THE LIBERTINES + CHAPPAQUA WRESTLING + ZUZU + MAX BIANCO @ THE ROUNDHOUSE, LONDON 30TH OCTOBER 2024
Twenty-odd years ago, I had doubts about The Libertines. Sure, they were a good band, but I was far from convinced that they deserved the adulation that they were receiving, both from their fans and the British music press. They had produced two decent but far from perfect albums, and their live performances were prone on occasion to fall apart and were, at best, chaotic and shambolic affairs. The saviours of British guitar music? Leave it out! Then they released their Anthems For Doomed Youth album in 2015, which was excellent! Not only that, I saw them at Glastonbury in 2022, and they put in an extremely self-assured performance. Thus, they gradually became rehabilitated in my eyes! Which is why I’m here at the Roundhouse tonight.
The venue is well sold out, and there’s a very definite feeling that tonight is an event. Be elsewhere at your peril. The Libertines have curated an exciting bill tonight (I’m presuming they’re responsible for it). It’s very much a show, not just a gig with a cracking headliner and a couple of second-rate supports.
Zuzu kicks off proceedings. She is a singer/songwriter from Liverpool, as well as a producer, director, actor, and comic book illustrator. Not in the least bit lacking in talent, then. Zuzu has a band with her, but apparently, they’re “hired hands.” This is a pity, as she and the band gel really well. They give every impression of being into her music, too.
Zuzu released an album entitled Queensway Tunnel in November 2021, but only the last two songs are from it tonight. The opening song All Good was released as a single in 2018 and features some quite other-worldly effects courtesy of the lead guitarist. Half of Zuzu’s set are new songs, which is quite an adventurous move. She says that the new song Spy Balloon is “stupid”. It really isn’t. Con Man features some excellent lead guitar, but Nothing Is Quite As It Seems is the set’s highlight, both powerful and melodic. Zuzu’s material is pretty varied, and her vocals are sometimes reminiscent of the young Kate Bush. Certainly worth checking out.
You know how, at most gigs, you can use the breaks between bands to go to the bar or the bog or look at the merch or whatever? It’s not like that tonight. Well, not if you don’t want to miss anything anyway. At Pete Doherty’s instigation, we get a top-notch busker called Max Bianco, who plays for around ten minutes between each band. He’s good! Great vocals and a good guitarist too. He’s playing his own material, too. He is completely unfazed by the stage crew working around him. It’s pretty distracting, and I tip my hat to him for being able to give such an arresting performance while all that is going on, not to mention all of the chatter coming from the crowd. For his second set, Max is joined by a friend called Charles on vocals. They harmonise on a song called North East Day. The second song was unknown to Charles “until about half an hour ago”, not that you’d know.
The final support act before The Libs are the unusually named Chappaqua Wrestling, who are from Manchester. The opening song, Full Round Table, starts with a sonorous keyboard drone. When the drums come in, there’s a very marked Inspiral Carpets vibe, which is fine. Jake Mac and Charlie Woods share lead vocals and lead guitar duties throughout the set. Chappaqua Wrestling also have new songs in their set: Forgive And Regret and Guns In Their Hands. Tonight is the first time this particular song has been played to the public, and it’s really quite immediate.
However, I have one criticism: too many songs only have the drums coming in around the first chorus. It’s effective the first time, but after that, it seems like a formula. Chappaqua Wrestling are a good band. It would be a shame if they became known as the band with the interesting name but quite similar songs.
I’d been told that The Libertines would probably be late onstage, and they are – but only by about three minutes! They crash straight into Up The Bracket. Pete and Carl are particularly energetic for this first song. I can’t help but wonder how long their energy will last! As it is, the band have pretty much been on the road since December 2023, with only minimal breaks. They’re very definitely road-hardened, and it shows. They’re on absolutely top form.
