After what seemed like a lifetime of would they, wouldn’t they?, it was announced that The Libertines would play a small warm up gig at Kentish Town’s HMV Forum to two thousand or so fans who were lucky enough to win a ticket ballot, prior to the band’s appearances at Reading and Leeds. Heavy on the minds of fans, was whether or not the reunion would capture the magic of the glory days, or be the shambolic mess that ended the band in 2004.
After a collage of photos of the band in their younger years, set to Vera Lynn’s ‘We’ll Meet Again’, The Libertines opened their first official comeback show with a rousing rendition of ‘Horrorshow’. Fears of a mundane performance were forgotten, as microphone sharing between Doherty and Barat was abundant, and a setlist filled with old favourites including ‘Boys in the Band’ and ‘Music When The Lights Go Out’ and lost gems such as ‘Campaign of Hate’, had the crowd singing along with every word, filled with a sense of nostalgia that few bands can generate quite as well as The Libertines.
Little seemed to have changed from the days of guerilla gigs in The Albion Rooms – loving glances were still exchanged by Peter and Carl, John remained standing stock still and Gary still spent more time with his shirt off than his shirt on. However, the music sounded a lot tighter, proving that the 6 years spent apart has improved each individual band member’s musicianship greatly.
There’s something special about The Libertines, and should the band’s reunion remain permanent or not, the attendees of The Forum will have fond memories of a very special gig.
Photo by Neil McCormick
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