Babyshambles

Utter chaos is how we used to describe any Peter Doherty gig and to a point that’s how I would describe tonight but its all to do with trying to cram as many bands onto the roster as possible. 

 On the bill tonight we have Another Day who are preceded by a guy reading a rather long poem which I’m not sure was an effective use of their stage time. He then gets to play tambourine and maracas while the rest of the band get lively. Notably they don’t let him near the microphone again. The actual lead singer finishes the set with a back flip, which is impressive and a much better exit than their entrance. 

There's also Sweet Return who are pretty decent and do a song with the Babyshambles Drew McConnell on vocals. They leave a very good impression on the crowd. 

There was also Max Bianco, who apparently was on earlier but no one was here then. So, they invite him back for one more song before the Shambles come on. 

So, chaos so far but the chaos that once accompanied Doherty’s bands is now long gone. Tonight Peter Doherty describes his own band as dependable and he’d be right. We are thoroughly entertained by the grown-up version of the Babyshambles we last saw over ten years ago. They even look, whisper it, rehearsed. 

They kick things off in an energetic manner with ‘Killamangiro’ and ‘Delivery’ for what is the liveliest crowd I’ve seen at Rock City for a long, long time. It’s totally brutal down the front. 

Doherty himself is in fine form and, much as he was with the Libertines here last year, having the time of his life. Looking better and slimmer than for a long time. He’s even drinking orange juice. Between songs he keeps referring to the massive folder of Rock City gigs that he’s pinched from the dressing room where they have it on display. He shows it the crowd as he namechecks many of the great artists to have played here. 

The set includes everything you’d expect from the band, working through the albums 'Down in Albion' and 'Shotter's Nation' alongside 'The Blinding' EP but totally forgets the totally forgettable 'Sequel to the Prequel', their third ‘might have been more of a solo’ album from 2013. 

They close the main set with the new single ‘Dandy Hooligan’ with his wife Katia on a blow keyboard thingy (is that called a melodica?) and the whole thing with a raucous ‘Fuck Forever’, which Doherty dedicates to someone who should have been here tonight, founding member Patrick Walden who tragically died earlier this year.