I've always been viciously envious of writers that are able to write while under the influence. Who among us wouldn't harvest a kidney to be able to write beautiful, boozy poetry like Shane MacGowan? Sadly, nothing has emerged from this pen in that condition. Don't try this at home kids, but in the interest of bringing you the best column possible over this past decade I have ingested a stray substance or two upon occasion while on the road.
I usually wake the following morning with no recollection of the night before in a cloud of neon orange specks spread across the snow-white duvet after rolling around in a bag of Cheetos. All I have to show for my so-called chemical creativity is a blank sheet of paper wet with sweat on my fleshy cheek.
So you can see why it's easy to hate Pete Doherty. His dabbling with suspect substances is well documented, yet he produces brilliant music with a crackerjack band like Babyshambles.
On their new CD, Shotter's Nation, Babyshambles tries on styles like Doherty tries on top-shelf supermodels. The CD was produced by Stephen Street, who has twirled the knobs for legendary albums from the Smiths, the Cranberries, and Blur.
Under Street's watchful eye, the band displays a thrilling identity crisis throughout this disc. They don't know if they want to be Green Day, the Kinks or Sublime, and they have a heckuva good time trying to figure it out as they go along!
For those of you not plugged into international tabloids, Doherty has been a media darling of gossip columnists ever since he dismantled his first band, the Libertines, because of his alleged drug use. Babyshambles rose from the ashes of that band, and it became the main vessel for Doherty's to continue his brilliant poetry laced with erratic behavior.
Babyshambles released their self-titled debut in April 2004, and settled on the lineup of Doherty, guitarist Patrick Walden, bassist Drew McConnell and drummer Gemma Clarke by that summer.
By Christmas, the band had to cancel or halt shows because Doherty was unable to perform. One of these sudden cancellations sparked a riot at the London Astoria. Clarke left the band early in 2005 and was replaced with new drummer Adam Ficek.
Since then, the media has feasted on things like Doherty's arrest for allegedly assaulting and blackmailing documentary director Max Carlish. Naming their first single "F** Forever" cemented them as bad boys throughout the U.K. and Ireland.
Doherty gives the paparazzi what they want on Shotter's Nation and stokes the fire of the rebellious rocker image he has so carefully cultivated. He seems to confront his substance abuse head-on with some killer lines like the one found on the acoustic "Lost Art of Murder," in which he pleads with his lover "get off your back, stop smoking that."
"Cast adrift of the shores of shotter's nation/I had a lick, it caved my skull in like a brick/oh now, what use am I to anyone/I'm f***ed, forlorn, frozen beneath the summer/don't sing along or you'll get what I got/so, here comes a delivery/straight from the heart of my misery," he yowls over the Swingin' Sixties strut of "Delivery."
From a musical perspective, the arrangements are mostly sped up and fragmented. It's as if Doherty dropped a dollop of booger sugar on the tape to give the tunes an extra snow-white sum'n.
"There She Goes" has a wicked jazz bass and an echoed surf guitar, while "Crumb Begging" starts off with an atmospheric Coldplay synth riff before shifting through a goosestep march right before the tune implodes in psycho-Sixties abandon.
You've got to love the jaded party boy viewpoint of "Baddie's Boogie." You can just imagine Doherty shaking the hand of a slick politician at some glitzy party, wiping his hand in disgust after the experience and writing his emotions on a cocktail napkin.
"Baddie's bound by ancient codes of decency and secrecy/He understands about stabbing backs and shaking hands/look out for the man who'll bum your wife and then shake your hand," he sings.
Doherty's tone is often bored and disinterested throughout Shotter's Nation, as though he was really put off that he would have to dismount Kate Moss long enough to record the track. Per-formances like "Baddie's Boogie" proves that he's 10 times the snotty punk that Liam Gallagher ever was.
Sadly, Shotter's Nation has not gotten much of a fair plug onstage, thanks to Doherty's shenanigans. Last week he was handed a suspended jail sentence for a series of drug and driving offenses. He was reportedly fined $800 for driving without insurance and $154 for not having a valid inspection certificate for his car. Appearing at West London Magistrates Court, Doherty was given a four-month sentence, suspended for two years.
It's a shame most American audiences only know this band from the singer's alleged love affair with an assortment of nose candies. Shotter's Nation deserves to be heard on it's own merits without the druggie garnish that sadly comes with it.
Pete Doherty, you're a shambles, baby. But if you keep turning out music this good with Babyshambles, I suppose we'll forgive the occasional bender.