Live Review: Babyshambles – Birmingham NIA 28th November

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Babyshambles – Birmingham NIA 28th November

Like a well-behaved child waiting to be rewarded by St Nicholas I’ve been wanting to see Pete for longer than I care to imagine. I entered Birmingham’s sizable NIA filled with hopes higher than Doherty’s usual state of mind but departed feeling slightly more deflated than a paddling pool that had fell foul of a misplaced needle. Now it hurt me to write that seeing as the former Libertine makes my ‘hero’s list’ with delightful company such as Jim Morrison, John Lennon, Keith Moon and Keith Richards. But maybe I shouldn’t have strutted through the doors with such life changing expectations? Maybe the setting was all wrong? Or maybe I just didn’t see the true troubled genius?

As with Manchester Babyshambles failed to fill the arena. In fact the attendance could be described as startlingly sparse. There were reportedly only 4,000 of the 10,000 allocation snapped up and touts were struggling to sell tickets outside. One of which would cheekily only offer us a fiver for our spare, but who can argue with the sound knowledge of supply and demand?

By the time the View (a band that Pete had spotted busking on the streets of London before they became a familiar sound on Phillip’s stereo’s around the country) had wetted the crowds appetite the anticipation was hard to contain. Then to rapturous applause a strangely healthy Pete appeared (no mean feat for this man) and led his band through Shotters Nation’s opener ‘Carry on up the morning’, aptly followed by ‘Delivery’ in a relatively controlled fashion. He continued journeying his way through their new material but struggled to maintain interest as a section of the crowd resorted to a good old fashioned punch up… twice. It could have been a Sex Pistols crowd only for a timed fourteen year old lad covered in blood ruining the illusion. The audience were only truly responsive to their earlier hits. An acoustic ‘Down in Albion’ for the encore entrée hypnotised the vocally participating punters before classics like ‘Kilimanjaro’ and ‘the Blinding’ added to the pleasing sweat level. Pete was uncharacteristically quiet throughout and if it wasn’t for his singing you could have been forgiven for thinking that he was a mute. He may have stopped chasing the dragon and displayed a controlled performance but his eyes told us he was still on something. But whatever it was it had more of a sobering than arousing effect as he seemed to lack passion and interest at times. The set appropriately ended with favourite ‘f*** Forever’ as Pete performance seemed to suggest that he really didn’t give a…

I’m not saying it was a bad gig, far from it. Just that it didn’t meet the mind blowing standards I’d hyped up before the show in my years of waiting patiently. Sure as a musical machine they played with robotic precision but their sound failed to really penetrate the body. All too often the sound from Ficek’s guitar and Pete’s for once audibly clever lyrics seemed to get lost in the arena’s vast void. Quite simply Babyshambles aren’t a group designed for arena tours but a more intimate face to face rendezvous. They may have been slated for their slot at Glastonbury last year but from what I’ve heard the public preferred his messy festival appearance as apposed to this. Along with the fans I was left craving more chaotic mischievous behaviour and lusting after some Libertines gems that he failed to deliver. But I suppose after all it was a “Babyshambles” gig and I can’t keep holding on to former glories? Disappointed, but like a puppy that has left a curly brown present on the living room floor I’ll give him another chance.

Reviewed by Simon for UKEvents.net