Carl Barat’s post-Libertines career has been erratic to say
the least. He experienced moderate success with Dirty Pretty Thing’s first
album in 2005, the group he formed with ex-Libertines drummer Gary Powell after
the band’s split the year before. Unfortunately their time was short-lived
after their second and final LP bombed in 2008, leading ultimately to the
group’s split the same year. Since then, Barat has reunited with his former
co-frontman Pete Doherty for Reading and Leeds in 2010, and a massive one-off
gig in Hyde Park earlier this year, followed by dates at London’s Alexandra
Palace. His new venture Carl Barat and The Jackals are out on tour in support
of his new album ‘Let it Reign’, but will this new incarnation be a triumph, or
just a case of history repeating itself?
Barat and The Jackals open with new tracks ‘Victory Gin’ and
‘A Storm is Coming’; both fast paced 3 minute bursts of classic Barat sound. The appreciative audience is slow to start, but the
energy in the room soon begins to flow as they drop Dirty Pretty Things song ‘Gin
and Milk’ into the mix. The set is interspersed with old songs, both from The
Libertines and Dirty Pretty Things, and while Barat doesn’t seem reluctant to
play them, he is almost apologetic in his attitude to his past hits (perhaps
more for the sake of his new backing band than the audience). New songs are
introduced with a grunt of “this is another
new one” rather than by their titles. He seems grateful for the success
his past singles have afforded, but also ready to distance himself from them
with The Jackals.
Libertines classic ‘Death on the stairs’ sounds just as good
in this modest venue as it did at Hyde Park, although its slightly
heartbreaking hearing Carl sing both his and Pete’s vocal parts. Without the shambles
of Doherty, Barat’s music is slightly lacking in that rebel spirit, although he
has perfected playing the role of charming rock and roll frontman over the
years. Toward the end of the set Barat treats the crowd to a solo acoustic
performance of another new track and ‘France’. It’s an intimate moment for the
loyal fans who have attended tonight’s gig, and a victory for Barat’s
captivating stage presence. The band re-join Carl for a rousing rendition of
‘Bang Bang You’re Dead’; a song which is tired at best but still a fan
favourite if the reaction is anything to go by.
Some of the new songs do let Carl down, and unfortunately
for some reason they have been chosen as lead single and album namesake
respectively. ‘Glory Days’ is a dated, watered-down Libertines cover which
sounds like it would be bellowed by nationalist hooligans after a few pints
down the pub. Likewise ‘Let it Reign’ is riddled with over the top clichés and
sounds so cheesy at times it is painful to listen to. They close the set with ‘War of The Roses’ and fortunately redeem themselves as it is a
fantastic track and a reminder of what Barat can be capable of writing. The
encore of ‘The Gears’ and ‘I Get Along’ goes down a storm, and perhaps
indicating again that Barat’s song writing is at its best when he keeps things
short and snappy.
It’s a great evening for fans hoping for a mixture of songs
old and new, and there is no doubt that Barat’s voice and musical talent have
not faded over the last few years. Hopefully once The Jackals release their
debut album he will rely less on older tracks as a crutch and have more faith
in his new offerings.
0 comments:
Post a Comment