �Shoop Shoop� backing vocals. Ending with �Up the Bracket� brings this tale to its temporary end. Wherever The Libertines go from here, those of us that have seen this line up live should consider ourselves incredibly lucky. We�ve watched a band that are quite possibly the most important of our generation, certainly the most talented. They have the potential to be the biggest band that the world has ever seen, and with a second album promising to be better than the first, there�s no reason they shouldn�t be.
Thanks to Kirsty W of www.sophisticatedboomboom.com |