What Became Of The Likely Lads causes an early outbreak of crowd participation, with the lyrics being sung back at the band. Bassist John Hassell mostly stands stock still, tapping his foot. He only seems to move when singing backing vocals. Boys In The Band was probably deliberately non-PC when it was recorded. It’s definitely non-PC now, but the crowd doesn’t seem to mind.
For Night Of The Hunter from the current (and excellent) album All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade, the band are joined by The Dirty Pretty Strings, who are wearing red 19th Century-style British Army uniforms as worn by The Libs back in the day. They’re also joined by a guy on acoustic guitar who I initially thought might be Paul Simonon! It transpires that it isn’t him. It’s Andy Newlove, the band’s tour manager. The current album is probably the band’s best so far. There’s nothing approaching a duff track on it. Some people may feel nostalgic for the first two albums, but The Libertines are not a heritage band. They’re still making outstanding records right now.
I’d never noticed this, but the chords used for What Katie Did display a very definite Beatles influence. I can’t have been listening properly before! The Good Old Days commences with a drum solo from Gary Powell, which I wasn’t expecting. I’ve become so accustomed to bands employing a backing track to some degree that it now stands out when a band doesn’t use one. Everything that comes out of the speakers at a Libertines gig is live. There’s no safety net! Also, it gives them greater musical flexibility, such as adding a snippet of Donna Summers Love To Love You Baby to The Good Old Days.
Baron’s Claw sees the return of Andy Newlove as Pete is singing minus his guitar. There’s a brass section, too, featuring one Carl Barat on saxophone! Something else that I wasn’t expecting! The string section returns for Shiver, which, like Baron’s Claw, is from the current album. One of the violinists has sergeant stripes on her arm. The rest of the section are all privates. Maybe she’s the first violin? Newlove is now on lead guitar, and Carl is on piano. Newlove remains on lead guitar for Merry Old England. His guitar style reminds me of Richard Hawley.
For Vertigo, the screens behind the band show an animation of the early 1970s Vertigo label. You must be of a certain age or a complete music nerd to appreciate the reference. Pete Doherty’s vocals sound excellent on Death On The Stairs. Probably better than they were a couple of decades ago. You’re My Waterloo from Anthems For Doomed Youth illustrates just how versatile Carl Barat is. Carl starts on piano, plays the lead guitar solo in the middle of the song, and then returns to the piano. He stays away from the saxophone, though. I notice at this point that there are mics pointing into the audience. Is this gig being recorded, perchance?
Increasingly, The Libertines have an extensive repertoire. However, live it’s still the fast songs that really do the business, as in getting the crowd going. There was a small mosh pit early on. Now, there’s one stretching halfway towards the back of the auditorium. I hope none of the older audience members do themselves a mischief!
As the main set draws to a close with Can’t Stand Me Now, I realise this is possibly my favourite Libertines song; musically and lyrically, the back-and-forth vocals between Pete and Carl, plus an absolutely killer bass line on the verses. Not only that but there’s also an awesome Pete Doherty harmonica solo. This is the kind of song for which the term ‘classic’ was invented.
The band is offstage for about five minutes or so, and there is some significant resetting of the stage. The band returns with the strings. Gary Powell is on piano. Apparently, John Hassell composed Man With The Melody from the current album about twenty-five years ago. He takes lead vocals for most of the song.
During Gunga Din, we get the first crowd-surfer of the evening: a lady! After that, the floodgates are opened, and there are many more. I’m amazed that it’s taken so long! The encores close with Time For Heroes and Don’t Look Back Into The Sun. The band take a bow with the strings and the brass section. This really has been a monumental gig. The Libertines have played for one and three-quarters of an hour, and as well as the oldies essayed a fair lump of the current album, which certainly doesn’t disappoint. With great records and a fine live show, The Libertines are reaching their prime. Proof, were it needed, that artists don’t necessarily produce their best work in their youth.
WORDS: MARK KELLY PHOTOS: CRIS WATKINS
