Nothing beats the sheer euphoria of having your skull caved in by stranger's elbows whilst having your eardrums pierced by the lyrics of your favourite song bleeding through the speakers a few metres in front of your face.Welcome to The Libertines.
It'd be incredibly difficult to even attempt to fathom a music scene that wasn't stormed by the creative majesty of Pete Doherty and friends, where would we be without the Anthems that fuelled our doomed youths?
For Fans Of: The Strokes, Dirty Pretty Things, Sex Pistols, The Clash, Nirvana
The Lib's headed up the post punk revival with aid from The Clash's Mick Jones who lent a helping hand with their first two studio albums. The lads debut, 'Up The Bracket' was released when I was a mere toddler, and not discovered by myself until around 13 years later, and since then I've had a good amount of time to dissolve myself into their music, romanticise with their discography, have their lyrics tattooed on my brain, and fall in love with their infectious aura.
UTB was closely followed by a raging self titled sequel in 2004, overflowing with heavy tracks and even more influential lyrics, and after more than a decade long hiatus, 'Anthems For Doomed Youth' rocked the music world and satiated the need for a long overdue re-emergence of the London hailing band.
Support: Whenyoung and Trampolene
Following on from outrageous sets from their two support acts, the lights went out and Pete Doherty, joined by his cohort of Carl Barat, John Hassall and Gary Powell entered the stage and filled Victoria Warehouse with the screams of ecstatic fans, elated after the long waited arrival of the main event.
The Libertines had arrived.
Setlist:
The Delaney
Heart Of The Matter
Horrorshow
Barbarians
Fame and Fortune
Boys In The Band
You're My Waterloo
The Saga
Vertigo
Can't Stand Me Now
Last Post On The Bugle
The Ha Ha Wall
Dead For Love
Gunga Din
Up The Bracket
What Became Of The Likely Lads
Death On The Stairs
Time For Heroes
Encore
Music When The Lights Go Out
What Katie Did
Don't Look Back Into The Sun
The boy's epic performance made for a wild night, volatile guitar riffs infused the riot-esque crowd into a spate of mosh pits, uncontrollable dancing, twisting and shouting for the boys in the band, and the ear piercing rendition of fans screaming the lyrics which echoed through the energised cohort, almost like a current flowing through an electric atmosphere. Did you see the stylish kids in the riot?
Sweat, Glory, Booze, Stampedes of Doc Martens - welcome to the belly of the beast. The room was seemingly overflowing with guitar riffs that make your heart stop, that makes every cell in your body quiver for a fraction of a second, lyrics that infect every inch of your being with absolute joy, your hairs standing on end, goose bump riddled skin. Nothing beats it. Feel the blood pumping through your veins, the air filling your lungs and your chest sinking as you exhale and scream the lyrics that shaped your teenage years. Nothing beats that feeling of pure unadulterated wonderment.
You're here, they're there, separated by nought but a metal barrier, a stones throw away, and usually you only hear them through the earphones that you use to block out the world, but now they're breathing in your air, and it makes for the most surreal experience. All that's left to do is feel the music. Feel your head teeter on the edge of sanity. Feel the sweat on your brow. Feel the crowd, and the beast you all form from moving in complete unity. Feel every fibre of your body being shot to heaven. Feel the music vibrating to your core. Nothing beats that feeling.
The pure, raw energy that pulsed through the room matched the charisma and stage presence graced upon us by the modern day Kings of Punk Rock, and the heart of the matter is, that these guys know how to put on a show and shape the minds of a generation. And in the immortal words of Doherty - My word that was fun.
So, my only burning question is - what will become of these likely lads?
Raise your cups and say cheers to the boys in the band.
Social Media;
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'til next time x
The libertines are one of my brother’s favorite bands and this band is all I ever heard on our speakers. He is recharging our doomed souls with those songs! Now I am a follower of those songs as well. Now I am so invested in this band that I am now officially using the cheap dissertation to give myself some time to relax with their tunes.
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